We were lucky to catch up with Emily Dwan recently and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Emily , appreciate you sitting with us today to share your wisdom with our readers. So, let’s start with resilience – where do you get your resilience from?
Where do I get my resilience from?
Succeeding as an artist is not all about wins. In fact, it’s much more about how you handle the losses.
As artists, we are constantly putting ourselves out there. It is a very emotional process with many ups and downs. Often, especially at the beginning of our careers, pieces that we crafted with our blood sweat and tears may not be received as well as we hoped. The rejection can make you second guess your mission. You may endure hundreds of nos before you receive that one sweet yes.
After pursuing this passion every day for the 36 years of my life so far, I have come to learn that every “failure” is a lesson. WHY did that piece not speak to my viewers as I had hoped? WHAT could I have done better to convey my emotions or message? HOW could I have made my composition more aesthetically pleasing?
Now, there are some artists out there who may not need to make money off their work, or they simply may not care what their audience thinks. That is spectacular! We simply have a different goal. I, however, am feeding my family with my passion which further fuels my personal fire.
If you open my closet, you will find piles and piles of old artwork. Endless hours of my time and my emotional journeys collecting dust. The stacks of discarded artwork have built the stairway allowing me access to my path today and in ten years, today’s artwork will continue building the stairs. As artists we are always growing until the day we die but my hope is that I will live on forever through my artwork.
Once you pry open the flood gates with your dedication be ready for the wins to start flowing in. Let me tell you, those wins feel even sweeter knowing that they are all yours and you built them from thin air, grit and YOUR imagination. Despite it all you have fostered the seed of your passion until it finally comes to sweet fruition.
My personal mission is to spread positivity through my art. To create a connection to nature through emotion captured on canvas all while providing for my family.
I must admit that a sane person would have quit long ago. Being an artist also takes a touch of madness to continue believing in your mission through the struggles of it all. Once you truly believe, deep down in the depths of your soul, that you were put on this earth to pursue your passion, giving up is no longer an option. That is where my resilience comes from.
To succeed as a dreamer in this world, you must be willing to choose the path of most resistance which may be the same path guiding you to your true purpose. Let the failures light your way.
Your imagination is the only thing limiting you.
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 am a fine artist inspired by my natural Colorado surroundings. I harness color theory, textured brush strokes and dramatic compositions to convey my interpretations of beautiful landscapes and nature inspired scenes. I work in two distinct mediums including acrylic paints and separately with stained glass mosaics. I aim to spread positivity through my colorful artwork.
I moved to Denver, Colorado from Chicago in 2011 to find inspiration in the mountains. I went from living on the 23rd floor of a high-rise in downtown Chicago to the RiNo art district of Denver. Just months ago, I finally accomplished my dream of moving to the mountains. Today my art studio is nestled in a dense mountain forest surrounded by wildlife in rural Morrison, Colorado.
I display my work at several summer Colorado art festivals and in my studio in Morrison. I am always offering custom commissions, visit my website at EmilyDwan.com for more details and to browse available artwork.
If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
For me fine art always came easily but my career finally took off when I started focusing more on my business skills which were severely lacking for years. I learned that a beautiful painting didn’t sell itself and if I wanted to make a living out of my passion that I needed to refine the business side of things. For those of you out there who are struggling, I recommend taking a long hard look in the mirror and writing down what your best and worst skills or areas of your business are. Be honest with yourself and create goals on how you can improve the lacking areas. Make a list on how you can achieve these goals. By making a step-by-step guide for yourself you will finally start to see the bigger picture. Lastly, be prepared to work your butt off to improve not only the lacking skills but aim to be constantly improving all your skills.
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?
Over the last few years there have been two books that have greatly inspired me. I recommend that everyone pick these up.
1.)
Elizabeth Gilbert, Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear
This book talks all about living a creative life. It is a unique perspective that I have listened to multiple times.
Here are a few of my favorite quotes from her book:
“Do whatever brings you to life, then. Follow your own fascinations, obsessions, and compulsions. Trust them. Create whatever causes a revolution in your heart.”
“A creative life is an amplified life. It’s a bigger life, a happier life, an expanded life, and a hell of a lot more interesting life. Living in this manner—continually and stubbornly bringing forth the jewels that are hidden within you—is a fine art, in and of itself.”
― Elizabeth Gilbert, Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear
2.)
The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
This is a unique book that I read while I was on bedrest recovering from abdominal surgery. I was stuck in bed in severe pain for almost a month and this book really got me through it. Instead of feeling bad for myself this book made be pick myself back up and come back every hungrier.
Here are a few of my favorite quotes from his book:
“There is only one thing that makes a dream impossible to achieve: the fear of failure.”
“The secret of life, though, is to fall seven times and to get up eight times.”
“Remember that wherever your heart is, there you will find your treasure.”
― Paulo Coelho, The Alchemist
Happy reading!
Contact Info:
- Website: emilydwan.com
- Instagram: http://instagram.com/emilydwanart/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/emilydwanart/
Image Credits
Kate Rolston | instagram.com/kate_rolston
