EP. 62-Theresa Contreras—“Girls Can Totally Do This Shit!”
February 9, 2021
EP.60: Dez Ferrell—We Must Experience the Bad to Appreciate the Good!
February 11, 2021
EP.73--Kate Cook: “Do It in Fear!”
Kate's Contact Info:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/asphaltcanvascustoms/Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/V8Kate
Website: https://asphaltcanvascustomart.com/
Transcript
[0:00] Until you value your own work you're never going to find the client that values enough to help you grow in your business,There's just no way so I've learned to value my work price my work and my time accordingly so that that way I can provide really high-quality great service to the people that hire me.
You're listening to Femcanic Garage the podcast that features women in the automotive and Motorsports Industries a community that elevates empowers
and evolves by smashing stereotypes and breaking down barriers for women I'm your host Jayme Blasiman buckle up for the ride Femcanics.
[0:40] Music.
[0:52] Femcanics I want to hear from you and get your feedback text me what your favorite episode is how I could improve the podcast.
[1:02] Products would you like to see but most importantly I just want to connect with you.
Text me at six one four nine five three six three eight zero again that's 614.
953 6380 I receive each message directly and I'm excited to hear from you.
Go on press pause and save my number six one four nine five three six three eight zero.
[1:36] Kate Cook is in the driver's seat today she's the artist and owner of asphalt canvas custom art LLC.
She creates custom art inspired by her clients ideas in automotive enamels ink and watercolors and graphite.
She was born into a family who enjoyed cross country road trips restoring muscle cars and all things Americana.
Sit back and enjoy the ride.
[2:08] Hello femcanics this is Jayme B coming to you and I have Kate Cook in the driver's seat today how are you doing today Kate?
[2:16] I'm great thank you for having me on it is my pleasure I've been like drooling over your work and everything that you do for over a year now it's crazy to me where I look back and I'm like,
holy crap I've been doing this Femcanic thing for a year and a half now and I just.
Something triggered me and I'm like when I just asked her if she would be on the show and you graciously accepted so thank you.
For sure I can Mike I'm excited to be in the lineup of all the other women that you've had on this show it's so cool.
Well you represent what Femcanic Garage is all about so thank you for representing women.
In the industry with such class and Grace and that's that's what it's really about so thank you for being you.
[3:02] Oh absolutely I am curious and I always ask this question because it just fascinates me.
You're an artist and you know folks got to hear a little bit about your background already but.
How would you define your artwork,
that's a great question I actually had an issue when I first started as to how to define my own artwork but once I started my business and I realized that I was
doing an equal balance of work between the automotive industry and the Fine Art industry as far as like custom portraits and book illustrations
mixed with like pinstriping and rap thinks my husband actually coined this term and I don't know if it's already been out there before but he says that my artwork is,
quote unquote pinstripe illustration so that term was kind of born a couple years ago and I've just run with that because it seems to really like resonate with a lot of people in the two different genres that I work.
Who I love it and and you can cover quite the plethora of subject matter really I mean some people focus on one subject matter but.
[4:12] You kind of sprinkle yourself around a little bit I mean you definitely have your go twos but you try different things,
yeah definitely a lot of the work that I'm most proud of actually stems from an idea that a client had I really hold my clients and their ideas in high regard because a lot of them.
Come to me with such creative and unique concepts for custom art whether it be like a really cool lettering job with the caricature of some kind on a motorcycle tank or,
you know this book illustration job that you know with a story that goes with it that they've may have worked on for years,
so I've just really really held their ideas in high regard because some of my best most creative work as come from those and working with the client to kind of finalize,
and get that idea into fine art or custom art in general I'm curious and I guess to backpedal slightly.
Lot of your subject matter and what kind of Drew me to you is the automotive subject matter it fascinated me rat fink seems definitely.
A staple in the automotive industry yes but I know when we talked you said I've always liked art.
You've definitely been inspired by the creativity around your mother.
But why Automotive a lot of your content is around Automotive other topics as well and subject matter but.
[5:36] I've noticed a lot of Automotive pieces what about that.
Yes definitely Automotive related so like we were speaking earlier I'm definitely an old soul and I feel like,
all of the times I was you know born in the wrong era and I felt like that ever since high school I've always enjoyed vintage
styled artwork and advertisements I absolutely love like World War II nose art like pinup and.
Being from a hot rod family already somewhat family that grew up in that scene car shows and things like that.
That's really what drew me into just an admiring that artwork but I already had the skill of being able to draw things so I was like how can I,
combine the two and then how can I make a living at it and for a long time I couldn't get that overlap but what drew me to it was a show that I went to.
[6:30] Initially it's called Mopars in May in California because that's where I'm from and there was an artist they're doing some live airbrushing which I do airbrush yet but eventually I'd like to try that,
but he saw that I was like this young teenage girl that was like probably drooling over this airbrushing job that he was working on it was on this big orange candy
hood and he offered to let me just kind of mess around with the airbrush and try some stenciling with blames and that was the first like kind of aha moment I had where I could,
combine like my love for the automotive artwork that I had seen my whole life and advertising and things like that,
and also my skill as an artist because at the time I was already you know excelling in my high school art class and middle school I like to put the top
of the top classes after my teacher was like Hey this this chick needs to be in a different class because she's just like sitting here bored in the beginning class,
so yeah I think you know it definitely started as a young age and I was drawn to it based off like my family's interest and
and also with the nose are it's like my dad was in the Air Force so I remember vividly we had a coffee table like Noah's Ark,
on an old vintage airplanes and bombers and I would always select skims through that when I was sketching in my Sketchbook as a teenager and like kind of copy those Pinups and different characters that they would pay on those
planes and of course my dad being an Air Force was always like super cool and stoked with whatever I drew even if it wasn't that great.
[7:55] So yeah it's just kind of a culmination of all of those different things that kind of literally laid in my path and to what I do now as an artist in the automotive field.
Just to make sure I'm making an assumption here but when you say nose art to kind of bring the listeners along and myself,
yeah the nose of airplanes is where it's painted is it that simple it's just that some following World War II they would,
kind of document their name of the plane or like famous pin-up girl or even like a character,
for instance like my Dad's plan that he worked on an Air Force even in modern day had Marvin the Martian like hand painted on the nose of,
kc-135 bomber and so I got to see that in real life like see it painted up on this massive plane that the United States military use them like well
there's another you know ART versus machine type of correlation so it's just that's just a simple set.
[8:53] That is way cool have you had an opportunity to,
paint an airplane like any of the characters or anything I would absolutely love the opportunity to paint a true airplane but I haven't yet that would definitely be like a total bucket list thing.
But definitely I have used you know inspiration from nose art and I mean in so much of my work like all of my pinup work stems from nose art and up girls,
that were painted on planes back in World War 2.
My lettering and stuff that lettering I enjoy is all kind of like that military scripty kind of like half done on the flight line type knows are so,
yeah that's something I really I think is really cool,
maybe maybe you can drop a hint to your dad to connect you with someone to have a conversation already yeah I'm gonna have an opportunity for a show a couple years back in Florida.
That was going to that was going to be one of their big deals as have like all these artists coming paint on this vintage plane and I literally like I didn't care about any other thing that was coming with that show I was like whatever day that is I want to be there.
Wow wow so I guess we say Automotive but it's machine.
[10:11] Yeah it's almost like this draw to the softness of your artwork.
Kind of clashing with the machine and the hardness of the machine I love that you say that actually that's exactly how I look at my work in fact my senior show out of college was entitled speed versus Beauty,
and the whole theme around that was taking like a feminine outlook on a masculine machine so like I was doing like pin-up girl versus,
motor and then I it kind of as I was working in that field I've kind of started seeing like,
WoW instead of doing pin-up girl like instead of just doing this iconic image of calendar girl I can actually do.
[10:53] A female mechanic working on like a vintage dragster or driving a big vintage Dragster and what a juxtaposition that really is and that was really before,
you know the whole this whole scene got really big as far as like women in automotive industry being highlighted,
so that was really fun to work with and I ended up finding a bunch of old old school women that like for the true we can do it girls and I use a lot of.
Time photos of Time magazine photos as inspiration of the actual Rosie the riveters of all different race and religion working on you know planes or vintage Jeeps you know further the war efforts and.
That really kind of Drew that show all together and I already started working on another series called she's been everywhere man that kind of has that same.
[11:43] Same ideology but a little bit less a little bit less mechanic in a little bit more like travel inspired so yeah.
[11:52] Purely out of curiosity because I'm getting educated around.
[11:59] I guess proper etiquette you and me both I mean I don't know any other way of putting it because the reality is I think.
[12:08] It's not as common for people to go and commissioned artwork.
Right they'll go to the store and buy something right so it's a different experience so I don't feel like the average person knows what that process is really like so when I'm asking this it's really.
Educate me so I'm not ignorant here Kate no problem when you talked about your show in your senior year.
I'm making an assumption here that those pieces where they paintings yeah they were painting and mixed-media yes.
Okay you sold those from that show correct yes got it so like I am.
[12:51] It's kind of a funky situation I have because my business is based around commissioned artwork so everything I everything you see on my Instagram for the most part is a custom piece of art work for somebody or a business of some sort.
But before shows like that one where it was a solo exhibition and the one that I'm working on kind of behind the scenes that she's been Everywhere Man series those are pieces that I've done kind of on my own time,
kind of from my own brain things that I've sketched out over time and travels and ideas that I've had you know,
brewing for a long time that as soon as I get the chance when I'm you know customer work is done I'm.
Knee-deep in trying to figure out different types of series and gallery showings and where can I submit my artwork so that I can have it put in a gallery and all these different things that are more on a personal level rather than a custom Commission.
Artwork level you don't happen to have any like pictures from,
that senior exhibition for your future yes I have a bunch of them and at that time I was like immersed and in,
just a really strong community of artists of all different kinds and I was taking all kinds of different art classes so the work that stemmed from that show kind of.
[14:06] Looks a little bit different than what I'm working on and what I have worked on now here in my current,
situation with my business and everything so I look back at those pieces and I'm like how cool is that I mean there's not a single.
Pinstriping they're like the pinstriping that was in that show was actually done in acrylic paint which is anybody listening knows pinstriping it's normally done and like animals.
And so I didn't even know what pinstriping the art of pinstriping or lettering truly was and like type of brushes and the type of paint,
I didn't really know any of that until after I graduated college so my whole senior show was kind of like around this really cool.
Iconic idea of like this Americana.
[14:48] You know hot rod scene but I didn't even know what tools do you use that we're actually like happening and that scene so and this was all before social media so I think that social media really helped Force,
me kind of Bloom in that awesome,
would you be willing to share some of those pictures from that senior well I don't know if it's a project it kind of sounds like it was a proud yeah it was a project would you be willing to share some of those pictures with the Femcanic community
oh absolutely I would love to I would love I would love to see him because it just the theme of it fast that's me
so I'll just kind of explain a couple of them because I get super excited I kept one of the I had sculptures as well.
Within that series and I got these Hemi Pistons from the junkyard here in town and they were like rusted out and all nasty and.
[15:40] They actually kind of like had a green tint to them and I took my own hands and I made plaster molds of them with like all my rings and jewelry on.
And.
And then faux painted the plaster of Paris sculpture of my own hand holding a true spark plug and attach that to the arm of the piston.
And so it was like this really cool like mix of life this really heavy piston which was the base of the sculpture and then the Piston arm,
came up in the hand attached to that and it looked like this one singular form and it was just really cool that,
sound so bad a soda and it was so much fun to make oh my goodness like I'm listening to you describe this Kate and I'm like.
