We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Ariel Bullion Ecklund a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Ariel, appreciate you sitting with us today to share your wisdom with our readers. So, let’s start with resilience – where do you get your resilience from?
My resilience comes from necessity! I grew up in a very small family, and both of my parents died at a very young age. As a survival skill, I’ve learned to do everything for myself right from the start.
To be resilient means waking up and attempting to move forward every day, regardless of the circumstances, whether it be the past mistakes that haunt you, or the inevitable challenges ahead!
Resilience is derived from the fact that ultimately, we are the only ones responsible for ourselves. No one else can make anything happen for you.
Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?
For the last 15 years, I have owned a gallery and custom framing studio in the Finger Lakes Region of Upstate NY. I’ve curated and mounted over 100 physical exhibitions, and have invited hundreds of artists to share their work in my gallery space.
Small business ownership with a physical store front is quite an adventure, and not for the lighthearted! It is very much like parenting a young child – the business cannot be left alone for long and needs constant attention. That being said, I continue to be passionate about and very proud of the arts advocacy work I have put in – not only for each and every artist, but also for our community at large. I am so thankful that my days are enveloped in the creative process.
Over the last several years, there has been a shift in my personal life. I’ve been dealing with chronic pain as the result of degenerative spine issues and this has caused me to redirect my energies. In the past, I took much pride in being very physically active – both during and outside of my workday- and dedicated much of my free time towards this goal. Now that my body is requiring me to alter it’s routine, my days have changed. At first, this new reality made me very sad that I could no longer enjoy the activities that I did when I was young. I’ve come to accept this as the inevitable, natural cycle of life.
Since then, I’ve allowed myself time to focus on my own artwork and it feels both amazing and “right” to be at this particular point in my life! I work in many different mediums- most often in ceramics and photography – two processes that I find very similar. Photography was my first love, and the primary reason I pursued art school. I became rather obsessed with ceramics 10 years later. Both of these labor intensive processes are full of mystery and the unknown – in the end, there is always an element of surprise. The loss of control is an attribute that challenges me and keeps me coming back.
Recurring themes of my work are autobiographical. It is difficult for me to distance myself from my upbringing and life experiences. I hope to portray a pause, an emotive stillness. I want the viewer to sense both fragility and the manifestation of strength.
For anyone who is interested.. on April 20th, my solo exhibition, Breathing Room, opens at Hawk + Hive in Andes, NY. This exhibit will present my recent ceramics, photography and works on paper. Breathing Room will be on view through May 19 – if you are in the Catskills / Western Hudson Valley region, do stop by to see the exhibit.
I also have work in the MADE IN NY exhibit at the Schweinfurth in Auburn, NY. This is an annual juried exhibit curated by Bill Hastings and Juan Perdiguero on view through April 27.
There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?
Perseverance is absolutely necessary to be a small business owner, or to pursue an artistic career. One must believe in themselves and ignore the naysayers (and sometimes that includes ignoring those voices in your own head saying you are not worthy!).
Allowing yourself to be vulnerable is integral to the learning process. If we don’t make mistakes, there is nothing gained and growth is not possible.
The ability to ask for help is something I still struggle with, but I know is an important life skill. Because doing things for myself was ingrained in my upbringing, I’ve never been comfortable asking for what I need. It isn’t even something that comes across my mind – but I realize I certain pathways could have been much easier if I simply let some folks help out.
One of our goals is to help like-minded folks with similar goals connect and so before we go we want to ask if you are looking to partner or collab with others – and if so, what would make the ideal collaborator or partner?
I am absolutely looking for new challenges, additional opportunities and ways to collaborate with like minded, artistic folks! Don’t hesitate to reach out if you have an idea or proposal that we can work on together. I am interested in hearing from designers and galleries who are interested in my work. I’d love to put some additional exhibitions and projects on the calendar for the next few years!
Contact Info:
- Website: www.arielecklund.com
- Instagram: @ariel_bullion_ecklund
Image Credits
Images by Ariel Bullion Ecklund
