Tell All Tuesday ~ Featured Artist: Sharon Hendry

Wow a late TAT today sorry guys, I got sidetracked into watching Under the Dome & Hart of Dixie with an Indian Takeaway, I know I know it's a tough life, my arm reeeeeally had to be twisted ;) but we all need our r&r (and easy-going tv) from time to time. Happy that I still have something arty to dig into today though; that's just one reason why I love TAT, it makes me feel arty, even when I've done zero art...like somehow I am keeping my finger in the arty pie lol this week the featured artist in named Sharon, or aka "ArtL8dY", enjoy =)

Tell us a little bit about yourself & what kind of artist you are.
From the time I was a little girl I was making drawings and selling them to my neighbors. It never occurred to me that I can be anything else but an artist. After I graduated from college with a fine arts degree, I was qualified to work as a waitress. The owner of the restaurant where I worked asked me to design a new menu. It turns out that I designed the worst menu ever but it motivated me to learn how to get it right. That’s why I became a graphic designer. So I started working in print shops and learned every aspect of pre-press that included layout and typography. My goal is to provide images that convey free spirited, whimsical and positive messages. I’d like to see them used to inspire, decorate or educate. These days when I’m not working on personal art, I teach graphic design at the community college. My students get a kick out of seeing the world’s ugliest menu. It gives them hope! 

What is the biggest challenge you personally face as an artist and how do you overcome it?

I’ve been lucky because I have had the support of family and friends and my husband. It allows me to make art without fear of what others will think. But the hard part is promoting the work for publication or gallery exhibits. When I was doing graphic design I always had to solve a visual problem defined by a client. The personal work I create is about expression and creativity but I do have dreams of being published or in a gallery. So once artwork is created it has to be marketed and promoted. That’s a challenge! I do find that the process itself is very therapeutic so no matter where the art ends up, I gain tremendously from the creation of it.

What advice would you offer to any perspective new artist?
Like I said, I knew as a little girl that I was an artist. I just never stopped being one. As we grow older, we loose that creative freedom and need validation with certification or degrees. Don’t be afraid to call yourself an artist if you are creative. Own it! Danielle LaPorte says, “Declare it and share it!” Surround yourself with positive people who see life through the same lens as you, not people who steal your energy. I know that’s not always easy but just about every goal that is worth achieving involves other people so you better find some encouraging people to hang out with! That means you have to be positive and encouraging as well.  I tell my students to always keep learning new things. Sign up for workshops to help you grow. It will put you in an environment to meet others who have similar interests. If you can’t attend one in person, make the most of online classes. There’s so many of them out there now. Don’t be intimidated by what other artists create. Be inspired by their passion and fearlessness rather than their success.

What is your greatest personal achievement either in your art, or because of it?
Besides finally learning how to design an attractive menu, I haven’t achieved it yet and that’s just fine by me because I am enjoying the journey towards it. I recognize that having the passion to make art is all I need to keep going! 

 Tell us where can we find out more about you & your art?

Here is a link to posts on my blog related to my art journals

For current blog posts: http://e14studio.blogspot.com

Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/artl8dy/

Etsy: https://www.etsy.com/shop/ArtL8dY

Thank you so much for sharing Sharon =D I love how you incorporate the skills of your graphic design into your artwork while it still containing such a free spirited carefree energy - that is a real skill. Sometimes 'carefree' and 'pleasing to the eye' just don't mix, personally if I'm making something just for the sake of making it I don't always care if it is pleasing to the eye, because it's about expression not results but you seem to manage both simultaneously really, really beautifully. Good luck with your dreams of being published and exhibited...that goes for everybody with those or similar dreams, the world needs our art 

- all of our art  =D

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