[16:27] Giddy I'm like I want to see it in and just out of curiosity when I hear you explaining this would you say this was your first kind of
Big Show where you had the whole Space absolutely it was absolutely my first big gallery show now I had done a lot of shows in my high school career with a community called The Mountain Arts Network in Lake Arrowhead California,
and they really like gave me a lot of confidence and courage to like so my little pen and ink drawings in this large art setting which was an art show setting but it you know I only had like six or seven pieces and there was a bunch of other artists also exhibiting.
But with this show it was with my speed versus Beauty show out of college it was a literal senior it was what I needed to do to graduate so
I put like so much work and effort into it and it was me and three other girls that each had our own senior exhibition during that time,
oh wow yeah yeah I would love to see.
Kate in her early years I did before she even figured out which tools yes I forgot it's and what that looks like,
because I see what you do now and that content is absolutely fascinating to me in to see your work then in,
be able to look at what you're doing now and it's inspiring but I'm curious the people that bought that.
Bought your artwork from your senior project with that content where they majority male or female.
[17:57] Oh that's a really interesting question actually it was a good 50/50 and and,
I made some prints off of the stuff but at the time I had no idea what I was doing so I did sell some prints and those image orally to males for just because they were more like garage poster art style but that were actual artwork,
it was a good mix of like and actually quite surprising of some of the clients that,
I ended up buying the artwork off of off of that show and if I'm being truthful and honest I that show actually was up for I think a month
and and it didn't sell anything like there was no artwork that soul and I actually took those pieces with me.
To the Lonestar Roundup in Austin Texas which is a massive like Kustom kulture car show,
and I sold my thing there and then I took them to a couple other different smaller venues and I sold nothing there as well so,
I spent a really long time finding my client
and finding my customer and it was a lot of like massive fails like for instance the Austin show I spent so much money and time.
It's like put this massive show together it was basically a replication of what my senior show was but with a tent in outside.
[19:13] Yeah and so until I really started like going to the car shows going to the different like barber shops and coffee shops in town and asking them if they would display my artwork for me,
I didn't sell anything so my first sale from that show came like two years after the actual exhibition and it was my highest
Crossing sale I've ever made up until that point.
[19:35] And it was really cool because the guy that bought it was a group of gentlemen that were the best man.
For a guy's wedding and the painting itself was hanging in a barbecue shop of all places I just was hanging my artwork wherever it would get eyes.
And I had this old like Coop door that was all rusted out.
And I did some acrylic acrylic pinstriping on it and then in the window of the door,
was a piece of canvas that I had painted a pin-up girls face and she was shifting like in like a lowrider Rat Rod style shifter that's really tall,
and I called it Milner's match like from American Graffiti the handsomest,
yeah it was a blast of paint and I didn't want to let it go so I priced it ridiculous and this guy came to me he's like hey me and my buddies went to buy this because my our best friends getting married and we want it to be his
you know grooms gift or whatever and so I was like oh my gosh this kind of come at a better time yes you can have it and this guy I guess like I idolized it for such a long time and,
so it was his way of finally you know making being able to sell it was just a really cool feeling.
Wow and here you thought you were pricing it so high so that you could keep it longer man that has happened more than once to in my career like I'm just gonna price it you know press this ridiculous and.
I'm literally every time everyone's like okay sounds great and I'm like white what you're like oh yeah I knew that yeah exactly it's like always shocking to me but I guess it's just.
[21:04] It's a game of humility oh man yeah I am way excited to see those pieces and see what that's all about,
that's that's way cool.
[21:17] I want to go back so before you even got the college you graduated high school and you always knew you wanted to go that route.
Or did it just kind of find you know I honestly think I've always known that being an artist was my,
that's what I knew I was going to do there was a time in my high school career although throughout that I knew I was a fairly good artist and my parents were very encouraging.
[21:45] In that way I also danced.
[21:49] Ballet for like 15 or 16 years and for quite a while I was that was my entire life and art kind of took a back burner and until,
it wasn't until like my junior year of high school,
but my dad kind of was had this heart-to-heart with me I'll never forget it because it was like The Nutcracker ballet that we did every year and we would audition and try out and that was our community our companies,
performance that we did every year and he was like you're not going to get to play Clara every year like that's not going to make the money and so he was like you're a great artist,
and I he's like I really just think that there's money in that and he kind of put.
[22:28] You know kind of just gave me like an eye-opener and I at the time I was devastating because I really thought I was going to go to school for professional ballet and.
Make that my career and if it wasn't for my dad and my mom just kind of like,
you know saying like hey there's a short you know there's a short shelf life with that and it's a pretty high high end,
thing to get into and you're super tall so you're not always going to get the gig and,
you know they had have a really tough talk with me and and that's when I really finally made my mind up to be like okay I'm going to go to college for art that's that's a good career you know I was always thinking oh I can get a career that's artistic,
I never really imagined the opportunity I could have to actually own my own studio and like make my own artwork and do all what I'm doing now I never thought that was possible but the artistic career and the degree.
[23:20] Was always there after that conversation that was always that kind of started to drive me in that direction what was that like for you because I'm looking at the position.
[23:30] The parents position right because I can straddle both sides of the fence Kate because I'm yes you know I kind of went through that and it was,
my grandpa was that person for me where it's with a loving gentle hand yes.
Definitely gently smack me across the face not literally but you know what I mean like the wake-up call you know but it's like
only he could do that only him and my grandma could do that but no one else could yeah right and it sounds like that's you know for you it was your folks
that does it for you.
But it's still hard right like oh yeah like for you like receiving that did it take you a few months to kind of let it sink in,
yeah oh absolutely it did actually I was right but it was right before our,
nutcracker for performance can't remember what year it was but I guess I was like my junior year.
[24:28] And yeah it took I wasn't a dramatic teenager like I was pretty mature for my age my brother and I both are pretty mature for our age in high school so like when they said that it wasn't like a,
yeah right type of a situation it was like okay Mom and Dad know what they're talking about and,
you know I I just took it and I kind of mold it over for a while and then I think what really like solidified my.
Final like okay this is what is going to happen because yeah it was definitely tough at first because I was a teenager I was like in dance and ballet it was like my whole life like when I say my whole life I'm talking like I lived,
and ate and slept at the dance studio like I was in the best shape of my life I had you know everything I was on scholarship there dancing with the company and.
It was it was my life and so it was hard to hear like hey this may not be a long-term deal you know but the thing that solidified it for me was.
In the same year my mom had seen somewhere in the newspaper like I said before social media that is like somewhere in the newspaper or posting up in our grocery store of a author that was looking to hire an illustrator.
[25:38] And I had been always wanting to work Adco has kind of been working for somebody as far as like a piece of artwork that they wanted done like a small portrait or Commission of some kind,
artistically throughout my entire High School career for this job my mom brought it to me after school one day.
And she was like hey there's this local author and she's written this children's book and I think you should apply and I like,
I definitely was like shocked I was like there's no way like there aren't going up against like full-time Real Deal illustrators that's not going to happen I'm still in high school.
[26:14] And then long story short I my mom had it like drag me to this interview with this author because I just was so doubtful I was so doubtful in myself that that was going to that something would ever come of that and lo and behold I actually got that job.
And that book those illustrations I did all of the book illustrations in the cover art for a book called The Legend of Douglas fir,
which is a children's Christmas book and the sales from that book a portion of them actually help me buy my first car and also help me attend my first year of college.
So it was insane to like.
Have that all it we ended up translating it into Spanish and my high school art teacher translated that into Spanish for us so that we could print it in a second language.
And what they were talking like this was just like a small town author and this family story that she had and I did all the illustrations actually while we were evacuated for a massive forest fire that was like,
that pretty much took out our entire town and I did them like it at my grandparents house for two months while we were evacuated so it was a lot going on at that time but those illustrations really are what like showed me,
in my path like you can make money at this and up until that point I wasn't really sure so I'm really thankful for that book and I still have it here on displayed in my studio as just a reminder to just do it and don't let doubt like.
[27:39] Make up your mind for you as hard as that is to do it's easy to say I'm just sitting there thinking like.
[27:46] What you are probably 16 17 years old oh yeah there's a lot of embarrassing pictures of me scientific doing book signings like no necklaces and like crocheted beanies and I'm like oh my gosh why didn't I try harder.
That's awesome yeah I'm sitting there thinking about myself at 16 years old if 17 years old and trying to put myself in your shoes and.
[28:17] Kind of getting drug to this interview yes and.
Trying to do your best but part of you didn't want to be there.
Yeah because you doubted it yeah and it was my mom saying like oh you got that you know like every teenagers like oh come on Mom you know a little bit right you're supposed to say that you're my mom yeah right right in,
would you get a phone call after that how did that work you know I so bad I don't remember I think it was actually an email saying that I was accepted for the job and and if I'm being truthful with myself it was probably more a.
[28:57] Pricing thing for her because I know you know I was in high school so I had set I put this like quote packet together which was something I've never done before I like remember going online and like researching that asking my art teacher and stuff,
I put this quote packet together like what I thought this my work and my artwork was going to be worth saw her.
And yeah I'm pretty sure it was through email that she was like hey.
You know I want to let you know that I'm going to work with you and so we work together if I think it was like seven months and I did like 18 full-blown full color illustrations.
And at the time that really fed my desire to want to go to college as a storyboard artist through Disney and and so I was like man if.
[29:40] If I can do this if I can take an author story and turn it into visual artwork there's no reason why I can't take a directors movie story and turn it into a visual storyboard to like,
helps the movie cast and crew like actually film this movie or animate this movie I wanted to do it something by hand and so that was my only out that I saw,
as far as as far as a full-blown artistic career was working for Disney,
and I actually applied for Disney out of college like twice both times it was extremely expensive because you had to send a full-blown hard copy portfolio,
of all your printed work and it was crazy it was and I thought I got declined both times and I still have those letters as well because they had a.
You know Disney on them and I was like oh this is so cool I know I didn't get accepted but how cool is it that I actually tried absolutely motivation but I'm curious,
Kate do you recall what you felt or what that experience was like when you finally like oh my gosh I was I know I was like extremely shocked.
Then I got super like freaked out because I didn't.
[30:50] Like I had like had lofty ideas of like what it would be like but I actually didn't like sit down and be like here's my timeline at and I'm going to get this artwork,
you know busted out in this timeline because I was now working for somebody on their timeline it wasn't my timeline and as much as I saw you know in the movies and everything and,
all the things that you like seeing idolized as a kid I was like no I have to actually do this and like how am I going to organize my schedule as a high school kid that had you know I still dancing in ballet and I had this amazing,
project car my 66 Jeeps or that I was working on which took a huge portion of my time and money and,
I think that's actually what drove me to think on on target with this this first job because this was my first this was the first biggest job I had,
at that age and so and I knew that there was potential for financial benefit that could you know help me build my Jeep stirs as like silly as that sound but like I was just the high school girl like wanting to drive this.
Awesome Jeepster around my high school so that you're not silly at all my friend not silly at all man yeah so that was my driving force and then you know come to find out it also paid for like.
[32:07] College and I have this all this knowledge from doing that so I could do it again and maybe publish my own book in the future just gave me so much and I'm just so glad that that was the first the first thing that really,
it solidified my idea of being an artist,
and doing it as a career so you brought up the Jeepster and I if you were if you aren't going to bring it up I certainly was because the thing is your subject matter.
[32:32] A lot of your subject matter is Automotive related but you turn a wrench as well yeah yeah I cannot,
share about this awesome Jeepster it's and you shared a little bit but yeah bought it when you were in high school yes yes oh I bought my Jeepster,
in high school with my own money and then my parents match what year is it it's a 1966 Jeepster Commando with the 225 odd fire V6.
