Tell All Tuesday ~ Featured Artist: Joy Guthrie

Hi guys, yay TAT is here! Sorry I wasn't able to post last week but I've a lovely interview to share now so hope you get some inspiration from it and from the accompanying artwork, enjoy =)

Tell us a little bit about yourself & what kind of artist you are.
I have always had a passion for drawing, ever since I was very young, and started painting in my teens with a neighbor. I raised two children as a single parent and put my art on hold while raising my kids and going to college. Now that my kids are grown and I have completed college, I have more time for my art. Last year I married the love of my life and he is very supportive of my art. I guess you could say that I am a contemporary artist, however after discovering art journaling a couple of years ago, my style is changing and evolving. I am still discovering what my style is and what kind of artist I am.

What is the biggest challenge you personally face as an artist and how do you overcome it?
Time and confidence in my art. Finding time for my art is a challenge, but I have committed to making it a priority in my life. I try to do something artistic every single day, even if for 10 minutes. And having confidence in my abilities and my art is still a work in progress. But art journaling has taught me to relax, have fun and not to take myself too seriously. I am learning to let go of the perceived mistakes or imperfections in my art work and not to have any preconceived expectations for my art. I am learning to be more flexible and just let my art work evolve.

What is your heart’s greatest desire for your life as an artist?
My hearts greatest desire for my art is to share my art with others, maybe someday sell a few pieces and I would love to also teach. I am looking forward to retiring someday so that I will have more time for my art and more time to pursue my artistic desires for selling some of my artwork and maybe teaching some art journaling classes. 

Have you ever found anything that originally daunted you as an artist that you can now overcame easily?
Definitely it would be ideas for a piece of art, which I have an abundance of now. I used to procrastinate about starting a new piece of art for lack of any good ideas. Now, I have a binder that I put together of pages from magazines that have elements, color schemes, different styles and elements that I like and can incorporated into my art. There are also sections that have different styles of text, pictures of people, animals and scenery that I like. I have a box where I have put works, phrases and comments from magazines, the internet and other resources that I can use for ideas when I need one. I also have a bag that has journal prompts in it that I found on various websites, so whenever I am looking for an idea for a page layout, I just pull one out of the bag. When my husband and I travel I always take a camera and now have a gallery of pictures to choose from. I also started keeping an idea book, just a small notebook, where I will jot down ideas when they come to me while watching TV, listening to music or traveling somewhere. 

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

I just started a blog and a Facebook page: where you can view more of my art.

Thank you so much for sharing Joy =) I hear so much of people being naturally creative in early life and then putting it off when 'real life' takes over (I was one) but now we have rediscovered it I think that 10 mins a day is so so important. I often berate myself for not doing 'proper' art when I instead watch the tv, spend time outside, read a book or online articles but the fact is I am learning that everyday I do do at least 10 mins; even if it's just to jot or sketch down ideas...and in all honesty sometimes that's all you need to make you feel so much better; like you are constantly connected to your creativity (- and it does add up to a 'proper' project too!) I'll post a link to my '3x5min' art journal page video here - while I don't usually post my own stuff in a TAT post it is connected to what I'm talking about here & it might help one or two people find ways to connect to their creativity when their time is limited too. Thanks for sharing Joy x

Do you want to be featured in an interview here?

Email me or click the link to find all the details here =)