Today we’d like to introduce you to Rachele Krivichi.
Hi Rachele, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I’ve always been an artist, but I never really thought much about the future or what exactly I would “do” with my art. After I graduated from college I worked a lot of jobs – some of them in the arts and some not – and I just never really liked any of them. I always felt like there was something more meaningful or fulfilling that I could be doing. I knew there were people out there who made money off their art, but I always thought that I wasn’t good enough or didn’t have the right kind of magic to make that happen.
About two years ago, I just woke up one morning and started to take myself seriously. I enrolled in a few art fairs, made an official Instagram page for my art, and set up a website. I realized that taking myself seriously was the only real “magic” I needed. As soon as I started to call myself an artist, other people did, too, and the rest – business, money, etc. – started to follow.
I knew I didn’t want to just be a generic kind of artist. I had to have some kind of message. I had always been passionate about the outdoors and environmentalism, so this became the message of my art. I thought as long as I was sharing this with other people I would feel successful whether I was making money or not. As it turns out, this message did resonate with a lot of people and I was able to make a bit of money from selling art.
I don’t want anyone to think it’s easy to sell art, though. It’s extremely hard to make a living selling art. I realized I had to expand my business to involve other offerings. Now I do custom commissions and interior design as well. I try to be as loyal as I can to my original theme of environmentalism no matter what project I am working on, although it can be a little harder if I’m working on an interior design project for someone who really doesn’t have that in mind at all.
My business still isn’t full-time, but I chip away at that goal every single day. Working for myself and having art as my product is the only thing that’s made me feel fulfilled by my work since I graduated from college in 2013 and joined the workforce.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
No, it definitely hasn’t been a smooth ride! I’ve attended more than one art fair where I spent more money on the booth than I made at the fair and had to endure an entire weekend of people walking past my booth and not buying anything. I would say that’s the biggest challenge – when you feel ready for the world but the world isn’t ready for you. If I had to give advice to anyone starting out a business (especially a creative business) I would tell them to have patience.
You might not be able to live off your business in the first year, or maybe even the third, or maybe even the fifth. I have just learned to stick with my initial drive for starting the business – the desire to share a message of environmentalism through art – rather than focusing on how much money I will make.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
My art practice is highly informed by my long and intimate relationship with nature and my travels to national parks and forests in the United States. I aim to inspire outdoor advocacy, protection, and activities through my art, and to capture my deep connection with the outdoors.
I am an interdisciplinary artist – this means I do not limit myself to one artistic medium but instead work with collage, paint, digital drawing, photography, interior design, and writing. Whenever I can, I try to make art with recycled materials. I am most proud of this aspect of my work. I think anyone can take some brand new, shiny art supplies they get from the store and make art.
You have to be very dedicated to making art from materials people have decided to throw away, such as old magazines. This also sets my art apart from a lot of other artists who are working in that realm of “environmental” art, as it’s quite popular these days. Another thing that sets me apart from other artists is the number of different art forms I work in. I just don’t like to limit myself. I like to keep doors open.
What were you like growing up?
I was a pretty quiet and awkward kid. I liked to be outside and I liked to play with bugs and climb trees. My mom always called me a “nature girl,” and I definitely enjoyed playing outside by myself more than I liked playing with other kids. The love of nature has carried into adulthood, but not the introversion, luckily.
I also loved art from a young age and could always be found drawing something. I didn’t like a lot of other subjects in school – just my art classes. While other kids took more “practical” AP classes in high school, I took AP art. That was just always what I was interested in. I always knew I was an artist, even as a kid. I definitely didn’t fit in with a lot of other kids at my high school, which was pretty focused on sports and the other more logical subjects such as math and science.
Pricing:
- Cabin piece – $200
- Tent w/deer piece – $800
- Tiny tent piece – $50
- Vase – NFS
- Kitchen photo – NFS
Contact Info:
- Website: www.rachelekrivichiart.com
- Instagram: @rachelekrivichiart