[33:03] And.
The whole purpose around that car actually was that my dad we lived in the mountains in California so my dad told me like you can buy whatever car you want but there's you know here's the rules it has to be four-wheel drive,
because we lived in the smell and whatever you say for it will match and that's your budget so I save like crazy,
and at the time I was going high school there was this I think he's a football player or something but I was so obsessed with this like old rusty red Jeepster Commando that he drove to school everyday,
I don't even think he had a hard talk or any sort of top on it at all mind you we went to school where it snowed so I think he eventually got like a black soft top for it but I was like okay
that is a old school Jeep it's four-wheel drive I could probably afford it if I got kind of a you know more of a low-key one that wasn't all fully restored
and so that's what we ended up looking for and man we looked at we looked at so many jeeps and and also.
[34:02] Just so everyone knows like I had no idea how to work on cars at all like I enjoyed going to car shows and I liked that scene but I couldn't even change like my own Tire or my own oil at this point and I didn't know how to drive stick shift.
[34:14] So long story short again we found a we found a Jeepster I think it was in Barstow California,
and it was in my budget it had bent body hadn't been all hacked up because I'm a visual person so like a lot of people take juicers and like Jack them up for like,
like severe off-road like Mojave Desert Moab kind of stuff and I wanted that original,
old school beach cruiser look because I was a beach girl on a beach girl at heart I love being at the beach and so I was like I didn't really want to be stock but I didn't want it to be super lifted either,
I want it to be a good Cruiser and a good like off-roader but nothing too crazy so we found this one in Barstow I ended up paying.
Cash for it it had like these rotted out nasty old RV tires and it was a stick shift 3 speed.
And so my dad drove it home with me in the passenger seat and I was of course on cloud nine and the first thing we did was change the oil.
And he showed me like all the ins and outs and what to look for and everything and he said now Lander the car and take the.
You know take take down the bowl and bag oil should come out into this can and I said okay so I did all that and I waited there and like no oil came out and we had driven like 2 hours home.
And I was like okay maybe I must have done something wrong but the plug was out so I told him.
[35:36] The called the pan and like come to find out like the whole engine had been rebuilt but had been rebuilt backwards and so
all the rods that were supposed to be on one side we're on the other and oh my God it was a freaking nightmare of course I didn't know what I was looking at my dad was like over there sweating bullets that we just bought this like car that is kind of a hoopty now I just want to pause for a moment
everything was backwards yeah that's the first I've heard a lot of things and the first oh yes if I could like.
[36:08] I'm telling you the 225 odd fire like that engine.
It can go through hell and back and still run like a champ I mean if you were to listen to this engine at the time like you could not tell that there was something wrong that's why it was so surprising to us that this was all done and then.
Like come to find out when we check the oil the little stopper on the oil stop.
No welded little cap that keeps it like on the Block like at a certain height head like that well broke so that the stick went all the way down to the very bottom of the motor so it looked like it had oil.
But since that stopper had broke off the well broke off it actually had like I think less than a quart I'm God so that kind of started the whole of course at first it was like devastating.
And then my dad's like kind of a can-do guy and can-do spirit he's like hey we're going to we're going to learn how to rebuild an engine today and we're going to learn how to
we're going to do all this stuff like we're going to do a spring under conversion if we're gonna do a steering conversion and all the brisk it's just amazing how much I learned.
And I couldn't have done it without him or my brother and my mom's willingness to allow that but yeah that's what I did.
There are so many stories I hear about child and parent most of the time it's Dad's but child.
[37:36] In some of the best memories are when they worked on a car fill in the blank of whatever car that is together.
Oh for sure for sure wow yeah I think that a lot of the awkward like Teenage conversations that happen like.
You know around like a dinner table I think that they they were a lot less awkward when like we literally weren't looking at each other and we were on two opposite ends of the car and.
[38:04] You know he asked me like so is so and so your boyfriend now.
And like we're not looking at each other and it's like super dark and we're freezing outside because we built this Jeep in the driveway of like a one-car garage.
And you know I'd answer like,
yeah is that okay you know and it was just like way less Ranch slips and crushes knuckle yes exactly so I have this really really fond,
rolling fond memories of that jeep and and I still have it today and it needs a little love I have needs a little bit of love I've been focused so much on my business and then I actually injured my my arm and my hands so driving stick shift,
is was impossible for me for the last couple months but that was a whole another thing is that I had to learn how to drive stick shift so once the car was built then I had to learn how to drive it.
Wait hold up hold up you said that in passing you said you injured your arm and hand in your an artist so I'm in my mind I'm like
how does that work oh it doesn't it doesn't at all does that mean you have to like pause would like your work is it your yeah it's my dominant painting hands okay,
I'm like there's a writing hand or you write it and I don't know,
I try not to like talk about it but yeah we I pinched a nerve in my neck which cause like my arm and my hand I just have like,
just literally like be paralyzed in pain like it was some of the worst pain I've ever been through so as if 20/20 wasn't like crazy and bad enough like I had to take a couple months off work and.
[39:28] Literally sit and do nothing which for somebody that is so like focused and driven it was so challenging you can ask my husband.
[39:37] He's like we gotta get you back to work you're driving me crazy yes so I'm on the mend now and so that's good but it was definitely gonna fucking drama Jeepster couldn't paint draw it was even working on the computer like for marketing and stuff was not
recommended by my doctor so it was kind of just sitting and staring at a wall and thinking about how thankful I am that I.
Don't have coronavirus or anything worse mmm absolutely now we had talked about something that always fascinates me.
I am a Serial entrepreneur I love being an entrepreneur I love everything about it.
that's that's way cool.
[21:17] I want to go back so before you even got the college you graduated high school and you always knew you wanted to go that route.
Or did it just kind of find you know I honestly think I've always known that being an artist was my,
that's what I knew I was going to do there was a time in my high school career although throughout that I knew I was a fairly good artist and my parents were very encouraging.
[21:45] In that way I also danced.
[21:49] Ballet for like 15 or 16 years and for quite a while I was that was my entire life and art kind of took a back burner and until,
it wasn't until like my junior year of high school,
but my dad kind of was had this heart-to-heart with me I'll never forget it because it was like The Nutcracker ballet that we did every year and we would audition and try out and that was our community our companies,
performance that we did every year and he was like you're not going to get to play Clara every year like that's not going to make the money and so he was like you're a great artist,
and I he's like I really just think that there's money in that and he kind of put.
[22:28] You know kind of just gave me like an eye-opener and I at the time I was devastating because I really thought I was going to go to school for professional ballet and.
Make that my career and if it wasn't for my dad and my mom just kind of like,
you know saying like hey there's a short you know there's a short shelf life with that and it's a pretty high high end,
thing to get into and you're super tall so you're not always going to get the gig and,
you know they had have a really tough talk with me and and that's when I really finally made my mind up to be like okay I'm going to go to college for art that's that's a good career you know I was always thinking oh I can get a career that's artistic,
I never really imagined the opportunity I could have to actually own my own studio and like make my own artwork and do all what I'm doing now I never thought that was possible but the artistic career and the degree.
[23:20] Was always there after that conversation that was always that kind of started to drive me in that direction what was that like for you because I'm looking at the position.
[23:30] The parents position right because I can straddle both sides of the fence Kate because I'm yes you know I kind of went through that and it was,
my grandpa was that person for me where it's with a loving gentle hand yes.
Definitely gently smack me across the face not literally but you know what I mean like the wake-up call you know but it's like
only he could do that only him and my grandma could do that but no one else could yeah right and it sounds like that's you know for you it was your folks
that does it for you.
But it's still hard right like oh yeah like for you like receiving that did it take you a few months to kind of let it sink in,
yeah oh absolutely it did actually I was right but it was right before our,
nutcracker for performance can't remember what year it was but I guess I was like my junior year.
[24:28] And yeah it took I wasn't a dramatic teenager like I was pretty mature for my age my brother and I both are pretty mature for our age in high school so like when they said that it wasn't like a,
yeah right type of a situation it was like okay Mom and Dad know what they're talking about and,
you know I I just took it and I kind of mold it over for a while and then I think what really like solidified my.
Final like okay this is what is going to happen because yeah it was definitely tough at first because I was a teenager I was like in dance and ballet it was like my whole life like when I say my whole life I'm talking like I lived,
and ate and slept at the dance studio like I was in the best shape of my life I had you know everything I was on scholarship there dancing with the company and.
It was it was my life and so it was hard to hear like hey this may not be a long-term deal you know but the thing that solidified it for me was.
In the same year my mom had seen somewhere in the newspaper like I said before social media that is like somewhere in the newspaper or posting up in our grocery store of a author that was looking to hire an illustrator.
[25:38] And I had been always wanting to work Adco has kind of been working for somebody as far as like a piece of artwork that they wanted done like a small portrait or Commission of some kind,
artistically throughout my entire High School career for this job my mom brought it to me after school one day.
And she was like hey there's this local author and she's written this children's book and I think you should apply and I like,
I definitely was like shocked I was like there's no way like there aren't going up against like full-time Real Deal illustrators that's not going to happen I'm still in high school.
[26:14] And then long story short I my mom had it like drag me to this interview with this author because I just was so doubtful I was so doubtful in myself that that was going to that something would ever come of that and lo and behold I actually got that job.
And that book those illustrations I did all of the book illustrations in the cover art for a book called The Legend of Douglas fir,
which is a children's Christmas book and the sales from that book a portion of them actually help me buy my first car and also help me attend my first year of college.
So it was insane to like.
Have that all it we ended up translating it into Spanish and my high school art teacher translated that into Spanish for us so that we could print it in a second language.
And what they were talking like this was just like a small town author and this family story that she had and I did all the illustrations actually while we were evacuated for a massive forest fire that was like,
that pretty much took out our entire town and I did them like it at my grandparents house for two months while we were evacuated so it was a lot going on at that time but those illustrations really are what like showed me,
in my path like you can make money at this and up until that point I wasn't really sure so I'm really thankful for that book and I still have it here on displayed in my studio as just a reminder to just do it and don't let doubt like.
[27:39] Make up your mind for you as hard as that is to do it's easy to say I'm just sitting there thinking like.
[27:46] What you are probably 16 17 years old oh yeah there's a lot of embarrassing pictures of me scientific doing book signings like no necklaces and like crocheted beanies and I'm like oh my gosh why didn't I try harder.
That's awesome yeah I'm sitting there thinking about myself at 16 years old if 17 years old and trying to put myself in your shoes and.
[28:17] Kind of getting drug to this interview yes and.
Trying to do your best but part of you didn't want to be there.
Yeah because you doubted it yeah and it was my mom saying like oh you got that you know like every teenagers like oh come on Mom you know a little bit right you're supposed to say that you're my mom yeah right right in,
would you get a phone call after that how did that work you know I so bad I don't remember I think it was actually an email saying that I was accepted for the job and and if I'm being truthful with myself it was probably more a.
[28:57] Pricing thing for her because I know you know I was in high school so I had set I put this like quote packet together which was something I've never done before I like remember going online and like researching that asking my art teacher and stuff,
I put this quote packet together like what I thought this my work and my artwork was going to be worth saw her.
And yeah I'm pretty sure it was through email that she was like hey.
You know I want to let you know that I'm going to work with you and so we work together if I think it was like seven months and I did like 18 full-blown full color illustrations.
And at the time that really fed my desire to want to go to college as a storyboard artist through Disney and and so I was like man if.
