Deciding to pursue an artistic or creative career path isn’t for the faint of heart. Challenges will abound, but so many of the artists we speak with couldn’t be happier with their choice. So, we asked them about how they made the decision in the first place.

Diandra Brooks | Wedding + Portrait Photographer

I’ve always loved the arts but had a strong passion for photojournalism when I was young. Growing up I adored National Geographic and dreamed of becoming a photojournalist someday. Fast forward to middle school I started entering my nature photography at the Weld County Fair in Greeley, CO, and loved it! It was so fun seeing all the amazing photographers in the area. As I got halfway into my college career I had an itch to pick up my camera again and change my focus to documenting people. Read more>>

Joseph Lee | Creative Director & Photographer

I’ve been taking photos for over five years now. While my skill with a camera has improved, my love for photography has not diminished. I started with an iPhone 6, trying to take photos that captured a mood or feeling instead of just the objects in front of the camera. If I can make the viewer feel as if they are with me taking the photo, then my goal has been accomplished. Read more>>

Louise Lately | Musician

I think I’ve always been a little bit obsessed with instinctive self expression. As a kid it was pretty clear that I marched to a unique beat, and the way I connected with other people was a little different, a little more raw. I’ve worked a lot of survival jobs over the years, some better than others, but all of them have felt, ultimately, like a job. Something I HAD to do, a chore I had to force myself to complete every day. Music has never been like that, for me. Read more>>

Jenn Cleary | Singer-Songwriter

When I was six, I asked Santa Claus for a piano and he really delivered! Well actually, the want-ads delivered four burly brothers and their accordion-toting mother with a big ol’ antique piano that they seemed happy to find a new home for. Somehow, they got that beast of wood and wire through the door and into our family room. They then proceeded to make themselves comfortable and jammed nonstop, with mom belting it out on the accordion. Read more>>

P G | Recording Artist & Entrepreneur

I wanted to do something outside of the norm.. some thing that I knew would be practically impossible! The passion I have, along with this artistic drive, just wouldn’t allow me to do anything else! Read more>>

Alexandra Caldera Ibarra | Fashion Model, Actress, Film Director & Artist

How did this young Latina woman, full of self-doubt go from cleaning toilets and changing adult diapers, to working for Starz and getting paid to model & act? First off, I want to say thank you for letting me share my story. For those of you who don’t know me, my name is Alexandra. I’m a 25-year-old versatile talent based in Denver, Colorado. I’m an actress, director, writer, painter, photographer, and model. I love art and it’s been a fulfilling passion of mine since I was a kid. In my young adolescence, I loved videotaping homemade scary movies, drawing, and pretending I was a fashion model. Read more>>

Alejandro Lucchetta | Hairstylist & DragQueen

Since I was a child I knew that I loved art in all its forms but I wanted to beautify women, I wanted to make art, highlighting the beauty of women. I’ve been a hairdresser for 26 years, but I’m also an actor, acting comes from the hand of Kendra Matic, I’m a drag queen and that’s her name, and that’s also where my art is today too Read more>>

Alli Suter | Angelic Frequency Fine Art, Painter

I create paintings that are infused with the purity of love and angelic tones. In 2021, during a meditation I felt a pull from the heavens above to create these blessings on canvas. Since then, the paintings sell themselves and the response from my clients, 100% of the time has been something along these lines… “having this painting in my home has brought me so much love, abundance and tenderness” I am honored to be offering such light and love along with a message from above that supersedes words and is felt with a palpable experience. Read more>>

Nate Tharp | Drummer

Started playing drums at age 7. Was pretty good at it, and enjoyed playing music. As I got older, I was getting asked to be in a lot of bands and do some session work. I liked it cause I was playing a bunch of different genres from metal to jazz. Then formed my own band with two other friends and we started writing music and gigging. We just released our EP. Read more>>

Princely Fonkem | Artist

I like being creative and artistic since I discovered how artistic and creative I was and I just love the freedom to be creative Read more>>

Elmaz Ekrem | Animation Director, 2D Animator, Creative Education and Poet

I opened a university prospectus on the first page and saw ‘Animation’ (listed alphabetically) and thought, yeah. That’s the one. It’s since been 10 years and I definitely made the right decision. Creativity and curiosity were always my strengths, and now I’m working in the best place to not only nuture those interests that I have, but keep that alive in a creative education environment. I’m constantly surrounded by other young artists who share the same buzz, Read more>>

Adele Moore | Content Creator

I am definitely the type of person that if you tell me I can’t do something – I’m gonna do it. Growing up as a child of immigrants definitely played a huge part in what I’ve chosen to do with my life. I was told a lot about what I should do once I became an adult because they wanted me to have more for myself than what they could give me. Now that I am a parent, I truly understand where they were coming from but it’s definitely difficult to understand as a child. Read more>>

Kevin Cady | Author, climber, teacher.

By pursuing a career as a dark mystery indie author, I have allowed myself to create in a manner which reflects my own creative ideas and minimizes the influences of outsiders. It has allowed me to avoid forced collaborations or demands from a publishing house. Many creative efforts require (or are at least conducive to) other people and their influence or schedules or funding. Read more>>

Fiya Mayne | Singer/Songwriter

The truth is, I’ve always found creativity to be the best form of expression. Even as a child, I recognized how systematic daily life could be, so I wanted to shake up the mundane. Not to mention, creating music was an immediate getaway from my home life, which wasn’t the greatest growing up. A notebook and microphone were all I could speak to, openly. I sought refuge in the comfort of creativity, you could say. Read more>>

Jesse Priest | Tattoo artist and shop owner

I have always been into art from a young age. the freedom to create what ever I wanted in my drawings. This idea fascinated me I realized i didn’t have to stick to one set standard and the only expectation I had was to impress myself. Around 16 years old my mom saw I was struggling in school hanging out in the streets was more important to me than hanging out in class my mother saw this and basically told me get my act together. Read more>>