We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Ginger Hamilton a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Ginger, 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?
Confidence and self-esteem is crazy, it really is. There is nowhere and nothing that can control your confidence besides what is inside of you, however we all (myself included) totally allow these outside factors to dictate both of these things. As an artist, it is so easy to tie your confidence to the success of your work and the general feedback that you receive from people, but you have to almost have this small sense of delusion along with it. You have to truly believe that you are the exception to every rule to every “starving artist” stigma there is. You also have to be really good and going with the flow, and be okay with changing directions often.
Every single person is going to have an opinion on you and your art, so for every person that things negatively about your work, there will also be people that are totally infatuated by you and your work. I am constantly working on never getting too high or too low about feedback or comments, and staying the course because I have this overwhelming sense that what I am doing does inspire people and does bring joy to people’s life. A phrase that has been stuck in my head recently is “who care’s if anyone likes it, I love it” and that just really sums up this sense of blind confidence that you have to have sometime being in the creative space and constantly putting your work out into the world for judgement.
Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?
So I have been freelancing on the side for about. 8 years, I have always had a super distinct style and feel to my work and after working a series of dead end jobs that were just every drains, I took the leap and wanted to try working for myself full time. The first two weeks I pretty much just cried every day because I wasn’t totally convinced that my work was something people would care about or actually want to hang up in their homes. Then I started putting myself out there, I started doing markets and saying yes to EVERYTHING. That launched me into this whirlwind where I simultaneously learned how to screen print and accidentally launched a clothing brand while also being an artist.
My brand is unique in the fact that I solely stick to the colors Black and white. It is abstract, it is messy, it has this approachable and elusive feel to It that feels familiar yet different. I focus heavily on typography- which is a polarizing form of art to begin with- but I love using words in my art and conveying messages to readers, whether the message makes them think of someone they love, or relates to something going on in their personal life, I love that using text and conveying messages through my work makes everyone feel something different.
Right now I am primarily focusing on custom commissions, painting and my clothing designs, but am always trying to learn new things to incorporate into what I offer.
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?
1- Never get too high & never get too low When you are running a business or creating art, you will have wildly successful moments and painfully draining moment, you have to stay the course, keep that confidence and just continue to ride the wave because if you know you offer something worth having- the right people will find you
2. Don’t be afraid to pivot!
Try something new! I started out as a graphic designer and painter, I wanted to learn how to screen print on a whim and now the clothing side of my business is surpassing my art career in ways that I never thought it could. Does it sting a little to know my art alone couldn’t cut it? Sure! But also, I get to design wearable art now that people wear, that is different than the same cookie cutter things you see over and over again. I get to pave the way in new ways!
3. Do not try to be like everyone else.
Please. I have fallen into those traps where you see someone else’s style and you try to emulate it- just don’t. What you offer is unique on it’s own so do not try to be someone you are not. Of course, take inspiration from everything and everyone, but use it as your own style. Your work will go a lot further and a lot deeper if you stick to you. Regardless if you are the only one doing what you are doing, keep it going. There’s a reason you’re the only one.
One of our goals is to help like-minded folks with similar goals connect and so before we go we want to ask if you are looking to partner or collab with others – and if so, what would make the ideal collaborator or partner?
Always looking for people to collab with or work with. Whether you are a business owner looking for a mural, a family wanting some custom art for your home, or want to get your hands on some of my graphic tees, please reach out!
I always love collaborating with other local artists in all mediums! I am always looking to collab with photographers especially!
Contact Info:
- Website:gingercc.com
- Instagram: @ginger_cc
Image Credits
Gabriella Altiveros Bryanna Casey Ginger Hamilton