[29:40] If I can do this if I can take an author story and turn it into visual artwork there's no reason why I can't take a directors movie story and turn it into a visual storyboard to like,
helps the movie cast and crew like actually film this movie or animate this movie I wanted to do it something by hand and so that was my only out that I saw,
as far as as far as a full-blown artistic career was working for Disney,
and I actually applied for Disney out of college like twice both times it was extremely expensive because you had to send a full-blown hard copy portfolio,
of all your printed work and it was crazy it was and I thought I got declined both times and I still have those letters as well because they had a.
You know Disney on them and I was like oh this is so cool I know I didn't get accepted but how cool is it that I actually tried absolutely motivation but I'm curious,
Kate do you recall what you felt or what that experience was like when you finally like oh my gosh I was I know I was like extremely shocked.
Then I got super like freaked out because I didn't.
[30:50] Like I had like had lofty ideas of like what it would be like but I actually didn't like sit down and be like here's my timeline at and I'm going to get this artwork,
you know busted out in this timeline because I was now working for somebody on their timeline it wasn't my timeline and as much as I saw you know in the movies and everything and,
all the things that you like seeing idolized as a kid I was like no I have to actually do this and like how am I going to organize my schedule as a high school kid that had you know I still dancing in ballet and I had this amazing,
project car my 66 Jeeps or that I was working on which took a huge portion of my time and money and,
I think that's actually what drove me to think on on target with this this first job because this was my first this was the first biggest job I had,
at that age and so and I knew that there was potential for financial benefit that could you know help me build my Jeep stirs as like silly as that sound but like I was just the high school girl like wanting to drive this.
Awesome Jeepster around my high school so that you're not silly at all my friend not silly at all man yeah so that was my driving force and then you know come to find out it also paid for like.
[32:07] College and I have this all this knowledge from doing that so I could do it again and maybe publish my own book in the future just gave me so much and I'm just so glad that that was the first the first thing that really,
it solidified my idea of being an artist,
and doing it as a career so you brought up the Jeepster and I if you were if you aren't going to bring it up I certainly was because the thing is your subject matter.
[32:32] A lot of your subject matter is Automotive related but you turn a wrench as well yeah yeah I cannot,
share about this awesome Jeepster it's and you shared a little bit but yeah bought it when you were in high school yes yes oh I bought my Jeepster,
in high school with my own money and then my parents match what year is it it's a 1966 Jeepster Commando with the 225 odd fire V6.
[33:03] And.
The whole purpose around that car actually was that my dad we lived in the mountains in California so my dad told me like you can buy whatever car you want but there's you know here's the rules it has to be four-wheel drive,
because we lived in the smell and whatever you say for it will match and that's your budget so I save like crazy,
and at the time I was going high school there was this I think he's a football player or something but I was so obsessed with this like old rusty red Jeepster Commando that he drove to school everyday,
I don't even think he had a hard talk or any sort of top on it at all mind you we went to school where it snowed so I think he eventually got like a black soft top for it but I was like okay
that is a old school Jeep it's four-wheel drive I could probably afford it if I got kind of a you know more of a low-key one that wasn't all fully restored
and so that's what we ended up looking for and man we looked at we looked at so many jeeps and and also.
[34:02] Just so everyone knows like I had no idea how to work on cars at all like I enjoyed going to car shows and I liked that scene but I couldn't even change like my own Tire or my own oil at this point and I didn't know how to drive stick shift.
[34:14] So long story short again we found a we found a Jeepster I think it was in Barstow California,
and it was in my budget it had bent body hadn't been all hacked up because I'm a visual person so like a lot of people take juicers and like Jack them up for like,
like severe off-road like Mojave Desert Moab kind of stuff and I wanted that original,
old school beach cruiser look because I was a beach girl on a beach girl at heart I love being at the beach and so I was like I didn't really want to be stock but I didn't want it to be super lifted either,
I want it to be a good Cruiser and a good like off-roader but nothing too crazy so we found this one in Barstow I ended up paying.
Cash for it it had like these rotted out nasty old RV tires and it was a stick shift 3 speed.
And so my dad drove it home with me in the passenger seat and I was of course on cloud nine and the first thing we did was change the oil.
And he showed me like all the ins and outs and what to look for and everything and he said now Lander the car and take the.
You know take take down the bowl and bag oil should come out into this can and I said okay so I did all that and I waited there and like no oil came out and we had driven like 2 hours home.
And I was like okay maybe I must have done something wrong but the plug was out so I told him.
[35:36] The called the pan and like come to find out like the whole engine had been rebuilt but had been rebuilt backwards and so
all the rods that were supposed to be on one side we're on the other and oh my God it was a freaking nightmare of course I didn't know what I was looking at my dad was like over there sweating bullets that we just bought this like car that is kind of a hoopty now I just want to pause for a moment
everything was backwards yeah that's the first I've heard a lot of things and the first oh yes if I could like.
[36:08] I'm telling you the 225 odd fire like that engine.
It can go through hell and back and still run like a champ I mean if you were to listen to this engine at the time like you could not tell that there was something wrong that's why it was so surprising to us that this was all done and then.
Like come to find out when we check the oil the little stopper on the oil stop.
No welded little cap that keeps it like on the Block like at a certain height head like that well broke so that the stick went all the way down to the very bottom of the motor so it looked like it had oil.
But since that stopper had broke off the well broke off it actually had like I think less than a quart I'm God so that kind of started the whole of course at first it was like devastating.
And then my dad's like kind of a can-do guy and can-do spirit he's like hey we're going to we're going to learn how to rebuild an engine today and we're going to learn how to
we're going to do all this stuff like we're going to do a spring under conversion if we're gonna do a steering conversion and all the brisk it's just amazing how much I learned.
And I couldn't have done it without him or my brother and my mom's willingness to allow that but yeah that's what I did.
There are so many stories I hear about child and parent most of the time it's Dad's but child.
[37:36] In some of the best memories are when they worked on a car fill in the blank of whatever car that is together.
Oh for sure for sure wow yeah I think that a lot of the awkward like Teenage conversations that happen like.
You know around like a dinner table I think that they they were a lot less awkward when like we literally weren't looking at each other and we were on two opposite ends of the car and.
[38:04] You know he asked me like so is so and so your boyfriend now.
And like we're not looking at each other and it's like super dark and we're freezing outside because we built this Jeep in the driveway of like a one-car garage.
And you know I'd answer like,
yeah is that okay you know and it was just like way less Ranch slips and crushes knuckle yes exactly so I have this really really fond,
rolling fond memories of that jeep and and I still have it today and it needs a little love I have needs a little bit of love I've been focused so much on my business and then I actually injured my my arm and my hands so driving stick shift,
is was impossible for me for the last couple months but that was a whole another thing is that I had to learn how to drive stick shift so once the car was built then I had to learn how to drive it.
Wait hold up hold up you said that in passing you said you injured your arm and hand in your an artist so I'm in my mind I'm like
how does that work oh it doesn't it doesn't at all does that mean you have to like pause would like your work is it your yeah it's my dominant painting hands okay,
I'm like there's a writing hand or you write it and I don't know,
I try not to like talk about it but yeah we I pinched a nerve in my neck which cause like my arm and my hand I just have like,
just literally like be paralyzed in pain like it was some of the worst pain I've ever been through so as if 20/20 wasn't like crazy and bad enough like I had to take a couple months off work and.
[39:28] Literally sit and do nothing which for somebody that is so like focused and driven it was so challenging you can ask my husband.
[39:37] He's like we gotta get you back to work you're driving me crazy yes so I'm on the mend now and so that's good but it was definitely gonna fucking drama Jeepster couldn't paint draw it was even working on the computer like for marketing and stuff was not
recommended by my doctor so it was kind of just sitting and staring at a wall and thinking about how thankful I am that I.
Don't have coronavirus or anything worse mmm absolutely now we had talked about something that always fascinates me.
I am a Serial entrepreneur I love being an entrepreneur I love everything about it.
[40:17] But there's always I think the thing that draws me to it the most is that it's truly the journey,
right there is real no destination around being an entrepreneur it is like a constant journey and twists and turns and it's not just about.
A website social media or you know finding the client so to speak and we talked a little bit about this case.
[40:45] But it is amazing the internal Journey as an entrepreneur you have to take specifically.
[40:55] Your relationship with money.
To take your business to the next level and it it always fascinates me in and I feel like.
The entrepreneurs and the women that are in the in the industry that are also entrepreneurs.
There's always this journey and exploration that has to happen to take it to the next level.
And you talked a little bit about that we talked a little bit about it but is that something you'd be willing to dive into a little bit oh absolutely I think,
with you saying being a journey and everything I fully fully agree with you and,
quite honestly like sometimes that's since I'm so like goal-oriented it's actually something that I've struggled with because there really is no end goal so to speak like,
when do you have enough money or when do you have enough followers or when do you have the right kind of artwork for that perfect job because I have had so many great,
experiences with my followers and so many good fantastic commission jobs where I've just really enjoyed the company of the client and their ideas and stuff so.
[42:03] There is no end to it and and for me like once I have set a goal and reached it if I don't have another one to keep like.
Keep me motivated if you will it's really tough for me to like call myself an entrepreneur because I don't have that accomplishment too.
Chase if you will,
but with money in particular that is probably my biggest struggle with this it was especially in the beginning it's kind of just a shot in the dark because a lot of artists don't,
don't want to share talk about what how they price their work and.
Like what they what they feel comfortable with and and it's different across the board and it's really different across the board with the automotive industry it see how and I've learned,
and every day it's like I have to relearn it and tell myself like I've just noticed that it's really a matter of like valuing your own work.
And then in turn pricing it accordingly because I've there's been times in my business where like.
[43:04] I underestimated myself or I didn't value my work and then I came across a client that truly saw the value in my work and when I quoted them a price they were like shocked and how affordable it was and.
That was like an instant red flag to me like okay what am I what's going on like what am I doing wrong or what else are people pricing this out I have no idea,
because you know there's like those hourly guys and then there's the,
but by job guys and then there's by size guys and so over the years I've finally come to.
[43:38] A really great scale for my business that works and I price all of my artwork based around the size,
the time that it takes me and then like of course you're you have like your travel in the material and.
[43:54] So there's all these different aspects that go into pricing a job and literally every job is priced differently.
And that's only because I work so so in so many different fields as far as like images and everything I paint is so different so it's like I can't just be like yeah that 50 bucks or whatever it is you know across the board all right great,
I mean I did do that for a while and I like shot myself in the foot but in regards to what you were saying about like growing your business until you value your own work you're never going to find the client that values it enough to can help you grow in your business,
there's just no way so I've learned to value my work price my work and my time accordingly so that that way I can provide.
Just really high quality great service to the people that hire me it's really important to me like I don't feel like I'm just product-based business I feel like my,
services are just as important and like if you need to contact me I'm going to be available and If you have a question no I don't want you to feel like an idiot for asking.
Like you said earlier there's so many different things that maybe other people outside of the art world don't know to ask or or they ask and they feel silly because you know they think that they should already know and that's not the truth with,
people that hire me like I just want them and I want it to be like an open-ended project that we work on together.
[45:16] More so than like hey here's my money pay me what you want I want them to feel like hey that was my idea and look at how she took this idea and,
and transformed it and I picked out the color for the background candy panel and I got to decide whether the font was you know script or all caps or,
I just want them to read be included because I feel like that's what they come to me for is just togetherness of creating artwork that's the whole point I want to create artwork from their ideas and I can't do that unless they share.
