Today we’d like to introduce you to Kelly Roman.
Hi Kelly, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I’ve been making art ever since I was little. My grandmother was a retired middle school art teacher, and whenever she came to visit she would bring me some art supplies and I remember her specifically teaching me how to paint flowers with watercolors. My grandmother really helped spark the love for art in me. I continued making art ever since and have always been passionate about art making. It’s something that I feel like is a part of my spirit and chemical make up.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
I’ve run into a couple of challenges with mental health. Anxiety/depression can definitely get in the way of my own creativity and motivation. I’ve learned to not criticize my own mind though when it comes to feeling anxiety. My brain gets creative with anxious hypotheticals, but also helps me think of creative art ideas. I’m just trying to find ways to calm my anxious brain so it doesn’t cloud over my creativity. It’s all about balance.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I’m a full time artist but sometimes will pick up some jobs on the side to help pay the bills. I feel like I’m pretty multidisciplinary especially as I grow older. When I was in college studying art, I thought that as a professional artist you would have to stick with just illustration or just graphic design or just animation, etc. But I’ve discovered that doesn’t work for me. I primarily do illustration but if I did it all the time I’d get so bored. I love to switch things up. Lately I’ve been getting into making chainmail, sewing, and I recently took an oil painting class. Learning new skills is super fun to me and beneficial to my creativity.
Some cool projects I’ve done were creating official concert posters for bands like The Smashing Pumpkins, The Cure, and designing some merch for Foo Fighters. That was pretty cool!
What are your plans for the future?
I would love to be able to have my own designated studio space. More room to put all of my supplies and tools and more space to create and have dance breaks and invite collaborators. Definitely want to do some oil painting and some garment embellishment projects. Murals and public installations have been something on my mind recently as well. I can see myself moving back to Baltimore in the near future because I miss it. I would love to collaborate more with other artists and musicians. My heart feels so full whenever I spend time with creative people! I’d love to be able to buy myself a house one day and adopt a cat and grow vegetables in my yard to share with the community. There’s so many things I want to do! Basically I just want create as much art as possible in this current life I’m living in.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.kellyaroman.com
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/kellyaroman
- Youtube: https://youtube.com/@kellyaroman?si=Ui5GRBqknUYMO3cU
