Meet Becky Chappell

We recently connected with Becky Chappell and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Becky , we’re so appreciative of you taking the time to share your nuggets of wisdom with our community. One of the topics we think is most important for folks looking to level up their lives is building up their self-confidence and self-esteem. Can you share how you developed your confidence?

As I’m sure every person who pursues their creative passion can relate, I’ve spent most of my life feeling like I would never be ‘good enough’, and comparing my art to everyone elses’, which of course was always better than mine. It didn’t help growing up the middle of 7, poor and always being told to get my head out of the clouds and focus on something “practical”.
I feel blessed that art has been enough of a passion for me that I would never give it up, even if I did it quietly, behind closed doors, never showing it.
Over the years, as I got to know more and more artists, and began to see the wide range of others’ work, I began to show my work more. I would still compare myself to others, but not as much. I started to see that everyone has their process, everyone is at their own stage with their art. The important thing is that they keep painting.
It’s been about 30 years or more since I first began showing my work. There are artists whose work I so admire and I would love to be able to capture a certain quality they have in that work, but I don’t compare. We are all individuals, with different styles and that expression is the beauty of why they paint! The differences in our individual work are why we do what we do, why it’s a beautiful thing…we are all unique, whether we have a creative outlet or not. It’s fabulous if we do, to me that expression is everything!! And a big part of my confidence is because I realize how very human we all are, we don’t do things perfectly. I have spent enough time with myself and my work, in the privacy of my studio. It’s a very intimate place where I’ve learned not only about my art but about myself. And that gives me enough confidence to BE human and to know that we ALL are human.
On that note, I love connecting with others, I need it as much as I need painting. As an introvert, I have to balance the solitude with connecting with other artists and people I love. I also teach classes fairly often, I love inspiring others to be creative.

Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?

Although art has always been an important and necessary part of my life, in 2009 my son passed away, and it was then I began to focus completely on it. It was a message from him, actually, telling me to get back to my art. I have ever since. I can’t just sit in my studio and paint. It’s a given that I can’t NOT paint, so I feel it’s my job to share it. Wherever I live I get involved with the local artist community, put my work out there in shows and teach classes. I enter juried and non-juried shows and exhibitions. I have a professional website. I share and sell my work through there, shows and social media.
I’m currently a member of 3 local art associations and 3 pastel societies. I often will offer sales and auctions of my art and have donated many pieces over the years.
At this point in my life, at 71, I will continue to teach, show my work, enter shows and paint. I naturally will slow down some.
Even a few years ago, I really wanted to be ‘known’ for my quality work. You have to be known to some extent but it’s not a big deal to me anymore. What I care about the most is painting, and that my paintings are my voice and expression, authentically.
I think that is what’s special about my work. That expression is real, from the heart, unapologetically.

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?

I would say it’s been my intense desire and thirst for learning and exploring, my focus, and my willingness to stick with it when I wanted to give up. It takes courage to show up every day or however often and be willing to make bad art. 🙂
I would tell others to just keep at it. Listen to your own voice. Be curious. Keep asking, ‘what if…’?
Embrace others’ art and creativity! These are your people, not your competitors. They put their pants on the same way you do.

Thanks so much for sharing all these insights with us today. Before we go, is there a book that’s played in important role in your development?

In 2011, I wanted to move more into abstract work, but had no idea how. I ran across Pat Dews. I LOVED her work. She was my guiding inspiration for quite awhile. I devoured her books and videos, These quotes from her book ‘Creative Discoveries in Watermedia’ were very impactful for me:
“There is no one right way to paint a subject. Every artist is unique and has a different vision. This is what makes painting special. You can see what someone else paints and the interpretation she brings to a subject, but your way could be better. Learn to trust your own instincts.”
“If you have the desire to work hard, you can do it too! If you have a positive attitude and think you can, you can! Each artist is unique, so draw from all that makes you unique!”

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