Meet Ronnie Townsend | Artist (Painter) & Event Technology Specialist

Hi Ronnie, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
My thought process behind starting my own art business was to be able to share my paintings with other people. I discovered my passion for painting six years ago, and at the time I was simply painting for enjoyment. It was not until someone mentioned how much they loved looking at my paintings, and that they could see the magic and intention put into them that I actually considered the idea of starting my own art business. So, I listened to the feedback that I received from others and created an Instagram art page that displayed my art work along with photographs from my travels. Not long after, I created an Etsy art page that enabled people to be able to purchase my art work. It all started with a vision that eventually came into living color.

As far as my professional art career, I have always balanced my art career alongside my full time career as an Event Technology Specialist in the International Education field. Early on I learned that you never have to put all of your coins in one bucket, but that you can instead do as many things as you want to as long as you are passionate and fully invested. When you are passionate, practicing your craft brings you peace and does not feel like work.

I remember when I first started my Etsy shop back in 2018. I honestly had no idea what I was doing. I priced my art extremely low because I was fearful that no one would purchase it if it were too high, and I uploaded all of my paintings. It wasn’t until I talked to some more seasoned artists and shop owners, and they told me that I was actually driving potential buyers away by pricing my art too low as they would not buy something that they felt was worth more than it was listed as. Additionally, I ended up learning about the power of creating an eye catching Etsy art page that pulls the viewer in and lets them embrace the beauty of your artwork. After two years of having my Etsy art page up I finally started to generate sales, and four years later today I have sold a total of 12 paintings. In the beginning I was so close to giving up.

A lesson that I learned along the way is that we all are going to go through rough patches during the beginning of our art careers, and anyone who tells you that they didn’t may not be telling you the full truth of their story. I find that these experiences are very powerful, as they enable you to experience adversity and learn from your setbacks. These stories can empower and help new and upcoming artists along their journey.

Talk to other artists, take shots, take chances! You never know who you may come across. Another experience that i’ll share is that I walked into a downtown art gallery one day and was amazed at the art work that was up on display. I shared my appreciation to the owner, and for some random reason she looks up at me and asks, “Do you do any art darling?” and I reply “Yes, I am a painter and I do naturescapes, flowers, African art, oceanscapes, and more.” She replies “Here is my email address, please send me your portfolio along with images of your art work and we can work from there, I am serious about this and not just talking.” I ended up following through, and my art work has now been on display in her art gallery for over two years now. Inez has helped me grow in more ways than I could even begin to describe! She taught me that sometimes there are surprise opportunities waiting for us that we cannot begin to even fathom.

I want the world to know that nothing is impossible! Follow your heart and your dreams until they come into fruition. Your journey will be unique to you, and there will be tough moments but it is one hundred percent worth it!

I am a native to the state of Maryland, but I have honestly spent a great deal of my life in the beautiful state of Colorado. I used to teach Special Education on the Navajo Nation, in St.Michaels AZ, and was about an hr away from Southern Colorado. I often spent weekends exploring the small towns of Southern Colorado and hiking the San Juan mountains. The state has such a natural beauty and storybook feel to it!