We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Kathy Sulewski. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Kathy below.
Kathy, we’re thrilled to have you on our platform and we think there is so much folks can learn from you and your story. Something that matters deeply to us is living a life and leading a career filled with purpose and so let’s start by chatting about how you found your purpose.
Grammar school is when I first realized I had a talent and an interest in art of all kinds. Painting, drawing, coloring, dioramas (not even just for school projects) anything to keep me busy and being creative. I was always working on something and usually already thinking about what I should do next. As I got older my father, who was an oil painter, helped me develop my love for painting. Growing up in New Jersey, I would attend art shows with him on weekends during the summer and enjoyed seeing what other artists were up to.
I then started taking all the art classes my school offered, and rather than choosing college after high school, I attended DuCret School of Art. It was a school near home but small and personal, so that’s where I started really learning about color, composition, design, and exposure to different mediums, techniques and how to put all of it together.
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?
I graduated from DuCret School of Art in 1986 and started my professional career in textile design working in Manhattan for a little while with a focus on fabric design for the fashion industry. I enjoyed it for a while, but it quickly ran its course for me and so I then shifted to more 3 dimensional type of design and joined the giftware industry where I achieved success over 12 yrs as a designer focusing anything from designing pet costumes, dishware/ tabletop collections, plush toys, to home and garden themed items, tons of fun and different things. During this time period I had gotten married to my husband, who I met while we were both in art school, and within a few years we started our family. In order to have a better work/life balance I started freelancing part time so I can share my time with my kids. Unlike today, it was not very common to work from home, but I was fortunate enough to have enough experience and a pretty good creative reputation, I found enough clients who wanted to work with me on my terms.
I eventually stepped out of the giftware industry and began to take my creativity to other outlets like furniture up cycling, and interior decorating more as a hobby and less as a career.
My husband who was graphic designer by trade, had a job offer that would then take us to Colorado which was a dream come true. We both had a desire to move west and Colorado in particular, so we jumped at the chance and have been here now for about 7 years. I then started to paint again and being here near the mountains and so much wilderness, has quickly helped me develop my style and love for the landscapes, wildlife, and some of my other favorite things. The mountains and skies offer so much detail, drama, and extreme lighting, and this is what I try to capture in my art. It also provides quite a challenge to paint, and I love it!
Painting again started as a just a hobby for myself, but has quickly turned into a nice small business. I have since launched my website where I feature my art, www.kathysulewskiart.com and offer both the original art and limited edition prints that can be ordered directly from the site. It’s been well, and certainly not something I thought I would ever be doing but I feel blessed to be in this position to share my art with others.
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?
Color. Composition. Vision.
I believe these three areas have been critically important for me in every part of my career. They each are very different areas of expertise but the 3 most valuable skill sets to have, and if so, you can design or create anything. My career has certainly taken drastic turns along the way, but that’s me. I like change, I like learning something new and have always loved a challenge to take my creativity in very different directions. I don’t think I would have been successful in any of them without having a clear understanding of these all 3. Now that I focus strictly on my paintings, “lighting” has become extremely important as well. Nature provides such drastic lighting at times that when I see it, I’m immediately inspired to capture in on my canvas.
Study them, learn them, and never forget them.
What is the number one obstacle or challenge you are currently facing and what are you doing to try to resolve or overcome this challenge?
About 12 years ago I was diagnosed with Lyme disease. I had started experiencing unusually severe fatigue, joint pain, brain fog and extreme lack of concentration. All things that were never an issue for me and it quickly affected my creativity and loss of eye hand coordination. Painting became impossible and then I felt had lost all my creativity.
I was fortunate to have a very good friend and neighbor who was a nurse, and had a brother who had been misdiagnosed for quite a while and was deteriorating rapidly until he was finally diagnosed with Lyme disease. She became an expert in this disease and alerted me to the possibility of having the same. We lived in NJ at the time and unfortunately this is not uncommon but the medical industry does not believe that Lyme can be a chronic issue and is not something they consider when seeking treatment. It is something YOU have to almost demand being tested for and be a self-advocate. I felt like my neighbor became my guardian angel.
Once I was correctly diagnosed, I was able to begin my recovery and it was a long journey back to become my old self, and something that will forever be the biggest obstacle I had to overcome. Being a mom, a wife, and an artist is who I am, and it had a drastic effect on every aspect of my life. Recovery took a few years but I am forever grateful to be able to recover unlike many others who lose the battle.
It’s now been about 8 years since I felt like myself again and I now paint as often as possible, simply because I can. Forever blessed.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://kathysulewskiart.com
- Instagram: kathy.sulewski.art
- Facebook: Kathy Sulewski Art
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