Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in fine arts but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Leslie Newman, Founder of Melted Artworkx, located in Chicago, IL, USA.
What's your business, and who are your customers?
Melted Artworkx is a fluid abstract/mixed media art experience for those who love all forms and expressions of the creative world and want to journey into the deeper dimensions of their imagination!
Tell us about yourself
Although I have been a self-taught artist for many years in the sketching/drawing medium, I started painting during the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020 while my friends and I started virtual “paint and sip” parties with each other. Then one day, I was watching YouTube and saw a video of the artist “Wigglz’ Art” creating these beautiful designs with wet paint and STRING (I kid you not!). That led me down the “fluid art rabbit hole” to discover so many talented artists doing these art techniques with wet paint, and I was hooked! I watched, studied, and practiced as much as I could and showed my friends this technique so we could learn together, and I got better over time until I decided I wanted to start an art business. My spouse supported me with sharing his ideas and helped me with the business aspects, and the support of my family and friends helped me push forward with what is now “Melted Artworkx” today! My motivation for creating art comes from being able to express myself and my imagination in so many different ways and the feedback I receive from people when they share with me what figures, ideas, expressions, and feelings they get when looking at my artwork from different angles… it’s rewarding and inspiring!
What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?
My biggest accomplishment as a business owner is to be able to extend my art world to the masses online and now via art shows, festivals, and exhibitions so that others can see the pieces in person!
What's one of the hardest things that comes with being a business owner?
One of the hardest things I have experienced as a business owner in the fluid art industry is constantly trying new and unique ways to create pieces using the same techniques as others. We can all do the same “ring pour” or “flip cup,” but how do you elaborate on the expression or embellish the technique that the paint and colors give you to display something totally different and exciting? That’s the fun and challenge I work with every time, and I love it even more!
What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?
My top 3 tips for you budding entrepreneurs out there:
- Achieve balance in your life between the work of what you love and the life you live around you. Neither of them will thrive if you’re not balanced and grounded within yourself first and extend that balance to everything around you.
- Sit down with yourself at the beginning of your week to write out and plan your goals, and check in with those goals at the end of the week to measure progress. Think about what worked or didn’t work so you can move forward or in a new direction for the following week!
- Celebrate your wins and losses! We can always learn from good and bad experiences to help us grow in our businesses, but don’t forget to give yourself some grace when things don’t always go as planned and feel good about the times that things work out!
Where can people find you and your business?
Website: https://www.meltedartworkx.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MeltedArtworkx/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/meltedartworkx/
If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solo or small business entrepreneur that you'd like to share, then please answer these interview questions. We'd love to feature your journey on these pages.
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