Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Rob Marchand. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Rob, so excited to have you with us today. So much we can chat about, but one of the questions we are most interested in is how you have managed to keep your creativity alive.
Creativity has always been an integral part of my life. It’s something that I always try to make time for. My mind needs the creative release to be happy. I started a career in video production in 2003 with the hopes of working on feature films one day. Certainly this industry would satisfy my creative urges, and for most of my career, I have been able to find jobs that allow a reasonable amount of creative freedom on projects. Somewhere along the way though, I ended up stuck in a job with repetitive corporate clients that were more concerned with agendas than imagination. The burnout was real. I could feel myself losing interest and motivation in my chosen path. I wasn’t sure what to do. Change jobs? Change careers? I was getting lost. Then, in 2020, like a toxic destiny, Covid 19 rolled in. The horrible plague that caused so much pain and suffering for a large population of the world, actually was a blessing for me. My overanxious boss pulled the plug one week in to the pandemic. More than half the staff was let go. “Business was going to dry up and precautions were necessary.” I was stunned. I was worried. I was free. I never had the courage to move on. Now I was forced to. After a couple weeks, I embarked on the next phase of my career. Something I had always done as a hobby. A creative outlet that I had always wished could be a full time job. My art. I was ready to keep my creativity alive and go full force into making a name for myself as an artist.
Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?
So with my new found “freedom”, I was ready to channel my energy in to my passion. I spent about a year making art everyday, being creative and rejuvenating my soul. I took some freelance gigs to keep the income flowing, in my previous field of video production. Though most of my time was spent in my garage being creative. It eventually paid off when I was signed by a local gallery and got my first “wall”. I had 4-5 pieces on permanent display and was even given a featured month where I could display a whole series of work. I was truly happy. Unfortunately it didn’t last. The gallery didn’t survive the economic downturn and had to close. Without the necessary exposure it was hard to sustain the artist life I had dreamed of. Eventually I sold all the art pieces I could (many at a discount) and relocated to Colorado with my wife and kids. My wife’s career was taking off and we found a new home that worked best for her. I continued making art and pursuing the path of an artist, but it didn’t progress in our new location and i started to get lost again. I occupied most of my time the first year with home renovations. This was consuming and enjoyable and kept me busy while I pondered my next path. When the home renovations were done and the dust had settled, I begin exploring new avenues. I eventually found interest in the emerging artificial intelligence sphere. I found inspiration online from others who had used the new AI technology to create incredible art. I thought there must be a way to merge this technology with my creativity. So with much help from internet gurus, I immersed myself in the learning process. After a couple months I had found my new path. I set up an online marketplace and begin selling my AI creations. I have started small with some really cool designs on coffee mugs, but hope to eventually expand to full size art pieces for peoples walls. After a month of work on this new online store, I finally got my first sale. The store is still a baby but I am excited to watch it grow. The remnants of my past careers are still alive as I just can’t bring myself to take them down. Both my video portfolio website and my artist portfolio website are still live. My creativity has been reignited by this incredible new medium and I truly think it could be a new successful venture.
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?
After graduating college in 2003, I was quite sure that I knew exactly what I wanted to do. I was wrong. The truth is that we never really know what career path we will end up on, and I think it’s important to always be open to new opportunities. I wish I had taken more control earlier in my career, and pursued the subjects that really interested me rather than the ones that were easiest to attain. Looking back, I think it’s important to learn as much as you can about emerging technologies and see if they push you in new directions. Things change so quick in this world and you don’t want to get left behind.
How would you spend the next decade if you somehow knew that it was your last?
My current challenge is trying to stand out in an oversaturated market. I have researched the competition and I firmly believe I can provide a better product than most. I am trying to learn the best ways to get noticed and drive traffic to my store. I spend time learning different strategies and hope to create a successful online presence.
Contact Info:
- Website: blueforestmugs.com
- Instagram: @blueforestmugs
- Facebook: facebook.com/blueforestmugs
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robmarchand219/
- Twitter: @blueforestmugs
- Other: https://www.robmarchand.com/ https://vimeo.com/robmarchand
Image Credits
Cotton Miller Rob Marchand
