Meet Julia Anne Adams

Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Julia Anne Adams. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Julia Anne, so great to have you with us and we want to jump right into a really important question. In recent years, it’s become so clear that we’re living through a time where so many folks are lacking self-confidence and self-esteem. So, we’d love to hear about your journey and how you developed your self-confidence and self-esteem.

I had many people in my life that helped me overcome the self doubt and struggle with the lack of self confidence. They being my parents, siblings, other family and friends. I also was blessed to have an amazing art teacher early on to help build me up and guide me through some of the big changes that come with the journey of really knowing where you fit in the art world.

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

I grew up in Huntsville Alabama, in a loving home with the best kind of parents you could ask for and three wonderful siblings. My grandmother on my mom’s side also lived in the same home. All of these people had a huge influence on me; it was the family I was meant to have. All of us were homeschooled up through high school, a wonderful way to be educated.

I am dyslexic and that has had a large impact on my life. I often struggle with being confident. But being homeschooled was a plus when dealing with that disability. At that time there were very few resources for helping with overcoming it. My mom was so patient and understanding, reading out loud a lot and helping me through so many difficulties that come with dyslexia. It’s amazing how many things are so hard for someone with dyslexia that others take for granted. I think a lot of my determination to overcome all of that has helped on my artistic journey as well as in social circumstances.

Even at a very young age I loved the arts no matter what the subject: music, crafting, sewing, clay, film etc. I really thrived and felt sheer joy when engaging in any of these subjects. That led my parents to gifting me art classes with Barbara Miller on my eleventh birthday. Mrs. Miller was a jewel of a teacher who had the biggest influence on me as an artist. She taught me just about everything I know about art today. I’m always so impressed when her words of advice come to mind during my paint sessions or when teaching art.

She started all students in drawing then after you learned the principles, she allowed you to take your own journey into mediums and subjects you most enjoyed. When she introduced me to colored pencils I thought that would be my medium for good. But when I tried oil painting, that was really it! Mrs Miller was always so intuitive and knew when to introduce you to something new. She could even be a bit sneaky about it as when she thought I might do well with larger paintings. I had probably only done 18×24” at the most. When I came to class one day, sitting beside her desk was a huge canvas, about 60×60”. She asked me if I could come up and help her with it. First she had me pick out the subject and then start the underpainting. After about an hour or so of working on that I asked her what else she wanted me to do next. She just replied,
“Go ahead and do what you think, that’s your canvas.” I was confounded and surprised. But it was so clever of her to get me started. And she was right, once I started, I was hooked on painting large. When it finally came time to decide on where I wanted to go to college and choose a career, I knew I wanted to do fine art oil painting. I ended up continuing classes with Mrs. Miller’s classes because at that time it was hard to find good art schools close to my home. I was struggling a great deal with the thought of taking tests in college with dyslexia, and had extreme self doubt in that area. Even though that was not a good reason to back down from the challenge, I think I made the right decision at the time. When I hit my twenties I met a girl around my age in my art class who had the same taste and passion for art. She and I hit it off and started painting Plein Air together. Painting outdoors became my favorite way to paint and still is to this day.

My friend and I were really good for each other, pushing one another to paint more and work hard to learn our craft. As I become more confident in my work and competence, Mrs. Miller encouraged me to have a solo art show. I was very hesitant until a precious friend of the family invited me to her home to discuss a commission she wished me to do and asked if having an art show was something I might do one day. I told her I wasn’t sure if I was ready. I will never forget that moment when she looked straight at me over her cup of tea and said, “I think you should do it soon and not wait.” It really felt like God was speaking through her, it struck me so strongly at the time. This is one of the many moments I have had over the years that I know it was God guiding me through friends or family to go for it and not be afraid. I had my art show there in my art class room and it was such a success, it blew me away. Almost every painting sold and I had more commissions to work on. A few years went by and had a second show. This time with two other friends at The Botanical Gardens in Huntsville. It was also very successful and gave me such encouragement. I then could see how strong and confident I could be after that even though I was struggling with anxiety and depression at the time. But that is a whole other story!

