We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Cora Oaks a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Cora, so great to be with you and I think a lot of folks are going to benefit from hearing your story and lessons and wisdom. Imposter Syndrome is something that we know how words to describe, but it’s something that has held people back forever and so we’re really interested to hear about your story and how you overcame imposter syndrome.
In the beginning of my art career, when posting my art publicly for the world to see, I would create a piece, take way too long to make a reel, post and then wait with great anxiety for likes and comments. If I didn’t receive enough validation, I would pull it down. I know I’m not the only one who has done this. Another thing I did in the beginning that showcased my lack of confidence in myself is that I would avoid going to in person art classes because I thought I wouldn’t be as good as other students and the art instructor would think I wasn’t good enough. Or that in my anxiety of being in the class, I wouldn’t be able to perform and paint with all of the pressure that I put on myself.
I have actually gone to many therapy appointments to work through my anxious thoughts and I learned how to process the black and white thinking that I had and sometimes still have. The thing is…I was always hoping I’d be for everyone. That everyone would like my work, but I’ve since learned that I’m not for everyone and the right people and collectors will be attracted to my work and that’s ok. That while I continue to grow as an artist and experiment with finding my “thing’, I can put myself out there with practiced confidence and know that if I keep showing up, sharing some of my personal life and sharing the art that I create, I will attract the right crowd that appreciate what I offer. It goes both ways, There are some people online that I look forward to seeing and hearing about and others that I don’t. It’s all apart of the process in finding your niche in the world. I’ve gained more confidence in practicing and trying. Failing, crying and trying again. That is very normal and ok and I had to figure that out through other people being vulnerable, that I was ok if that was happening to me. Normalize working through the struggle to find your confidence. Don’t worry about likes and comments. Just keep putting your imperfect, beautiful self out there and you will find your people.
Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?
I absolutely love creating colorful, bold portraits for my art collectors and I really care about creating beautiful light and shadow compositions with cool and warm temperatures that really make a portrait interesting! I have also started trying my hand at religious paintings and that has been fun and challenging for me. Painting Jesus has been a very personal journey and an intimidating one. I’ve been working on combining a couple of the things that I love: painting beautiful light and dappled shadow and my love for Jesus as mysterious He is. There has been lots of trial and error in trying to capture His essence. Equal parts humbling and frustrating to feeling grateful and emotional…in a good way.
Right now, I’ve actually started painting Christmas Minis. It might seem early in the year to be doing that, but it is indeed not! I have these cute little blocks of wood that I paint $100 portraits on. I gold leaf the edges of the blocks and then paint a bold, fun, colorful portrait on the front of the block. I painted 52 of them last Christmas so I thought I’d get a head start this year! The measurements are 3.5”x2”. So if you want a Christmas Mini, DM me on Instagram @coraoaksart or email me at [email protected]. I also paint a lot of surprise Christmas portraits for families during this time of year. Original art is a very unique gift that is truly timeless. An heirloom that can be passed down for generations. I love what I do!
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?
Oooh, that’s a very good question! The first would be to take classes from your favorite most respected artists. Artists that you love. Learn from them as you grow and develop and then when the time is right, take your favorite lessons with you and do what you love. Start separating yourself in your own way on your own path. I took classes from lots of my favorite artists and learned invaluable lessons for years. I’m still learning. Then I pulled away with that information and painted what I wanted with my newfound skills. I still remember what one of them said. After you paint your first 100 paintings, you figure a lot of things out. Man, did that statement overwhelm me, but it’s true. I have since painted hundreds of paintings over the years and through that, I went from mimicking what I saw to painting what I love.
Another part of my journey that I’ve learned from is that failure (learning) and wiping paintings out when you can’t get it right and taking hours upon hours to try and figure out where you’ve gone wrong is NORMAL. Totally totally normal. Understand that it happens in every profession and is an essential learning curve to growing as an artist. Be patient with yourself and give yourself grace. It is frustrating. I get it. But work through it and your confidence will build over time.
The third thing I want to tell you is to have fun! If you’re not having fun while painting 1/3 of the time, then change things up. Take a break if you can and paint something more fun without the pressure. Something that isn’t a commission. Leave time in your schedule for fun paintings and drawings. Work light, more fun paintings into your schedule to prevent burnout. I was stressing myself out by only working on things I needed to and not incorporating things that I wanted to paint on my own. So I started taking pictures of my kids and my friend’s kids in beautiful light and shadow and incorporating gold leafing and that became a fun balance for me. Lighten the load in your mind with things that excite you.
Who has been most helpful in helping you overcome challenges or build and develop the essential skills, qualities or knowledge you needed to be successful?
I have definitely learned a lot from my parents, husband and children. I can’t just pick one! I watched my dad work through sleepless nights as a commercial artist all while serving people in his community and being there for us. I watched my mom take care of and organize the lives of six kids, me being the oldest. She also had a beautiful creative outlet of writing poetry and I appreciate that more now than I ever did back then. My husband is an entrepreneur and has a big vision for how he sees the world and works so hard fulfilling many jobs as he creates space for what he loves to do while also managing the stress of having many duties. My children are finding their place in this world and are working through hurdles to figure out what they love so they can do what they care most deeply about. It has been a blessing to witness them try and continue to push through adversity and get up and keep trying. My husband, Brian and I are very open with our kids and talk a lot about our failures and successes. We have a family group chat where we communicate our stresses, learning experiences and our successes. We talk about anything and everything. They have watched us push through and know that that’s what the Oaks do. I have learned from them and they have learned from me. I learn from anyone that shares a vulnerability with me. I know I’m not the only one with trials and vulnerabilities and we all work together to connect and support each other. I love them so much!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://Coraoaksart.com
- Instagram: @coraoaksart
- Facebook: Cora Oaks Art
Image Credits
Portraits of the artist were taken by Mirae Oaks. Instagram- @miraes_photos
so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.