Their stories and their ideas with me that sounds like an amazing experience and there's two things when I'm listening to you talk.
[45:56] I feel like every entrepreneur their biggest challenge.
[46:01] It's challenging figuring out wearing all the different hats for sure yes but it seems like the biggest challenge.
[46:09] Is the Battle of valuing your own product and service.
[46:15] I agree because you don't have anyone telling you being able to tell people you know.
No I will not give that to you for free oh my gosh I'm not a so hard yes and I have I have such a giving mentality like I.
Cornerstone of my business is giving back to my community like I always try and find areas to do that just at no charge to anybody just out of my own like gratitude to be able to do this for a living I always try and find some way to do that but that mindset.
It has a place where it needs to stay and it can't like translate into like how I provide for my family with my company it can't it can't kind of crossover to too much because otherwise I end up.
I end up like totally stressed out and almost bitter towards clients because I charged them I under charge myself.
[47:06] And that's just the crappiest place to be in because they don't know what.
You know sometimes they come to you and they have no idea what the price maybe and so if you charge them and tell them like hey this is how much it's going to cost.
They may have nothing to go and compare that with so they're thinking like wow that's a lot of money I can't wait to do this and I'm thinking like oh my God I didn't charge enough I don't even want to do this job I don't want to,
and that's only happened a couple times and I've gotten through it and it's still been a great experience client and artists alike but,
it just it makes for a lot more joyous project when you feel like you're being valued financially and and emotionally with the project on both ends.
[47:45] Absolutely and that was the second thing that I wanted to get to and part of this is education.
[47:53] At a high level can you walk me through like because like I was saying the average person doesn't know the proper etiquette and how to.
View ask to buy or in we don't necessarily have to go through every scenario but your experience that you try to.
Or maybe some you know best best tips or whatever so that you know if I'm approaching an artist.
I don't want to seem like a jerk and I certainly don't want to give the impression that I don't value what they do for sure it's hard figuring that out because it's um.
[48:30] It's not like you go online and you can owe this same piece over here because they're all unique right it's they're typically one-of-a-kind unless you're buying a print or something but.
Yeah.
What is your experience like what what advice would you give the consumer so they don't come across as an idiot.
[48:55] I think as a consumer looking to hire an artist I think just going with an open mind and I also think go in knowing that it may be,
above or below your price level like I wouldn't go in and I've done this myself like I wouldn't go in and ask somebody what.
Like custom anything costs with a price in mind like I just go in with an open mind.
And when they get back with me on on what idea would cost like I always let them know and I've learned this in my business I always let them know if I can if at the moment I can't afford it.
I always let them know like I'm sorry that's that's a great price I appreciate you getting back with me and give them true feedback,
and I've never been like wow that's way too expensive because I really haven't had encountered that yet I don't know what I would do in that situation but as a consumer myself that loves to buy a custom artwork and custom leather work and metal work and all kinds of stuff,
like I always go in with an open mind and I don't pre price.
Their artwork or their craft subconsciously when messaging them and I think that helps with like sticker shock and so I've just learned that that for me helps a lot.
[50:09] I love the advice that you give there is just being open with them but it's hey it's not that.
Your price is too expensive it just may be out of my budget right now and I value what you're doing I think that helps the artist,
gear their pricing a lot better like there's been a lot of times where I've quoted a price to somebody and then I never heard back from them.
And I'm like okay well maybe I was in a season where I was okay to like say oh well you know I do have did you work in the military because I offer a military discount or like they didn't open up that conversation of like how can we actually make this work and so,
like I mentioned I have a military discount I have you no option for payment plan like there's plenty of ways and then sometimes I'm like hey I haven't had,
work in a long time and you know you do this awesome job and give back to the community for a living I'm going to give you a discount you know like it's that's the benefit of being your own boss so if that conversation.
Is over just because the other person just thought oh that's too much or I can't afford it and I'm not going to message him back I would have so appreciated feedback in the beginning stages of my career and even to this day,
like hey that's why I personally think that's too much or
I can't afford a right now but I see the value in it so I'll save up for it or do you have a payment but you know it opens that conversation so that they're not just going to run over to Hobby Lobby and buy some like.
[51:29] One up you know 15,000 off canvas print to fill their wall when they could have gotten something that they could have potentially afforded had they open the conversation up.
[51:39] Yeah I love that I think that is such great advice and.
[51:45] I'm sitting here thinking you know when you talk about custom artwork and stuff and what Drew me to your artwork is the pin up stuff the pinup work that you do.
[51:55] I'm drawn to pin up because there's there's a feeling you could look at it two different ways where the women being sexualized.
[52:05] Baby I don't know I guess when I look at pinup.
[52:09] Especially in that generation where pinup was really big is that it was almost taboo.
[52:16] For women to be dressed that way right and there's to me it's like a sense of taking your power back.
[52:26] In your femininity back and owning it rather than it being sexualized or taken from you it just seems in feels so empowering to me.
And then the connection with the machine I don't know and in the whole idea around Femcanic Garage in the car show when I saw your artwork I'm like that.
Is the look and feel that I would want to.
[52:51] Portray in the market I love around the car show and I couldn't think of anyone else better than you two.
Tell that story and cultivate that emotion you so much.
I can't wait to work on it with you going back to what you said I totally agree with you as far as what pain it means to certain people.
I know at first I mean we have to be real that the first time pinup was invented or not invented but really utilized was and you know like the World War II era and it was for a certain reason but to me I think.
I think pen up means something different to everybody but for me and that means it's,
it's like an icon for a forgotten era and an era that's like quickly dwindling and fading and that's why I enjoy the hot rod culture so much and this industry being in the automotive industry because.
[53:51] It still has like kind of the old-fashioned like hey let's meet up instead of.
[53:57] Let's actually like chat on the phone and not send a text as simple as that sounds or
yeah let's drink a beer together yeah let's let's sit in a lawn chair next to each other and talk about each other's cars let's drink a beer and you know that talk about are our grandparents and their Amazing Stories and the kind of people that they were and,
the quality of life but they had and for me I know it sounds so corny but that's what kind of represents for me and and and in that I do think that there's like strengthen,
and just I don't know like iconic it's just an iconic image that represents a lot to me and I really enjoy,
betraying it through paint in my own way because there's been so many people before me,
amazing famous pinup artist before me that I've course I draw inspiration from but I don't ever want to like directly.
Copy that I want it to be my own and I think people you know pinup artist.
Are pinup artist because they put their own spin on it and so that's what that's what's been fun and creating all these different little pain UPS has kind of put my own spin on it.
[55:01] Absolutely absolutely and I so look forward when your work thank you and I catch myself staring at it because it cultivates he likes you,
and that's that's what it's about.
Yes that's a great compliment gosh I appreciate that well it's earned and thank you for doing what you do because it is I agree with you your beautifully capturing an era that.
Let's be honest that a lot of them have passed or they're in this space where.
We need to take notice yeah get off of our freaking phones and I'm guilty of this too
because I'm sitting here saying I look at Instagram right get off of our phones and talk to our parents and grandparents because there's going to be a day they're not there and they have some of the most amazing,
stories from an era that.
[56:00] It's just crazy in mind-boggling yeah I think we can learn from it so much I think that we can apply a lot of the values that they.
[56:08] Kind of subconsciously stay and tells their stories I know that I've personally learned so much and took and I have shaped my own morals and goals around.
Some of the stories that my grandparents told him living in that era and I just it's really really cool to be able to.
[56:27] Portray that in a pin-up girl I know like I said I know everyone has their own their own version but will like with this new series.
I'm working on it involves pain up as well but a lot of the photographs I'm going to be using for inspiration are from Churchill in speeding Culture magazine photography.
In his his and my morals around pinup are very similar as far as like keeping it classy and.
Make more empowering the woman than sexualizing them and I like gravitated so much towards a lot of the photographs that he's taken in his career and so I just reached out to him and I was like Hey I want to use like
business in this picture for this series I'm doing,
at the time I was just kind of like this little glimmer in my eye and then I told him about it and he was like oh we're doing this and so he like lip a fire under me till I get painting on his series and creating and stuff and so.
It's cool to like in this industry to find like-minded people like that,
see pet up as more of a iconic image of Americana rather than just like the sexualized chick next to a hot car right.
[57:31] Right with your skills being able to position and place,
the woman in different places other than on the planet or you know what I mean that's what it's about it you can tell a different story around it and I
I just think it's so cool thank you it's a blast I love paint another blast of paint.
[57:54] So I'm curious Kate you've had all these amazing experiences what is next for you that question well honestly 20/20 like,
as silly and crazy as it was and like how much down time I had and everything I really like focused a lot on what I want for my business and,
my biggest career goal for 2020 one is to find a gallery that will showcase my series.
When that time comes I have a couple paying son now but a lot of people myself included had no idea how much work goes into applying.
[58:33] For a gallery show like at a professional art gallery and there's all kinds of.
Wording that you have to do in like a CV and estate and artist statement all these things and as much as I love to write and stuff it's definitely proved a task so,
that's my biggest goal of 2021 is is that and then.
I already am booking gosh I can't believe it but I'm already like booking out for the end of March.
Because I have clients up until that point that have booked with me for different projects like across the board there's so many cool projects coming up and then like we spoke with you and I we have that one coming up here in the summer probably.
So yeah I'm just gonna,
a lot of the opportunities with my studio that that have been like high-ranking or top of the top have literally come up at.
[59:25] Kind of a moment's notice and it's that like oh shoot moment of like do I do this or do I not and so I have I'm always kind of leave a little space for those so that if I do want to take on like a surprise opportunity I can have that.
Be way of saying yes or no I did apply to go maybe do the All Girls Garage or excuse me the girl gang garage filled with bogey for the Cima show that mobile that they're building so,
the Volvo depending on how things work out that's more towards the fall when I would come in because of their work schedule of course I'd be more towards
the end of the build with the paint work and stuff so that that would hopefully be in the fall but.
I don't know it's like I said it's always kind of a I have usually like two or three set goals and then the rest of them I kind of just like scout out opportunities and apply.
As the year goes and of course I mean all my shows in 2020 were canceled except for one of them and then I hurt my arm and neck so I couldn't paint at that show and I just I just went as if I Center which was actually kind of fun,
um but yeah so I have,
three of those shows planned for 2021 ribs and rods in Temple Texas the Lone Star Roundup in Austin Texas.
And then may I usually keep one other show option open besides Christmas stuff going on in December so it's a busy year I'm excited to like kind of be back in the swing of things hopefully.
right there is real no destination around being an entrepreneur it is like a constant journey and twists and turns and it's not just about.
A website social media or you know finding the client so to speak and we talked a little bit about this case.
[40:45] But it is amazing the internal Journey as an entrepreneur you have to take specifically.
[40:55] Your relationship with money.
To take your business to the next level and it it always fascinates me in and I feel like.
The entrepreneurs and the women that are in the in the industry that are also entrepreneurs.
There's always this journey and exploration that has to happen to take it to the next level.
And you talked a little bit about that we talked a little bit about it but is that something you'd be willing to dive into a little bit oh absolutely I think,
with you saying being a journey and everything I fully fully agree with you and,
quite honestly like sometimes that's since I'm so like goal-oriented it's actually something that I've struggled with because there really is no end goal so to speak like,
when do you have enough money or when do you have enough followers or when do you have the right kind of artwork for that perfect job because I have had so many great,
experiences with my followers and so many good fantastic commission jobs where I've just really enjoyed the company of the client and their ideas and stuff so.
[42:03] There is no end to it and and for me like once I have set a goal and reached it if I don't have another one to keep like.
