We recently connected with Lucy Lawrence and have shared our conversation below.
Lucy, 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 went to art school at UCLA for drawing and painting and was surrounded by incredible artists. It’s very intimidating to be working alongside that much talent. There was a part of me that wanted to compare my work to what to my peers were doing, but I realized in those studio classes that I was happiest when I was making things that made me laugh. I found confidence in my art by listening to my own voice and knowing that was what made my work special.
Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?
My name is Lucy Lawrence. I’m an artist/performer/musician born and raised in Los Angeles. In 2017 I was super sick and depressed. I didn’t know what to do with myself being stuck in bed all of the time. One day, I just started doing silly drawings and texting them to my friends to make them laugh. They were losing it and it was honestly cheering me up a lot. Even as I started to feel better, I kept drawing silly stuff from the same universe and collected the pieces onto an instagram page called VERYUSUAL. It became clear to me that I wanted this to be something bigger. I wanted to make people as many people smile through my silliness as possible. I started putting the drawings on tee shirts and it was like, oh, this is a whole world. I found that I loved designing wearable items… My tiny tee shirt sales to friends turned into a website with over 50 items including hoodies, sweatshirts, keychains, tote bags, earrings, greeting cards, and pins. I started doing markets in Los Angeles and Las Vegas and have started getting items placed in stores. I’m a smile chaser and I’m coming for you next.
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?
Starting a business is a huge process! I am learning so so much along the way. For me, the three things that helped me were developing a skill, having a strong voice and ignoring advice that didn’t feel like “me.”
I am a classically trained painter but I’ve found that I can best express myself in the zany cartoon / line drawing ecosystem. My humor and voice is consistent throughout this project and I love that I can reach new people who can relate to how funny and weird life can be. My advice to anyone starting out is research, network, and stay true to your voice.
How would you describe your ideal client?
My ideal client is someone who doesn’t take themselves too seriously. Someone who can open a birthday card that says “you’re ugly” without crying. Someone who can pull off wearing a sweatshirt with a butt dressed like a cowboy on it. Someone who loves a unisex fit. Someone in the depths of sadness who needs to hear that they are the coolest lizard in town.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.veryusual.com
- Instagram: veryusual
