We had the good fortune of connecting with Sam Speir and we’ve shared our conversation below.
Hi Sam, what role has risk played in your life or career?
Risks have been an unavoidable and acceptable part of my professional career. The best I can ever do is put in the work towards mitigating the chance of failure as best as possible! This usually is equated to keeping in contact with people who may know certain processes better than myself, or have information that could be invaluable to success. I am constantly researching and weighing my options to better risk-asses each problem I encounter. Especially in the arts, we will encounter a problem that can be resolved through multiple solutions, but one option may cost more than another or even require more time than necessary to resolve. So running an issue by multiple people can help to create solutions I may have never considered myself! I try my best to not burn bridges, and to keep a respectable level of connection to my peers.
Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
As a creative, I strive to create imagery/narrative that can be understood across cultures. The human condition is something we all suffer through and learn to strive through, and I want my art to reflect those struggles both positively and negatively. Creating an image that gives someone pause and evokes a moment of reflection is the best affirmation I can ever achieve as an artist. However, this is not always the case and failure is inevitable. Creating something unique and evoking is a difficult process alone, but taking in the factors of the accessibility to the trove of information online and how bombarded we are with consumerist images every day adds to the difficulty of being recognized exponentially! I believe the best options to success are through face-to-face interactions with the consumers, and helping to form the experience for them! Post Covid-19 has crippled our social ability, and it can be easy to loose sight of how looking someone in the eyes (pun intended) during a discussion can be game changing! Ultimately I want people to take their own stories and be willing to project them into the arts that they are drawn to. Let the Imagery speak to you and maybe reveal something you may have never realized! I am constantly surprised and humbled by each individuals reactions to a piece, and am always excited to hear their own interpretations about it.
Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
When I was living in Denver, my favorite spots were cultural hubs! I would spend every weekend night at the Mercury Cafe near downtown where they would do live poetry readings and swing dancing. The most interesting people would congregate to listen and share their life experiences from around the world, it was absolutely beautiful! The Soiled Dove is another amazing community of western culture in the form of music. Some of my fondest concerts were held in the intimate setting of their underground stage! I also loved to wander Santa-Fe Dr. during art openings and share in the expressiveness of the local arts community. There are so many amazing artists in that area to discover!
The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
First off, I need to thank my mother Liz Speir who taught me how to be a loving and understanding person even when life is difficult and confusing. As a single mother, she would endeavor to give me a rich and meaningful life worth living. Thank you for bringing me into this world, and showing me what true love is! I would also like to make a shout to the arts professors at Colorado Mesa University. Joshua Buttler, Araan Schmidt, Kyongwah Oh, Eric Elliot, Suzie Garner, Eli Hall, and Julia Crocetto. Each one of them has played a huge role in my career, and have challenged me to push past my comforts to new explorations. They never hesitated to answer difficult questions, and would help keep me back in reality if I ever started to doubt myself. Thank you everyone there that pushed me to creative heights! Finally, I want to thank the late Bob Ragland who sadly passed away in 2021. He was a true artist that was the first to give me confidence in my creativity and the knowledge to shape myself as an artist. Every time i draw an image, I think of his voice and teachings! I cannot thank him enough for everything he gave to the arts community.
Instagram: samspeirart