Meet Maddie Kopp

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

Maddie, we’re so excited for our community to get to know you and learn from your journey and the wisdom you’ve acquired over time. Let’s kick things off with a discussion on self-confidence and self-esteem. How did you develop yours?

When it comes to developing confidence within myself, I had to discover who I truly am. I needed to take time alone with my thoughts and get to know myself. I know it sounds really cliché, but taking time by myself to understand my likes, dislikes, and recognizing patterns within my life that don’t serve my highest self, really changed my life. I used to be a huge people pleaser, but when I took the time to develop my own thoughts and opinions without any outside noise is when my confidence began to grow.

Confidence within my artwork is something that I am still working on. Going to school for art taught me a ton about technical skills, but not exactly how to find my style and voice within my artwork. My artwork has always been very dark, messy and sometimes disturbing, but creating art is the only time I felt safe to express my true emotions. The past few years I have been able to speak on pieces and their meanings due to all of the strives I’ve made within my self growth journey.

I believe that the work I have done has helped me become a more expressive artist as well as find my true style within art.

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

Expression of past experiences and emotions are a crucial part of who I am as well as my creative process. To channel those inner thoughts onto canvas or paper, it is necessary that I get into the headspace of that specific time in my life. Mental health has always been a prevalent topic within my work. Throughout my life I have been using art as therapy as an outlet to prevent emotions from bottling up within me. Different art therapy exercises, especially self portraits, express worries and anxieties revolving around my life, which has been an over arching theme within my pieces.
I get into my creative process by listening to different types of music, as well as looking back on photographs or videos of a time period. To express emotions, I use different types of mark making as well as different colors, designs, lighting, and techniques. These things are very important as they display the emotions I was feeling at that time. Dark, bold, intense, lines and shadows are an example of how negative emotions that come through. Warmer colors, thinner lines, and bright highlights often times display positive channeled emotions. I think that everyone has a way of expressing themselves and sharing their story through a creative process or special talent, and art as therapy is mine.

After working hard to develop different skills within my practice I attained my Bachelors in Studio Art with a certificate in Social Work Mental Health and Well Being. After college I was nervous with what the reality of being an artist in our society might look like, especially for someone who doesn’t make “pretty” art. But then I was asked by Xavier to get involved with MiracleArts, and it was the best decision I’ve made. Miracle arts is a place for all types of artists that offers resources and services that aim to equip creatives with essential (Technical & Business) skills while supporting their communities
initiatives to thrive in their respective careers. We offer a resource guide with information for every arts-related organization in Minnesota, including nonprofits, supply stores, recording studios, and more. Not only that but host events where you can connect with a ton of different artists in the area.

MiracleArts was something I knew I wanted to get involved with right away. Now with it being a little over 2 years working with the MA team, everyones creativity and passion to help others is what truly inspires me.

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?

Three main things I would tell my younger self to work on is speaking, consistency, and to remain openminded. These are the three things that I feel held me back when it came to connecting with others and improving not only my artwork but myself.

The way you present yourself, especially how you speak is very important when it comes to creating connections within art, business, and in life. Next time your out grabbing food, say hi to someone you don’t know… you could be talking to your next boss, a potential collaborator, or new bestie.

Consistency is something I struggle with the most. Try your hardest to stay consistent within your practice, whatever it is. You can be 20 times more talented then someone but not have as many customers, followers, etc… just because you are not consistent.

Remaining openminded might be the most important. I’ve ultimately learned that being accepting of an opportunity that comes your way, even if it wasn’t in your plan, is often times a gift waiting for you.

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 super interested in collaborating with all types of artists. I am a graphic designer, production artist, and video editor when it comes to my 9-5 job, an art director for MiracleArts, as well a studio/mixed media artist when it comes to my brand MADDKOPP.

I love creating all forms or artwork, especially combining different mediums. I enjoy painting drawing, taking pictures, video, and sometimes making a song or two.

I am looking for anyone who is interested in mixed media – especially when it comes to combining physical artwork within photography or videography.

You can contact me via DM on instagram @maddkopp

I would love to meet you at one of MiracleArts Creative events, hope to see you there!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://maddkopp.com
• Instagram: maddkopp
• Other: website: miraclearts.com

  instagram: miracle.arts

Image Credits

Maddie Kopp
Malachi Gibson