We caught up with the brilliant and insightful James Bohling a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
James, 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?
I believe a great way that I built confidence is through setting goals and achieving them, as this provided a sense of accomplishment and validation. Additionally, practicing positive self-talk and focusing on personal strengths and skills helped me to cultivate a more positive self-image. Another important factor in building my confidence was by surrounding myself with supportive and encouraging people who uplifted and validated my work. Building confidence and self-esteem requires consistent effort and dedication.
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?
I am an artist who paints landscapes, primarily depicting scenes from the Great Plains and Rocky Mountains, where I was born and grew up. I love the outdoors and feel a great deal of nostalgia around farms and barns, old homes or untouched nature. My main focus has been painting big sweeping skies with a low horizon. I love the abstract feel of the clouds and, in many cases, the beautiful skies we see steal the show.
I display my work in various venues for exhibitions and shows, and have recently begun selling giclee prints of my older work after I saw a demand that.
Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
I would say the most impactful qualities and skills for me were confidence in my style and work, lots of practice, and a love of the process. For someone who is just beginning a journey as a professional artist I would advise that because you will have many ups and downs, sometimes you just have to work through it. If you love the process, then just work and that will lift you up. Not everyone will like what you do so you have to be mentally prepared for that.
How would you describe your ideal client?
My ideal client would be someone who appreciates art in all its forms but especially loves to see different takes on landscapes. I love when someone sees my work and it brings back memories of a special time in their life or a place they loved or lived. It warms my heart to hear “this looks like my grandpas old place” or “we used to camp near there”. That’s a good feeling.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.jamesbohling.com
- Instagram: @jamesbohlingartwork
- Facebook: www.Facebook.con/bohlingart