Keep me motivated if you will it's really tough for me to like call myself an entrepreneur because I don't have that accomplishment too.
Chase if you will,
but with money in particular that is probably my biggest struggle with this it was especially in the beginning it's kind of just a shot in the dark because a lot of artists don't,
don't want to share talk about what how they price their work and.
Like what they what they feel comfortable with and and it's different across the board and it's really different across the board with the automotive industry it see how and I've learned,
and every day it's like I have to relearn it and tell myself like I've just noticed that it's really a matter of like valuing your own work.
And then in turn pricing it accordingly because I've there's been times in my business where like.
[43:04] I underestimated myself or I didn't value my work and then I came across a client that truly saw the value in my work and when I quoted them a price they were like shocked and how affordable it was and.
That was like an instant red flag to me like okay what am I what's going on like what am I doing wrong or what else are people pricing this out I have no idea,
because you know there's like those hourly guys and then there's the,
but by job guys and then there's by size guys and so over the years I've finally come to.
[43:38] A really great scale for my business that works and I price all of my artwork based around the size,
the time that it takes me and then like of course you're you have like your travel in the material and.
[43:54] So there's all these different aspects that go into pricing a job and literally every job is priced differently.
And that's only because I work so so in so many different fields as far as like images and everything I paint is so different so it's like I can't just be like yeah that 50 bucks or whatever it is you know across the board all right great,
I mean I did do that for a while and I like shot myself in the foot but in regards to what you were saying about like growing your business until you value your own work you're never going to find the client that values it enough to can help you grow in your business,
there's just no way so I've learned to value my work price my work and my time accordingly so that that way I can provide.
Just really high quality great service to the people that hire me it's really important to me like I don't feel like I'm just product-based business I feel like my,
services are just as important and like if you need to contact me I'm going to be available and If you have a question no I don't want you to feel like an idiot for asking.
Like you said earlier there's so many different things that maybe other people outside of the art world don't know to ask or or they ask and they feel silly because you know they think that they should already know and that's not the truth with,
people that hire me like I just want them and I want it to be like an open-ended project that we work on together.
[45:16] More so than like hey here's my money pay me what you want I want them to feel like hey that was my idea and look at how she took this idea and,
and transformed it and I picked out the color for the background candy panel and I got to decide whether the font was you know script or all caps or,
I just want them to read be included because I feel like that's what they come to me for is just togetherness of creating artwork that's the whole point I want to create artwork from their ideas and I can't do that unless they share.
Their stories and their ideas with me that sounds like an amazing experience and there's two things when I'm listening to you talk.
[45:56] I feel like every entrepreneur their biggest challenge.
[46:01] It's challenging figuring out wearing all the different hats for sure yes but it seems like the biggest challenge.
[46:09] Is the Battle of valuing your own product and service.
[46:15] I agree because you don't have anyone telling you being able to tell people you know.
No I will not give that to you for free oh my gosh I'm not a so hard yes and I have I have such a giving mentality like I.
Cornerstone of my business is giving back to my community like I always try and find areas to do that just at no charge to anybody just out of my own like gratitude to be able to do this for a living I always try and find some way to do that but that mindset.
It has a place where it needs to stay and it can't like translate into like how I provide for my family with my company it can't it can't kind of crossover to too much because otherwise I end up.
I end up like totally stressed out and almost bitter towards clients because I charged them I under charge myself.
[47:06] And that's just the crappiest place to be in because they don't know what.
You know sometimes they come to you and they have no idea what the price maybe and so if you charge them and tell them like hey this is how much it's going to cost.
They may have nothing to go and compare that with so they're thinking like wow that's a lot of money I can't wait to do this and I'm thinking like oh my God I didn't charge enough I don't even want to do this job I don't want to,
and that's only happened a couple times and I've gotten through it and it's still been a great experience client and artists alike but,
it just it makes for a lot more joyous project when you feel like you're being valued financially and and emotionally with the project on both ends.
[47:45] Absolutely and that was the second thing that I wanted to get to and part of this is education.
[47:53] At a high level can you walk me through like because like I was saying the average person doesn't know the proper etiquette and how to.
View ask to buy or in we don't necessarily have to go through every scenario but your experience that you try to.
Or maybe some you know best best tips or whatever so that you know if I'm approaching an artist.
I don't want to seem like a jerk and I certainly don't want to give the impression that I don't value what they do for sure it's hard figuring that out because it's um.
[48:30] It's not like you go online and you can owe this same piece over here because they're all unique right it's they're typically one-of-a-kind unless you're buying a print or something but.
Yeah.
What is your experience like what what advice would you give the consumer so they don't come across as an idiot.
[48:55] I think as a consumer looking to hire an artist I think just going with an open mind and I also think go in knowing that it may be,
above or below your price level like I wouldn't go in and I've done this myself like I wouldn't go in and ask somebody what.
Like custom anything costs with a price in mind like I just go in with an open mind.
And when they get back with me on on what idea would cost like I always let them know and I've learned this in my business I always let them know if I can if at the moment I can't afford it.
I always let them know like I'm sorry that's that's a great price I appreciate you getting back with me and give them true feedback,
and I've never been like wow that's way too expensive because I really haven't had encountered that yet I don't know what I would do in that situation but as a consumer myself that loves to buy a custom artwork and custom leather work and metal work and all kinds of stuff,
like I always go in with an open mind and I don't pre price.
Their artwork or their craft subconsciously when messaging them and I think that helps with like sticker shock and so I've just learned that that for me helps a lot.
[50:09] I love the advice that you give there is just being open with them but it's hey it's not that.
Your price is too expensive it just may be out of my budget right now and I value what you're doing I think that helps the artist,
gear their pricing a lot better like there's been a lot of times where I've quoted a price to somebody and then I never heard back from them.
And I'm like okay well maybe I was in a season where I was okay to like say oh well you know I do have did you work in the military because I offer a military discount or like they didn't open up that conversation of like how can we actually make this work and so,
like I mentioned I have a military discount I have you no option for payment plan like there's plenty of ways and then sometimes I'm like hey I haven't had,
work in a long time and you know you do this awesome job and give back to the community for a living I'm going to give you a discount you know like it's that's the benefit of being your own boss so if that conversation.
Is over just because the other person just thought oh that's too much or I can't afford it and I'm not going to message him back I would have so appreciated feedback in the beginning stages of my career and even to this day,
like hey that's why I personally think that's too much or
I can't afford a right now but I see the value in it so I'll save up for it or do you have a payment but you know it opens that conversation so that they're not just going to run over to Hobby Lobby and buy some like.
[51:29] One up you know 15,000 off canvas print to fill their wall when they could have gotten something that they could have potentially afforded had they open the conversation up.
[51:39] Yeah I love that I think that is such great advice and.
[51:45] I'm sitting here thinking you know when you talk about custom artwork and stuff and what Drew me to your artwork is the pin up stuff the pinup work that you do.
[51:55] I'm drawn to pin up because there's there's a feeling you could look at it two different ways where the women being sexualized.
[52:05] Baby I don't know I guess when I look at pinup.
[52:09] Especially in that generation where pinup was really big is that it was almost taboo.
[52:16] For women to be dressed that way right and there's to me it's like a sense of taking your power back.
[52:26] In your femininity back and owning it rather than it being sexualized or taken from you it just seems in feels so empowering to me.
And then the connection with the machine I don't know and in the whole idea around Femcanic Garage in the car show when I saw your artwork I'm like that.
Is the look and feel that I would want to.
[52:51] Portray in the market I love around the car show and I couldn't think of anyone else better than you two.
Tell that story and cultivate that emotion you so much.
I can't wait to work on it with you going back to what you said I totally agree with you as far as what pain it means to certain people.
I know at first I mean we have to be real that the first time pinup was invented or not invented but really utilized was and you know like the World War II era and it was for a certain reason but to me I think.
I think pen up means something different to everybody but for me and that means it's,
it's like an icon for a forgotten era and an era that's like quickly dwindling and fading and that's why I enjoy the hot rod culture so much and this industry being in the automotive industry because.
[53:51] It still has like kind of the old-fashioned like hey let's meet up instead of.
[53:57] Let's actually like chat on the phone and not send a text as simple as that sounds or
yeah let's drink a beer together yeah let's let's sit in a lawn chair next to each other and talk about each other's cars let's drink a beer and you know that talk about are our grandparents and their Amazing Stories and the kind of people that they were and,
the quality of life but they had and for me I know it sounds so corny but that's what kind of represents for me and and and in that I do think that there's like strengthen,
and just I don't know like iconic it's just an iconic image that represents a lot to me and I really enjoy,
betraying it through paint in my own way because there's been so many people before me,
amazing famous pinup artist before me that I've course I draw inspiration from but I don't ever want to like directly.
Copy that I want it to be my own and I think people you know pinup artist.
Are pinup artist because they put their own spin on it and so that's what that's what's been fun and creating all these different little pain UPS has kind of put my own spin on it.
[55:01] Absolutely absolutely and I so look forward when your work thank you and I catch myself staring at it because it cultivates he likes you,
and that's that's what it's about.
Yes that's a great compliment gosh I appreciate that well it's earned and thank you for doing what you do because it is I agree with you your beautifully capturing an era that.
Let's be honest that a lot of them have passed or they're in this space where.
We need to take notice yeah get off of our freaking phones and I'm guilty of this too
because I'm sitting here saying I look at Instagram right get off of our phones and talk to our parents and grandparents because there's going to be a day they're not there and they have some of the most amazing,
stories from an era that.
[56:00] It's just crazy in mind-boggling yeah I think we can learn from it so much I think that we can apply a lot of the values that they.
[56:08] Kind of subconsciously stay and tells their stories I know that I've personally learned so much and took and I have shaped my own morals and goals around.
Some of the stories that my grandparents told him living in that era and I just it's really really cool to be able to.
[56:27] Portray that in a pin-up girl I know like I said I know everyone has their own their own version but will like with this new series.
I'm working on it involves pain up as well but a lot of the photographs I'm going to be using for inspiration are from Churchill in speeding Culture magazine photography.
In his his and my morals around pinup are very similar as far as like keeping it classy and.
Make more empowering the woman than sexualizing them and I like gravitated so much towards a lot of the photographs that he's taken in his career and so I just reached out to him and I was like Hey I want to use like
business in this picture for this series I'm doing,
at the time I was just kind of like this little glimmer in my eye and then I told him about it and he was like oh we're doing this and so he like lip a fire under me till I get painting on his series and creating and stuff and so.
It's cool to like in this industry to find like-minded people like that,
see pet up as more of a iconic image of Americana rather than just like the sexualized chick next to a hot car right.
[57:31] Right with your skills being able to position and place,
the woman in different places other than on the planet or you know what I mean that's what it's about it you can tell a different story around it and I
I just think it's so cool thank you it's a blast I love paint another blast of paint.
[57:54] So I'm curious Kate you've had all these amazing experiences what is next for you that question well honestly 20/20 like,
as silly and crazy as it was and like how much down time I had and everything I really like focused a lot on what I want for my business and,
my biggest career goal for 2020 one is to find a gallery that will showcase my series.
When that time comes I have a couple paying son now but a lot of people myself included had no idea how much work goes into applying.
[58:33] For a gallery show like at a professional art gallery and there's all kinds of.
Wording that you have to do in like a CV and estate and artist statement all these things and as much as I love to write and stuff it's definitely proved a task so,
that's my biggest goal of 2021 is is that and then.
I already am booking gosh I can't believe it but I'm already like booking out for the end of March.
