Hello everyone,
I’ve been working on some new projects for the last few months and am pleased to share it with you now. I created a new website called Rocket Child Art (http://rocketchildart.com) which I will use to consistently grow my artist brand, while my existing portfolio (http://jess-mcl.com) will continue to exist as my personal CV and portfolio page.
Before I continue, I want to define
“Who is the Rocket Child?”
In 2011, when I was living in Japan, I decided that I wanted to create my own artist persona whose values matched the person I felt I was inside, and the person I wanted to become, and wrote this poem
Some of the main values and points that stood out to me were/are:
- Ambition
- dreamer
- storyteller
- curiosity
- adventure
- freedom
- creativity
- playful
- starchild alien
Growing up, I spent a lot of time alone and used my imagination to escape the painful realities around me at the time. With time that imaginative escapism revealed itself to be my greatest strength.
Since that time, I’ve really embraced the Rocket Child personality and want to continue to grow it beyond myself for my artist business and also to build a positive supportive community.
What did I want when I was growing up?
I thought to myself, what did I really want when I was growing up? I wanted a place where I felt free and that it was safe to be myself. I wanted friends who I could play with; to be creative with and discover new experiences.
As an adult now, yes I can make this place for myself, but can I do more? Are there other people out there who feel the same as I did and who are looking for a place where they can be free too? And can I make that place?
This thought has been sitting in my mind for a while, and has inspired me to make new and positive changes. On the Rocket Child Art website, I am building the Rocket Child Art community for the Star Chasers who are also dreamers, adventurers and freedom seekers and to nurture curiosity, creativity and positivity.
For the first step, I am making an online courses to teach beginner artists. – Different courses will feature different mediums, based on my years of experience of both formalised education, and teaching myself different art techniques and methods.
While this is a new website, the content will continue to grow over time where I will develope more courses and eventually sell custom merchandise such as sketchbooks, art materials packs, and have more participatory features such as live streams. All of this will depend on the direction of how it grows.
What does selling products have to do with growing an art community?
You may wonder, what does selling products have to do with growing an art community? In my growing up experience, there have been people who think monetising art makes you a ‘sell-out’ or that there are some people who devalue creative professions. I think the opposite. I think the creative arts are incredibly valuable, and that we need to support each other both emotionally and professionally. One of my personal ambitions is to share my love of art and creativity, and to make my business self-sustaining where I can create art as my full time profession.
To my followers, readers and friends. Thank you so much for your continued support throughout the years. I would appreciate it if you would spread the news about my new website and online courses.
Jess
