We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Reneé Royal. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Reneé below.
Reneé, 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.
The simplest form of keeping my day-to-day creativity alive stems from daily walks with my pup. Morning walks help set the tone for the day. They help slow my brain down, to organize my thoughts and tasks for the day. My favorite part of walking in the woods is that I get to see the world through my pup’s eyes – all while getting my body moving! It is so inspiring to witness the landscape around my home change through the seasons and on a daily basis.
As much as I enjoy daily walks in the woods, I do crave bigger adventures. Now that my pup is old enough, I plan monthly hikes in the surrounding areas of North Georgia. My husband and I love being outside and traveling, so we try to take a couple trips a year. Road tripping has become a huge source of inspiration for my work. There’s something about the open road, good music, good company, “disconnecting” and exploring new places that just really light me up. I love taking pictures of our adventures, which of course is a plus for me because I have a huge backlog of reference photos to work from when I am ready. When I get back to the studio, beaming with new life and energy, I get to relive that joyfulness and the beauty over and over again as I paint them.
I would be lying if I said my creativity is always alive – it definitely is not and I would never expect it to be flowing all the time. Creative blocks are difficult, but that’s when discipline and skills kick in and you just keep moving forward. Or not – sometimes when the creativity isn’t flowing, it’s my body’s way of telling me to get quiet, rest and to reset. And that is completely okay, it’s just part of the process.
Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?
I am an artist and adventurer, painting my experiences and fascinations along the way! I think my love for the outdoors reflects in my work and it is my hope that it inspires others to seek their own adventures. I truly believe that art and nature improve people’s overall wellbeing, so creating art as a job is more than I could ever dream of.
A big part of my art business is commission work. People love having their fur babies painted, which works out for me because I love animals! I also get to paint people’s favorite places and get to hear the stories behind why a particular place is so special to them. I have made a lot of really neat connections with people over the years doing commissioned work as well as through my original artwork.
Ever since making the switch to being a full time artist, I have shifted my focus more on in person markets and events. In the beginning when my art was a side hustle, I had more of an online and social media presence and sold most of my work online. Being a “solo-preneur” who works from home can feel lonely sometimes, so this shift in my business has really worked for me!
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?
One quality that I think has been super impactful on my artistic journey is my ability to stay curious. I am curious about the natural world around me and curious about different art mediums I can use to express those curiosities. Even though I try new things with my art that don’t always “stick”, the exploration of new materials and/or using materials in a different way keeps things interesting in the studio! Continuing to practice is so important, too. Not everything you make has to be a finished piece or something you can sell.
Perseverance is another quality that has allowed me to continue my work. Not every month is booming with business, which can be a little frustrating as it feels like things aren’t moving forward. However, once I get out of my head enough, I know I take that time to really slow down and get in touch with myself and explore my own ideas and get in more practice.
Early on, I admit I was scared of putting myself out there. I think anyone who does creative work struggles with this at one point or another. Fear of failure, rejection and imposter syndrome sneaks in. Fear, that “not being ready” feeling and my introverted side took the wheel for a while. It took some time to get where I could put myself out there, but I can finally say I am not afraid to branch out anymore and really look forward to my in person events!
As I had mentioned previously, being a “solo-preneur” can get lonely sometimes, so my advice to anyone starting out would be to network, collaborate and get involved in your community as early on as possible. Putting yourself out there can be super intimidating, but on the other side of that fear is where the growth happens!
Looking back over the past 12 months or so, what do you think has been your biggest area of improvement or growth?
My biggest area of growth over the last year would be accepting rejection or getting no response at all. Over the last year and a half I have had a strong desire to get into the mural scene. Painting on such a large scale excites me! I have had several opportunities to paint murals that I am super grateful for that have only increased my desire to paint more murals! However, over the last year I have also received several “no’s”. I don’t care how old you are – hearing “no” or getting a no response to something you really want just absolutely stinks! So, I have had to coach myself on getting back up, trying again and finding new ways to put myself out there. The first few rejections were tough to swallow and bounce back from, but I have learned that getting a “no” is not a personal jab at me or my abilities, it just means that opportunity wasn’t the right fit and the timing might not have been right.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.reneeroyalstudios.com
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/renee_royalstudios
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/reneeroyalstudios
- Other: Threads @renee_royalstudios
Image Credits
East2West Creative