Because I have clients up until that point that have booked with me for different projects like across the board there's so many cool projects coming up and then like we spoke with you and I we have that one coming up here in the summer probably.
So yeah I'm just gonna,
a lot of the opportunities with my studio that that have been like high-ranking or top of the top have literally come up at.
[59:25] Kind of a moment's notice and it's that like oh shoot moment of like do I do this or do I not and so I have I'm always kind of leave a little space for those so that if I do want to take on like a surprise opportunity I can have that.
Be way of saying yes or no I did apply to go maybe do the All Girls Garage or excuse me the girl gang garage filled with bogey for the Cima show that mobile that they're building so,
the Volvo depending on how things work out that's more towards the fall when I would come in because of their work schedule of course I'd be more towards
the end of the build with the paint work and stuff so that that would hopefully be in the fall but.
I don't know it's like I said it's always kind of a I have usually like two or three set goals and then the rest of them I kind of just like scout out opportunities and apply.
As the year goes and of course I mean all my shows in 2020 were canceled except for one of them and then I hurt my arm and neck so I couldn't paint at that show and I just I just went as if I Center which was actually kind of fun,
um but yeah so I have,
three of those shows planned for 2021 ribs and rods in Temple Texas the Lone Star Roundup in Austin Texas.
And then may I usually keep one other show option open besides Christmas stuff going on in December so it's a busy year I'm excited to like kind of be back in the swing of things hopefully.
[1:00:51] Nice well I can tell you the first priority is.
Me getting the sponsorship and commissioning you to do a piece that we would auction off for charity and then in my bucket list I have.
Never purchased any custom art it is in my bucket list and you will be the person that I purchase it from thank you because it's spot on.
It makes sense to me.
[1:01:19] Feels right to me so thank you so much I look forward to working with you would be fun for sure in just learning the process I love working with creatives and,
you know,
It's Kind of a Funny Story to make fun of myself Kate we all do that that's good you have to yes you definitely have to have been a guest on other podcasts in a.
[1:01:46] Femcanic Garage was featured in podcast magazine and oh my gosh understandably so because I ask my guests can send me pictures,
they asked me for pictures I'm like I don't have any progress pictures the only headshot I got,
is the picture that I used for my book that got published and that's 10 years old and I'm like Oh my God look at me I don't even have those so I'm actually getting my first official photo shoot so February,
and I'm like I have no idea what the hell I'm doing and when I'm talking to the photographer like,
I mean it she's a professional for sure it's not like my cousin really like that right this she does this full time right and she is absolutely amazing her,
her creativity just her eye and her style I was really drawn to it she's located it's plum Creative Photography I believe,
here in Columbus she's just phenomenal and she's like kind of carrying me through this and I'm like.
I'm giving you 99% creative rain here.
[1:02:55] That 1% is me just kind of putting in the guard rails pretty consistent with my brand and she was just giddy she's like you have no ideas and as an artist and creative how much fun that is for me,
and what I've found is.
Folks like UK do far better things in bigger things than what I could even think of because it's just.
That's your guys is jam and I've always been so impressed.
When I go with my gut with people and they always far exceed my expectations or I love that go with your gut for sure photographers are actually,
I've done a lot of research especially when we were about to get married doing photographer research on that front I kind of pulled a lot of my like marketing and stuff from the way that they,
kind of structured their emails for like.
[1:03:49] Estimates and so I really appreciate a lot of the people that I know I may not have fired them but I definitely like thank them for their time and then I told them like I really admired how well this females put together and all the information packet and everything
so a lot of the stuff that I have now in a customer like you know,
inquires about a custom piece of art like a lot of the things that they that I send them like pricing sheet and information that's in steps of all that and how,
10 steps on how to create art and all this that all came actually from like my research and photography business because they always have like packages and like.
The different prices and then you know the second photographer and all these different things and I have a lot of friends who are photographers so.
I appreciate all their hard work that I kind of like you know started on the tail end of and kind of took some of the ideas for myself so.
[1:04:42] Yeah they're amazing amazingly talented people are first absolutely.
[1:04:48] I think this is a good time to dive into the Red Line Round because I think it'll expand on some of the things that we're talking about and I'm curious about responses and,
[1:04:58] the Red Line Round is five rapid-fire questions there's no right or wrong answer to him whatever pops into your hands right answer.
[1:05:07] You ready yes I'm ready all right I need like a sound like yeah totally.
All right Kate who or what has been your inspiration throughout your journey in the industry.
There's there's a couple people in the industry itself I would say,
as a kid it was like Jessi Combs for sure she was my go-to because I saw her in the industry kind of the only girl and in the scene and.
Kind of like doing her own thing without any regard to like what people were saying you know no two she's kind of just her own beast and I totally admired that and I'm so glad I got to meet her before she passed and.
[1:05:52] But outside of that I would say Obviously my family and my faith are to the two big driving focuses of what keeps me going and motivates me and inspires me to do better like literally every day.
[1:06:04] Beautiful.
[1:06:06] Kate where do you go or what resources do you use when you want to learn something new or you get stuck on a job or a piece that you're gonna know I love that question,
so a lot of times so there's two different types of stuck for me and the first stuck is creatively stuck.
And the second stuck is technically stuck and so did it to get creatively unstuck I cannot be anywhere near my studio and I have to just do something completely different than.
Picking up a paintbrush or pencil to create something so either I go to an antique store
and that really really really inspires me I see like all this old rusty stuff or like old suitcases and old lettering art and vintage posters and that really gets my juices flowing again,
and so either that or like you know going into the kitchen and like trying to create something out of food which,
as good and bad things happen from it but,
and then and then the technically stuck I am I'm actually like pretty old-school II don't really use a lot of YouTube.
[1:07:17] I go I go back to books a lot that I've collected over the years and then now that there's Instagram.
I have found that just like just cherished Instagram for and I know it sounds so like Millennial but truly like Instagram has been a great tool for me and.
Connecting with people that do the same thing as me in a different style and if I have a problem with like
paint not sticking or like mixing clear,
there's there's certain friends at that first they were just these really high-end artist that I was so nervous to reach out to but I kind of just did because I had no other choice I was like I got to get this bubble out of my clear faint like how do I do this you know how do I mix this clear.
How do I make this old-school looking sign how do I make it look aged or anything like that so I've really found.
[1:08:08] Instagram and making those relationships and connections and friendships through that.
But that's how I get technically unstuck and that's just that's a huge Testament to the people in my industry like they're so willing to share their knowledge and.
And they're not condescending about knowing it if you don't and like you know hot rod Jen and Darren and huge customs and.
All these all these different people that have really helped me through the four years I've been open full time and even up until before I was open.
I love that I love that camaraderie that's so special hot nothing beats it definitely not okay what excites you most about what you do.
[1:08:50] What excites me most I think what truly excites me most goes back to the whole entrepreneurial journey is there's really never there's never like,
okay you did it like although that stresses me out sometimes it's also extremely exciting,
but the opportunity that I have with this career as a custom artist is.
Is like endless like I as long as I'm willing to let go out and.
And grab the opportunity and you know apply for the gallery show or apply for the competition or enter my artwork here they're like as long as I'm always willing to do that there's always going to be the opportunity to,
be an artist and I think that's what truly excites me,
of course besides meeting the clients I mean I'm always like so excited to like see a new email in my.
In my invoice or a my emails like,
with a new idea because I'm like how can we you know what is this idea and like am I going to instantly visualize it or are we gonna have to like really work through some sketches and so of course that's the obvious excitement but I think the endless opportunity possibilities.
That's what truly is exciting and what keeps me motivated through the day.
[1:10:04] What's a personal habit or practice that has helped you significantly when you feel stuck or discouraged a personal.
[1:10:14] Personal habit that has helped me when I feel stuck discouraged I think.
[1:10:24] I haven't made it a have it yet but I'm really trying is to step away when it's not working like as a business owner I.
[1:10:35] I know that if I'm not having a creatively happy if you will a creatively happy day like for you know I can use an entire eraser in one sketch and it's just still not working.
I
I've continually and unfortunately just stayed with it and like tried to keep making something work that wasn't going to work and the reason for that is because I know that at the end of,
the drawing or the end of the painting I'm going to get paid and and it may be a situation where I need to get paid,
or I need to finish it because I have another clients work that's coming down the line and it's literally every time if I do not step away from it I stress myself out and then I,
literally start to like down this Rabbit Hole thinking like why did I do this why do I do this for a living I you know and I start- self talking myself so I think,
I'm still learning that habit of just like ones if it's not working step away and then guess what you know what God will provide you some time,
another day or another week to get that done and I've literally never missed a deadline in my life as an artist and I'm so proud of that and I and I think it is definitely due to knowing my limits.
[1:11:48] So well said so well said and finally what is your parting advice to other Femcanic 6 finding their way.
In the industry and now I'm saying that in a vague term I understand you're an artist.
[1:12:04] I think there there's definitely things that.
Translate and transcend across the industry so I hundred percent agree with you all night I think like top of the top thing is and I've said this so many times is.
Is do it in fear so like if you're scared of an opportunity.
Let the scare and the anxiety that that may cause like turn that into your excitement and let it drive you because most often it will lead to an opportunity,
an accomplishment that you can put literally at the top of your resume and be the most proud of.
With that said I do think that the other part of that is is within any industry or craft it's so important to master the boring stuff.
[1:12:52] You cannot give yourself a title unless you like went through the grind and
and did the hard work you know and I'm not saying like go to college I'm saying like open a Book Get on YouTube and learn how to draw and shade a circle if you're wanting to be an artist learn how to master a straight nice weld without using a grinder,
you know those simple things because that is those are the stuffing box whether you like it or not like you start at the bottom,
any move up to the top you're not going to get there off of word-of-mouth you're going to get there by like perseverance and hard work and if you don't start at the bottom learning how to shade a circle you're never going to get to the top where you get to
you know pinstripe bet the seen the show that's just never going to happen,
so those are my two biggest things advice wise for anybody I guess that goes for life and the craft.
[1:13:41] That is the stuff right there.
I love it so many times I hear people giving advice of don't do this don't let people do this and.
It's going to happen you're going to feel those things but those are clear actionable yeah items I love it.
[1:14:01] Kate where and how can people connect with you and your company
yes absolutely so first and foremost is my website at small canvas custom art there you can go to the contact inquire tab if you are interested in commissioning a piece of artwork
like I said for 2021 I'm poking out until March but you can fill out a form there and it and walks you through the different kind of questions I'll ask you before we actually have a phone or email consultation regarding your ideas,
I'm work heavily through Facebook and Instagram as well Facebook is V8 Kate and or asphalt canvas custom art and then asphalt canvas Customs is for Instagram,
of course I have a Pinterest as well and if you're interested in seeing my Inspirations as far as like knows are and vintage you know War pictures of you know the true Rosie Rosie the riveters,
that link is also on my website and it's just a small canvas customer over on Pinterest.
Kate thank you so much for being in the driver's seat today and just peeling back the curtain and.
Letting us get to know you as an individual I through your artwork I feel like I know you but kind of sticking a voice to the picture.
[1:15:15] And really understanding your world and what you stand for,
it was absolutely my pleasure like I said I'm so happy to be in the light of women that you've interviewed and I'm honored that you've taken all this time and all of your talent and effort into producing a,
podcast I can't but and I'll always be listening to Femcanic podcast it's one of my.
It's while I hate well thank you I I truly appreciate that and that right there Kate is something I've been working on truly receiving.
Yes that's great that's such a great quality and people I love that.
[1:15:53] Thank you again Kate oh for sure thank you my name is Kate Cook with asphalt canvas custom art and I'm a Femcanic.
