Ep. 2: Developing an art career while having a day job - Interview with Catherine Corner from Katnipp Illustrations
Catherine is an illustrator from the UK who specializes in super cute digital art that perfectly encapsulates the pastel aesthetic. She started working full-time on her own art business, Katnipp Illustrations and Baby Blu, in early 2018. How did she go from stocking shelves at her local grocery store and being a receptionist to managing her own successful online businesses? Listen to this episode with Catherine to learn more!
Where to find Katnipp Illustrations:
Things mentioned in the episode:
Frannerd - Chilean illustrator
Taryn Knight - American illustrator
You can't connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards.
-Steve Jobs
Episode lessons:
Your current work experiences, even those jobs that are not art-related, will teach you skills you will be able to use in an art career
If you’re working a day job and want to transition to your own business, start dedicating time daily to work on it. Catherine used to dedicate an hour daily and you’d be amazed how that time and effort accumulates
Constantly consume inspiring, positive content. A positive mindset is key to sticking through the hard times and accomplishing your goals.
Be yourself. Catherine grew her audience by sharing bits of her life. People grew to like her as a person as much as they like her art and it has helped her grow her audience
Make sure you create a cohesive brand. Her brand “Katnipp Illustrations” is all about cute, pastel, and quirky illustrations and she tries to make sure all the art related to this brand fits in. She wouldn’t post any dark and gloomy art on there because it doesn’t fit in and may not appeal to the audience she has built based on her pastel, positive art.