Then my friend and I planned to move to Florence, Italy to study at the Florence academy of Art, a school founded by Daniel Graves. We worked tirelessly to save money we made through various jobs and selling art. I was accepted into the program and Ashley signed up for some workshops. Around this time I met my future husband, Blake. When it was nearing the time to go to Italy, niether Ashley or I were sure we would have the money to actually pull it off. Once again I think the Lord was working through many different people who were so generous to fill in the amount that was lacking in order for us to have this opportunity. I will never forget the goodness and love showered on me to become the artist I believe I was designed to be.

We went and had one of the most impactful experiences of our lives. Blake also came to see me in Italy and we were able to travel to Venice and Milan. When we returned to the states to my hometown, Blake proposed and we were married. This began my journey as a wife and then a mom of two precious girls. Blake and I have been married 8 years and are still in love. Our girls, Claire and Heather, are 5 and 3. Being a full time mom with dreams to be a full time artist has been the biggest challenge yet. But looking back to where I have come from, I know that strength is there and I know I’m not alone in the journey. Blake is my biggest cheer leader and my two girls surprise me with the encouragement they give now and then. I know God uses all the people who love me to spur me on. My biggest challenges are finding the time to paint and keeping up with home life. Pumping the brakes when I want nothing more then to go ahead and start an art business. Realizing this is a season to enjoy my girls while they are still home and try to slow down and enjoy the moment.

Gardening has been a new venture that has been very fulfilling and gets me out of the house and seems to feed my soul in a special way. When I can get in the studio, I work on commissions. These paintings have been a blessing to our family and I’m very grateful for them. Next year both my girls will be in school or pre-K program so I will have more time to focus on painting. I would like to go back to my favorite way to paint and do Plein Air around Huntsville. Then when I have a big enough body of work I would like to have another solo show. I want to do smaller works that more people can afford and fit in their homes easily. I think it is so important to have beautiful things around us. When I paint God’s beautiful and healing creation, I trust that painting will end up in the right hands and bless that person. I know that because He has used so many people in my life to bless me. He never wastes anything. All my struggles turned into strength with His help through others. I feel a strong responsibility to be the artist I was destined to be, the best version of myself for God, myself and others.

I hope this story of mine will help others dealing with similar struggles will encourage and empower them to keep on and listen to those who love them most. Community is a key to success. I don’t believe anyone can do it alone, we truly need each other.

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?

I think being able to push myself when I felt like giving up, finishing that painting or project before moving on. It was an encouragement to see how if I followed through what the results were, and that in turn spurred on to do the same for future projects.

Listening to people who loved me and really cared about my journey as a person and artist. The advice or encouragement from them was something to pay attention to. It has certainly brought me to where I have a peace about what I’m doing with my work and where I am in my life.

When it came to my education in fine art, not going to college was something I questioned, but I had many art teachers and people who had experience tell me that in some ways you are better off finding an artist you like and take their workshops. This has been a huge help to furthering my education without spending a lot of time and money on some parts that might not apply to me or isn’t an asset to my career.

Community is also absolutely vital to helping you with your journey. You need others to help you when you are down, give positive and constructive criticism. Just having other artist to commiserate with is so encouraging and makes you realize your not the only one with bad days weeks or even years, you just keep going.

Thanks so much for sharing all these insights with us today. Before we go, is there a book that’s played in important role in your development?

Alla Prima by Richard Schmid would be the art book I would choose to take to a desert island. It’s like the Bible of art books for painters. An incredible artist and teacher.

Some of the more memorable quotes from his book would be:

“Talent, Don’t bother about whether or not you have it. Just assume you do, and then forget about it.”

“Failure, profit from your failed paintings. Each one is sending you a message about what you are doing wrong (for you and your work). Find out what it is, and don’t do it again. I regard my disasters as an invitation to learn more. Mistakes are part of being human. So what?”

“Art is a language. When we are bursting with some wordless experience, Art is our voice, the song of the heart.”

Contact Info:

• Website: https://jwadamsfineart.com
• Instagram: jwadamsfineart
• Facebook: Julia Anne Adams

Image Credits

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