[1:16:12] She does not work in a shop currently but has used this knowledge to work on her 1970 Dodge Dart Swinger,
she also shares her love for all things Automotive on her social media platforms during her interview she dives into personal struggles and triumphs throughout her journey.
Be sure to tune in next week until next time Femcanics.
[1:16:36] Thanks for listening to the Femcanic Garage podcast you can find us on Instagram Facebook and Twitter at Femcanic Garage,
check out our website Femcanic Garage.com for swag in the transcribes for each episode.
If you want to help grow this community do me a favor and subscribe rate review and most importantly share this.
[1:17:02] Spread the word this is Jayme B signing off. ARE YOU A FEMCANIC?
Me getting the sponsorship and commissioning you to do a piece that we would auction off for charity and then in my bucket list I have.
Never purchased any custom art it is in my bucket list and you will be the person that I purchase it from thank you because it's spot on.
It makes sense to me.
[1:01:19] Feels right to me so thank you so much I look forward to working with you would be fun for sure in just learning the process I love working with creatives and,
you know,
It's Kind of a Funny Story to make fun of myself Kate we all do that that's good you have to yes you definitely have to have been a guest on other podcasts in a.
[1:01:46] Femcanic Garage was featured in podcast magazine and oh my gosh understandably so because I ask my guests can send me pictures,
they asked me for pictures I'm like I don't have any progress pictures the only headshot I got,
is the picture that I used for my book that got published and that's 10 years old and I'm like Oh my God look at me I don't even have those so I'm actually getting my first official photo shoot so February,
and I'm like I have no idea what the hell I'm doing and when I'm talking to the photographer like,
I mean it she's a professional for sure it's not like my cousin really like that right this she does this full time right and she is absolutely amazing her,
her creativity just her eye and her style I was really drawn to it she's located it's plum Creative Photography I believe,
here in Columbus she's just phenomenal and she's like kind of carrying me through this and I'm like.
I'm giving you 99% creative rain here.
[1:02:55] That 1% is me just kind of putting in the guard rails pretty consistent with my brand and she was just giddy she's like you have no ideas and as an artist and creative how much fun that is for me,
and what I've found is.
Folks like UK do far better things in bigger things than what I could even think of because it's just.
That's your guys is jam and I've always been so impressed.
When I go with my gut with people and they always far exceed my expectations or I love that go with your gut for sure photographers are actually,
I've done a lot of research especially when we were about to get married doing photographer research on that front I kind of pulled a lot of my like marketing and stuff from the way that they,
kind of structured their emails for like.
[1:03:49] Estimates and so I really appreciate a lot of the people that I know I may not have fired them but I definitely like thank them for their time and then I told them like I really admired how well this females put together and all the information packet and everything
so a lot of the stuff that I have now in a customer like you know,
inquires about a custom piece of art like a lot of the things that they that I send them like pricing sheet and information that's in steps of all that and how,
10 steps on how to create art and all this that all came actually from like my research and photography business because they always have like packages and like.
The different prices and then you know the second photographer and all these different things and I have a lot of friends who are photographers so.
I appreciate all their hard work that I kind of like you know started on the tail end of and kind of took some of the ideas for myself so.
[1:04:42] Yeah they're amazing amazingly talented people are first absolutely.
[1:04:48] I think this is a good time to dive into the Red Line Round because I think it'll expand on some of the things that we're talking about and I'm curious about responses and,
[1:04:58] the Red Line Round is five rapid-fire questions there's no right or wrong answer to him whatever pops into your hands right answer.
[1:05:07] You ready yes I'm ready all right I need like a sound like yeah totally.
All right Kate who or what has been your inspiration throughout your journey in the industry.
There's there's a couple people in the industry itself I would say,
as a kid it was like Jessi Combs for sure she was my go-to because I saw her in the industry kind of the only girl and in the scene and.
Kind of like doing her own thing without any regard to like what people were saying you know no two she's kind of just her own beast and I totally admired that and I'm so glad I got to meet her before she passed and.
[1:05:52] But outside of that I would say Obviously my family and my faith are to the two big driving focuses of what keeps me going and motivates me and inspires me to do better like literally every day.
[1:06:04] Beautiful.
[1:06:06] Kate where do you go or what resources do you use when you want to learn something new or you get stuck on a job or a piece that you're gonna know I love that question,
so a lot of times so there's two different types of stuck for me and the first stuck is creatively stuck.
And the second stuck is technically stuck and so did it to get creatively unstuck I cannot be anywhere near my studio and I have to just do something completely different than.
Picking up a paintbrush or pencil to create something so either I go to an antique store
and that really really really inspires me I see like all this old rusty stuff or like old suitcases and old lettering art and vintage posters and that really gets my juices flowing again,
and so either that or like you know going into the kitchen and like trying to create something out of food which,
as good and bad things happen from it but,
and then and then the technically stuck I am I'm actually like pretty old-school II don't really use a lot of YouTube.
[1:07:17] I go I go back to books a lot that I've collected over the years and then now that there's Instagram.
I have found that just like just cherished Instagram for and I know it sounds so like Millennial but truly like Instagram has been a great tool for me and.
Connecting with people that do the same thing as me in a different style and if I have a problem with like
paint not sticking or like mixing clear,
there's there's certain friends at that first they were just these really high-end artist that I was so nervous to reach out to but I kind of just did because I had no other choice I was like I got to get this bubble out of my clear faint like how do I do this you know how do I mix this clear.
How do I make this old-school looking sign how do I make it look aged or anything like that so I've really found.
[1:08:08] Instagram and making those relationships and connections and friendships through that.
But that's how I get technically unstuck and that's just that's a huge Testament to the people in my industry like they're so willing to share their knowledge and.
And they're not condescending about knowing it if you don't and like you know hot rod Jen and Darren and huge customs and.
All these all these different people that have really helped me through the four years I've been open full time and even up until before I was open.
I love that I love that camaraderie that's so special hot nothing beats it definitely not okay what excites you most about what you do.
[1:08:50] What excites me most I think what truly excites me most goes back to the whole entrepreneurial journey is there's really never there's never like,
okay you did it like although that stresses me out sometimes it's also extremely exciting,
but the opportunity that I have with this career as a custom artist is.
Is like endless like I as long as I'm willing to let go out and.
And grab the opportunity and you know apply for the gallery show or apply for the competition or enter my artwork here they're like as long as I'm always willing to do that there's always going to be the opportunity to,
be an artist and I think that's what truly excites me,
of course besides meeting the clients I mean I'm always like so excited to like see a new email in my.
In my invoice or a my emails like,
with a new idea because I'm like how can we you know what is this idea and like am I going to instantly visualize it or are we gonna have to like really work through some sketches and so of course that's the obvious excitement but I think the endless opportunity possibilities.
That's what truly is exciting and what keeps me motivated through the day.
[1:10:04] What's a personal habit or practice that has helped you significantly when you feel stuck or discouraged a personal.
[1:10:14] Personal habit that has helped me when I feel stuck discouraged I think.
[1:10:24] I haven't made it a have it yet but I'm really trying is to step away when it's not working like as a business owner I.
[1:10:35] I know that if I'm not having a creatively happy if you will a creatively happy day like for you know I can use an entire eraser in one sketch and it's just still not working.
I
I've continually and unfortunately just stayed with it and like tried to keep making something work that wasn't going to work and the reason for that is because I know that at the end of,
the drawing or the end of the painting I'm going to get paid and and it may be a situation where I need to get paid,
or I need to finish it because I have another clients work that's coming down the line and it's literally every time if I do not step away from it I stress myself out and then I,
literally start to like down this Rabbit Hole thinking like why did I do this why do I do this for a living I you know and I start- self talking myself so I think,
I'm still learning that habit of just like ones if it's not working step away and then guess what you know what God will provide you some time,
another day or another week to get that done and I've literally never missed a deadline in my life as an artist and I'm so proud of that and I and I think it is definitely due to knowing my limits.
[1:11:48] So well said so well said and finally what is your parting advice to other Femcanic 6 finding their way.
In the industry and now I'm saying that in a vague term I understand you're an artist.
[1:12:04] I think there there's definitely things that.
Translate and transcend across the industry so I hundred percent agree with you all night I think like top of the top thing is and I've said this so many times is.
Is do it in fear so like if you're scared of an opportunity.
Let the scare and the anxiety that that may cause like turn that into your excitement and let it drive you because most often it will lead to an opportunity,
an accomplishment that you can put literally at the top of your resume and be the most proud of.
With that said I do think that the other part of that is is within any industry or craft it's so important to master the boring stuff.
[1:12:52] You cannot give yourself a title unless you like went through the grind and
and did the hard work you know and I'm not saying like go to college I'm saying like open a Book Get on YouTube and learn how to draw and shade a circle if you're wanting to be an artist learn how to master a straight nice weld without using a grinder,
you know those simple things because that is those are the stuffing box whether you like it or not like you start at the bottom,
any move up to the top you're not going to get there off of word-of-mouth you're going to get there by like perseverance and hard work and if you don't start at the bottom learning how to shade a circle you're never going to get to the top where you get to
you know pinstripe bet the seen the show that's just never going to happen,
so those are my two biggest things advice wise for anybody I guess that goes for life and the craft.
[1:13:41] That is the stuff right there.
I love it so many times I hear people giving advice of don't do this don't let people do this and.
It's going to happen you're going to feel those things but those are clear actionable yeah items I love it.
[1:14:01] Kate where and how can people connect with you and your company
yes absolutely so first and foremost is my website at small canvas custom art there you can go to the contact inquire tab if you are interested in commissioning a piece of artwork
like I said for 2021 I'm poking out until March but you can fill out a form there and it and walks you through the different kind of questions I'll ask you before we actually have a phone or email consultation regarding your ideas,
I'm work heavily through Facebook and Instagram as well Facebook is V8 Kate and or asphalt canvas custom art and then asphalt canvas Customs is for Instagram,
of course I have a Pinterest as well and if you're interested in seeing my Inspirations as far as like knows are and vintage you know War pictures of you know the true Rosie Rosie the riveters,
that link is also on my website and it's just a small canvas customer over on Pinterest.
Kate thank you so much for being in the driver's seat today and just peeling back the curtain and.
Letting us get to know you as an individual I through your artwork I feel like I know you but kind of sticking a voice to the picture.
[1:15:15] And really understanding your world and what you stand for,
it was absolutely my pleasure like I said I'm so happy to be in the light of women that you've interviewed and I'm honored that you've taken all this time and all of your talent and effort into producing a,
podcast I can't but and I'll always be listening to Femcanic podcast it's one of my.
It's while I hate well thank you I I truly appreciate that and that right there Kate is something I've been working on truly receiving.
Yes that's great that's such a great quality and people I love that.
[1:15:53] Thank you again Kate oh for sure thank you my name is Kate Cook with asphalt canvas custom art and I'm a Femcanic.
[1:16:12] She does not work in a shop currently but has used this knowledge to work on her 1970 Dodge Dart Swinger,
she also shares her love for all things Automotive on her social media platforms during her interview she dives into personal struggles and triumphs throughout her journey.
Be sure to tune in next week until next time Femcanics.
[1:16:36] Thanks for listening to the Femcanic Garage podcast you can find us on Instagram Facebook and Twitter at Femcanic Garage,
check out our website Femcanic Garage.com for swag in the transcribes for each episode.
If you want to help grow this community do me a favor and subscribe rate review and most importantly share this.
[1:17:02] Spread the word this is Jayme B signing off. ARE YOU A FEMCANIC?
