Jennibellie Studio: Tell All Tuesday ~ Featured Artist: Morgan Torres

Hi guys

Happy Tuesday

Fantastic inspiration of an artist interview here today,

Happy TAT read =)

Tell us a little bit about yourself & what kind of artist you are.
I have been drawing and painting since I could hold a crayon in my hand. I would spend hours as a child creating cards and pictures for every family member for every holiday or just any occasion I deemed necessary. I remember getting art supplies for my 10th birthday and being so excited for all the things I knew I could create. I took art classes over and over as electives in high school and by my senior year my instructor let me skip all the mundane assignments and let me spend the year completing really good finished pieces. I carried this mentality with me through college courses, turning every assignment into a finished painting. I was a psych major taking art as electives to fill unit requirements. Every instructor begged me to switch majors but at the time art degrees with career potential were all heading towards graphic design which was not my interest at all. I went from college straight into the work world and found little to no time to paint and only painted a handful of things over the next 8 years. When I stepped out of the work world in 2013 to raise my two children, I immediately started getting commission after commission. It was perfect timing. I was at home with two babies and could paint during naptimes. I spent the last two years getting established online while I continued to create. I am now accepting more commissions than ever before and am getting my art out into the world. I am finally doing what I love.

What is the biggest challenge you personally face as an artist and how do you overcome it?
I have for years taken on the challenge of photo realism in my art. I think it is hardest to paint something as it appears in real life. The greatest compliment is when someone thinks my art is a photograph. The shock on their face when they learn it's a painting makes me smile every time. The drawback in that is that I don't feel I am balanced as an artist in more organic natural design. Sure I can turn out any style of art, but at times I don't feel original. I don't let it discourage me from creating what I want to create. There will always be a critic and the worst one is yourself.

What is your heart’s greatest desire for your life as an artist?
I want to get more of my art out into the world. I want to do what I love to do and if it can bring me some income that would be fantastic. If I could make a living off of it that would be phenomenal. I absolutely love doing commissioned pieces and turning someone's vision into reality. I have had clients ask me how I was able to get in their head and see what they needed me to create for them. I want to evoke emotions in people that only a painting can, whether it's painting a favorite place of theirs or painting an image they have had in their minds but can't put it on paper themselves. In the meantime, I will keep painting what I love and want hanging in my home and if that can turn into print sales that is awesome! Someday I would love to see my work printed on cards, magnets, mugs, t shirts, you name it, I want my work in gift shops. I have several paintings I want to create this year working towards that goal.

What advice would you offer to any perspective new artist?
The greatest advice I can give is, don't be afraid of color and don't be afraid to mess up. I credit two instructors in my school years with that. One made me see that you should never be afraid of color. She taught me how to look at the world in color. The grass isn't always green, sometimes it's purple, sometimes it's red. You have to dissect the image into shapes and colors and don't be afraid to paint that way. Another instructor taught me the importance of "happy accidents." Those moments when your work takes a turn and you think you have "messed up" when indeed you have created a happy accident by changing your perspective. Art is in the eye of the beholder. You will come upon many critics in your life that will slam you and try to bring you down. You have to persevere and do what makes you happy as an artist. I don't ever want to look back and wish I had painted something I didn't because someone told me I wasn't original. Your hands are creating it, so therefore it is original, whether you are imitating another artist or doing your own thing. Go, live, create, inspire!

Tell us where can we find out more about you & your art?
I have utilized social media to promote my work over the last couple of years. I am on Instagram @morganbryndesigns and I post everything I am working on in any creative aspect. I also have a Facebook dedicated to all my paintings and crafts you can find by searching "Morgan Bryn Designs" on Facebook and one that is solely dedicated to my crochet work by searching "Morgan Bryn Crochet Creations." I have an Etsy shop where I sell a lot of crochet work and prints of my paintings. I am always accepting commissions and when you look at my Instagram you can see that I dabble in a little bit of everything. I am happiest when I am creating. I cannot sit idle. If every chore is done and it's time to rest, I cannot just rest, I have to keep my hands busy creating something

Thanks so much for being a TAT interviewee Morgan. I have been feeling really lethargic this week and just not wanting to do any art or anything arty (in truth including TAT, as I've felt so uninterested in anything remotely related to art everything, even those things I really love, has been included in that) but your interview has really brightened me up and shifted that energy. Your story relating to building your painting time back up and creating a business out of it during naptime I find very inspiring, as I'm sure many others will too. Thanks for sharing, I'm enchanted especially by the first painting you shared.

Want to join in as a TATer??