Halloween Collection
© Joni Nickrent, 2010. All rights reserved.
Q. Joni, I’m so intrigued by pop art, and anything mini and now you’ve put the two successfully together. How and when did you discover your talent for creating Pop Art Minis?
Lucky 13 Bewitching Fairy Magic
© Joni Nickrent, 2010. All rights reserved.
A. Thank you! I’m having a lot of fun with the Pop Art Minis. I have always loved art for as long as I can remember . . . drawing, painting, crafting and anything that has to do with creating fun, but it wasn’t until July 2009 that I started drawing the Pop Art Minis.
I had not been doing much with my art in the way of drawing and painting and was going through a tough life situation with my Mom being diagnosed with cancer. After a week of pretty intense news I was looking for a release . . . So I came home from work one day and got out my oil pastels and started drawing. The first design that I did was larger than most I currently create and was called “LIFE . . . find yourself”. (pic attached) It was mostly blended color with text. It felt good to be creating art again and it has just kept growing from there with themes from my Alphabet Soup Animals (pic attached), to my Playful Puppies (pic attached), to Halloween (pic attached), to fairies, teddy bears . . . anything whimsical, fun, colorful and joyful.
Life...find yourself
© Joni Nickrent, 2010. All rights reserved.
Q. Please share with us your teaching experience and how you’ve been able to move through the disciplines of fine arts, teaching and the various mediums that you use?
A. Teaching…that was a long time ago, but I enjoyed the experience and it definitely had an impact on my life! I taught grades 7-12 right out of college. That part of my life lasted 4 years. To be able to teach and see young talent blossom is awesome. It’s a great outlet to be able to share lots of different techniques and skills with young talent! Sometimes they even taught me some things and sometimes it was very challenging (LOL), but an experience I would not trade for anything.
Alphabet Soup
© Joni Nickrent, 2010. All rights reserved.
How do you manage express all of the “big” in a mini format so well?
A. WOW! Thank you for such a nice compliment! I guess I would have to say COLOR along with some expressive outlining. I also think that with the oil pastels I am able to get some great textural effects adding to the impact in creating snap, crackle, and POP! Oh, and I can’t leave out the magic! Hehehe!
Playful Puppies
© Joni Nickrent, 2010. All rights reserved.
Q. The magic is crucial! I notice you’re able articulate and describe your work, business and personality in a few short sentences. Does this stem from your art training and teaching?
A. SMILE! I think that probably does come from my experience as an artist, but maybe even more so from my position with Charisma in Product Development. I have to use that type of skill almost on a daily basis. How can you say something in as few of words as possible and get the point across FAST! It’s marketing 101! I think we would all be able to do that easily if we take a minute to think what is the “instant message” that I want my customer’s to get. We live in a fast paced world and you only have a couple seconds to draw someone in or 140 characters or less! Unlike here where I seem to be going on forever! (sorry about that! LOL)
Joni, you are so versatile, talented and inspiring. What advice do you have for the new craft/arts business owner.
I have to say, you really know how to make someone feel special! Thank you very much for that! My Advice . . .
Don’t ever give up, always reach for the stars and look for inspiration in everything you see, do and experience! Creating something that never existed before is an awesome thing . . . it’s your dreams that come to life!
But also, have a plan, do a lot of research to find your business direction and seek advice from people that may be able to offer suggestions and help to get things going!
Oh, and I’m a “Google It” addict. You can find all kinds of helpful information from how to write a business plan to the most successful places to sell your arts and crafts!
Thank you for some inspiring and awesome questions. It has been a pleasure!
We are so pleased that you took time away to share your story and valuable advice. There are many of us with small businesses that will benefit from reading your interview. Thank you, Joni.
If you'd like to soak up more of the Pop Art Mini goodness, Joni has provided the following links:
Zazzle Store (most of Joni's designs can be found on everything from t-shirts to tote bags) http://www.popartminis.com/
Candles and other Scented Goodies (my mainstay and life support LOL) http://stores.ebay.com/PRIMITIVE-COTTAGE-COLLECTIONS
http://www.primitivecottagecollections.com/
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/popartminis
Blog: http://www.popartminis.blogspot.com/
CreatingTheHive
Twitter: (#twitterbees rock) http://www.blogger.com/goog_613248202
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