We recently had the chance to connect with Alexandra Russell and have shared our conversation below.
Good morning Alexandra, it’s such a great way to kick off the day – I think our readers will love hearing your stories, experiences and about how you think about life and work. Let’s jump right in? What makes you lose track of time—and find yourself again?
Living in NYC, time seems fleeting yet ever-impending, and it’s easy to get wrapped up in the day-to-day distractions. For me personally, it’s been super challenging to balance my social life and artistic projects, especially working in marketing and advertising where being chronically online is part of the job.
But in my free time, what’s been inspiring me and making me lose track of time is honestly learning and absorbing different perspectives and stories. I think as adults, we’re not encouraged to be as curious as we were as kids, but the more you listen to people’s journeys, you uncover so many similarities. It’s funny because as I scroll on social media, a popular comment on videos is “I’ve never had an original experience in my life.” I think it’s hilarious because it’s true. No matter how many turns your life takes, someone on this earth has experienced something similar.
I really enjoy diving into long form interviews about multi-hyphenate artists whether on Youtube, Apple Music, etc, When I watch them, I find myself getting inspired and envisioning how I want my career to play out in the future. Some of my favorite interviews to watch involve Zack Fox, Issa Rae, and Quinta Brunson. Their trajectories are so interesting, and I love watching people speak about their passions.
I relate with people who have interests and talents in different lanes, so hearing how they execute their vision while maintaining balance in their lives always reels me in.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
My brand is called Perplexd Creative. It’s an art studio where I specialize in storytelling through different mediums whether it’s charcoal drawings, paintings, digital art, photography, and new to list – producing, writing, and acting. I started my brand back in 2020 during Covid. I started selling custom digital portraits in my down time and wanted to expand it to an online art shop.
I think what makes my brand unique is the fact that I have roots in dance, music, art, media, and marketing, and it allows me to create a platform for self-expression and to story tell about my story and the stories of others. I want to build a community of those who seek inspiration and are driven to express themselves in a world of cringe-culture and seemingly intimidating algorithms.
I also launched the first season of my web series titled: Slightly Perplexd. It’s a comedic series highlighting my creative journey in Brooklyn as I navigate relationships, friendships, and career. You can watch on Youtube on the ODRACOVA channel.
I specialize in custom commissions, photography, and creative marketing, so feel free to visit my website perplexdcreative.com!
Appreciate your sharing that. Let’s talk about your life, growing up and some of topics and learnings around that. What was your earliest memory of feeling powerful?
I think my earliest memory of feeling powerful is when I used to competitively dance as a kid. I used to have an intense rehearsal schedule when I was young, and you could say I wasn’t the biggest fan of ballet class. But once I hit the stage with the other girls in my class in front of massive audiences, the feeling was indescribable. There’s something about being in front of hundreds of people, which turned into tens of thousands of people in college, and telling a story through dance that made me feel extremely powerful.
In today’s world of receiving views and engagement by the thousands behind a screen, it doesn’t compare to the feeling of expressing yourself to those people in person.
Was there ever a time you almost gave up?
I think as an artist, there are so many times where you want to give up because it’s hard to define what “success” is. For me personally, I often struggle with the peaks and pits of feeling inspired which makes make want to give up, but I have to remember that there’s no time limit or deadline on re-inventing yourself and growing. It’s easier said than done. Decision paralysis is real!
So a lot of these questions go deep, but if you are open to it, we’ve got a few more questions that we’d love to get your take on. What’s a belief or project you’re committed to, no matter how long it takes?
Selfishly, a project I’m committed to no matter how long it takes is myself! You are the most important project you will ever work on, so it’s important to invest in yourself. In my journey through womanhood, it’s made me realize how important investing in your mental, physical, and emotional health is and figuring out what works for me.
I find myself getting frustrated with the pace of my art “success” or the amount of views or likes a project I share gets, but I’ve come to realize that you can’t control the algorithm, and also you need to have a platform to showcase your work. One of my biggest fears in my creative journey is being presented an opportunity that I’m not ready for or don’t have the projects I need to prove I’m the right fit.
As I approach my 30’s, my mindset is definitely shifting to putting in the time on myself and the environment around me will reflect that.
Thank you so much for all of your openness so far. Maybe we can close with a future oriented question. What light inside you have you been dimming?
I’d like to think that I don’t dim any lights inside me but rather forget that certain aspects of the light exist. As a multi-hyphenate creative, I often find myself consuming videos of people doing things that I used to be extremely passionate about, like dance for instance. Dance used to be such a integral part of my life and was almost second nature, and once that part of my life was no longer tended to, my energy shifted.
In the future, I would love to get back in the studio and express myself through movement. It’s a great way to relieve stress; plus I love music.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://perplexdcreative.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lexishow/?hl=en
