Artists and creatives face innumerable challenges given that their career path often doesn’t come with a playbook, a steady paycheck or any form of safety net. It’s definitely not easy and so we asked a few of the artists and creatives we admire to talk to us about why they chose to pursue an artistic or creative career.

Tory Perrard | Model & Student

I decided to pursue a creative career because I think it is not only exciting but also a cure for the mundane monotony I’ve become used to growing up in a small suburb. Even though I’m 20 minutes from the downtown area I’ve missed out on so many wonderful phenomenal places this city has to offer. Another reason would be the networking aspect of it all. I have built some pretty solid friendships and partnerships that have gotten me to where I am today. Modeling not only allows me to express my creativity but to also bring to life others creative visions as well. The perks and the monetary compensation are also not a bad deterrent. Read more>>

Jo Skillman | Creative Director

I knew I wanted to put useful things into the world that weren’t there before I made them. I like problem-solving. I like creating the unexpected. I like giving people the right tools to be able to be themselves and do things that need doing. From the time I was five I wanted to be an artist. When I learned what a designer was, I wanted to be that instead. Read more>>

Patricia Gras | Television Producer, Host & Singer

I pursued an artistic and creative career because it made me happier and gave me a greater purpose in life. My background was in international business. I worked a couple of years in that field. I was paid extremely well and stayed in very nice 5 star hotels, but I found that I needed to make a difference in the lives of others. I see nothing wrong with selling products, but for me, I felt I needed to use my creative talents to help others in other ways. I felt a calling, an inner voice that told me I needed to work as a journalist/writer so I began to pursue that possibility. I had always loved writing, acting and singing. I thus followed my passion. I became a broadcast producer /journalist and also a singer/musician. I have worked in TV/Video production sine 1988 and started a band in 1992. Read more>>

Drew Kennard | Youtube Host

My parents raised me in a household that valued hard work alongside creativity. Both of my parents had professional careers but they also each had side work that fulfilled their needs for a creative outlet. My Father worked in Advertising and my mother in Oil & Gas, but both worked as freelance food writers for various publications, as well as publishing a book together. As I moved into the professional world, I naturally fell into a similar pattern. I work in Business to Business sales as my day job, but also manage a Youtube Channel, Outdoor Indoor Texan, that is centered around BBQ, Southern Cooking, and Wild Game recipes. I too have previously worked in freelance writing centered around food, but the Youtube Channel is now my main creative focus, and something I’ve enjoyed thoroughly. Read more>>

Michel Roy | Media Producer & Creative Consultant

I’m not sure I had a choice, I believe that things are designed before we even realize we’ve got a physical voice. I think when I came to this place it was to create something that would help aid in sharing and showing love during this crazy time in our lives. When I started Between Us Girl’s The Podcast with my girl friends in 2016 I didn’t know what it was going to be, I just wanted to talk and I knew I needed somewhere to do it. I was tired of having to hold my tongue for the fellas online, or for the ones I was dating and I wanted a place where I could express myself without someone telling me what I said was incorrect and I should try it the way they preferred. It was so interesting that over the course of running that show how MANY times a man said “y’all need a male perspective” and every time I thought. Read more>>

Sydney Wright | Artist & Songwriter

This feels like a poignant question for me. I’m a songwriter, artist, and live sound engineer, so I questioned everything when I watched my gig work and the opportunities I was planning to leverage melt off my calendar this year. I felt hella powerless like teen-me writing angsty rhymes about all the limits I felt suffocated under as a tiny baby high schooler, pining my butt off for a day when my freedoms would all be intact. Back then, aside from the catharsis of writing my many, many feelings into songs, I’d make up songs for my friends trying to cope with their high school heartbreaks. Sometimes they’d bring their own lyrics and I’d get to help them build something that seemed to prop them back up. I think that’s what being a creator is for me. Putting out beacons that people can connect with. Read more>>

Shun Lauren | Actor

I pursued an artistic career because I always enjoy discovering a part of me that is hidden under the layers of who I am in everyday life. Being able to express a different level of yourself without judgement has always been an exciting part of my journey as an actor. Read more>>

Kristen Ferguson | Artist & Art Teacher

This is an easy one….Career Day in 6th grade, I met an illustrator. I felt like I’d met a celebrity! I was inspired and committed! I’d already collected recognition for a drawing I did (the prompt was to “draw something from an unusual point of view” – I drew a squirrel staring down the barrel of a shotgun. Yes, I grew up in the country. It would take me many years to figure out that I have a great empathy for animals and other humans.) This happened more than 40 years ago, but I remember it so clearly. I just knew in my heart I wanted to be an artist and art teacher. I believe that heart-felt, deep desire was placed there by God; it was contrary to my family values at the time, so it was a struggle. But I did it! Read more>>