Meet Jacqueline Bermudez

We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Jacqueline Bermudez a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Jacqueline, thank you so much for opening up with us about some important, but sometimes personal topics. One that really matters to us is overcoming Imposter Syndrome because we’ve seen how so many people are held back in life because of this and so we’d really appreciate hearing about how you overcame Imposter Syndrome.

I believe that imposter syndrome is not something I will ever fully overcome. As an artist, it is something I have learn to embrace and work on quieting down those pervasive negative thoughts. The beautiful part of being an artist is that I get to make the rules as I go. The deeper I go into my work, the more I discover parts of myself. This beautiful form of expression gives me strength as I learn to ignore that ever present voice that tries to convince me that I am not good enough. The healing is always found in the artistic practice and the key is to trust what brings me joy as opposed to what brings me anxiety.

Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?

I am self-taught photographer as well as a self-taught portrait painter. I have been a photographer for about 12 years, and during these years I have had the joy of photographing moments, experiences and even business photos that mean the most to my clients. During my photo sessions I like to connect to my clients to make sure I give them the absolute best work I can. After the death of my father in 2019 I decided to take a sabbatical from my photography as I was unable to see much positivity in life. The grief was so difficult to process that I needed to focus on healing from the pain. It was during this time that I decided to get back to my first creative passion, which was painting. While painting I was able to escape into my own mind, which helped me feel connected to a higher source, and that was very healing for me.

I am currently finishing a one year commitment to my art practice at my studio in CollaboArtive in Miami. My focus in this stage of life is my partner and the five daughters we have in our blended family as well as my art practice. I want to explore how far I am able to go in this adventure as a portrait painter. Starting November 2024, I will be moving to a new studio space at Miami International Fine Arts which is a very exciting opportunity for me. I am still taking photography jobs from some of my regular clients or any fun photoshoot that might come up.

If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?

Hope, optimism and trust. I live with the motto that hope should be the very last thing we should lose. I like to trust that things will inevitably work out in my favor if I do my best to embrace my authentic self. I have had many ups and downs throughout life, but I ultimately I give more energy to trusting that life is good and always getting better. Optimism helps me stay in a more positive flow, although I definitely focus on realistic optimism. I have never been one to be oblivious about truths of life.

Looking back over the past 12 months or so, what do you think has been your biggest area of improvement or growth?

After my sabbatical and immediately followed by the isolation of the pandemic years, I started feeling aimless in my career which inevitably lead me to feeling depressed. The best thing I have done for myself in the past 12 months has been to rent an art studio at CollaboArtive in Miami, making it the first time in my life having a studio space outside my home. I was given an opportunity to sublet an art studio space for nearly two months and when that time was up another studio space became available. It was a little nerve wracking to make the commitment to permanently join the community at first, but I made peace with my anxiety by thinking about the next 12 months as a gift to myself, a gift to my heart. This was to be a time to simply show up for my art practice. This studio has been a wonderful cocoon to make paintings and dream of the next stage as I continue to grow as an artist.

Contact Info:

Image Credits

All photos of my paintings and myself shot by me, Jacqueline Bermudez.

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