Being a creative is tough work: planning, research, drafts, creation, revision, audience engagement, etc., etc. Add to that: finances, health, networking, any number of things it takes to succeed as a creative and/or small business. Starting a family seems like another bale of straw on the camel’s back, so to speak. But artists and creatives can have families and fruitful art careers. We will have two guests discuss the apprehensions, transitions, frustrations and joys of having an arts practice and being a parent.
Amy Malkan is a public artist, artrepreneur and community developer. She is best known for her contemporary style infused with Indian and Asian motifs within her murals and art installations. Her creativity and artistic approach are inspired by her travels to more than 28 countries around the globe. Malkan fundamentally believes that everyone deserves access and exposure to the arts. She strives to engage the public in the design and production of most of her public art projects. Over the past 5 years Malkan has facilitated the design, coordination and production over 30 public art projects across the Houston area and around the globe. These projects have been co-created with the involvement of over 10,000 area youth, artists and hundreds of community stakeholders. In her personal time, Malkan is a mother, an avid runner and cyclist, she enjoys dancing, traveling and spending quality time with her friends and family.
Matt Manalo was born and raised in Manila, Philippines. He received his Bachelors of Fine Arts in Painting and Minor in Art History at the University of Houston. Manalo creates work which involves elements of painting, drawing, sculpture, photography, and printmaking. He uses raw materials, found objects sometimes collected and often times donated… By doing this, he is making his practice environmentally conscious as well as understanding the idea of scarcity and abundance. He uses the grid as a foundation for most of his work to tackle geography, cartography, borders, and the idea of displacement while having a constant conversation of how “home” should be defined. Being a first generation immigrant, Manalo discusses his experiences navigating around the physical and social structures of society through his work. As he explores this, home becomes a two-part environment where the artist is split between the Philippines and Texas. The latter sits on the southern border of the US. It is also important to mention that colonization of the Philippines by Spain, Japan and the United States resulted in erasure, colorism and colonial mentality; a frequent topic in Manalo’s work.
Music: "Ike is Gone" by Nick Gaitan
Being a creative is tough work: planning, research, drafts, creation, revision, audience engagement, etc., etc. Add to that: finances, health, networking, any number of things it takes to succeed as a creative and/or small business. Starting a family seems like another bale of straw on the camel’s back, so to speak. But artists and creatives can have families and fruitful art careers. We will have two guests discuss the apprehensions, transitions, frustrations and joys of having an arts practice and being a parent.
Amy Malkan is a public artist, artrepreneur and community developer. She is best known for her contemporary style infused with Indian and Asian motifs within her murals and art installations. Her creativity and artistic approach are inspired by her travels to more than 28 countries around the globe. Malkan fundamentally believes that everyone deserves access and exposure to the arts. She strives to engage the public in the design and production of most of her public art projects. Over the past 5 years Malkan has facilitated the design, coordination and production over 30 public art projects across the Houston area and around the globe. These projects have been co-created with the involvement of over 10,000 area youth, artists and hundreds of community stakeholders. In her personal time, Malkan is a mother, an avid runner and cyclist, she enjoys dancing, traveling and spending quality time with her friends and family.
Matt Manalo was born and raised in Manila, Philippines. He received his Bachelors of Fine Arts in Painting and Minor in Art History at the University of Houston. Manalo creates work which involves elements of painting, drawing, sculpture, photography, and printmaking. He uses raw materials, found objects sometimes collected and often times donated… By doing this, he is making his practice environmentally conscious as well as understanding the idea of scarcity and abundance. He uses the grid as a foundation for most of his work to tackle geography, cartography, borders, and the idea of displacement while having a constant conversation of how “home” should be defined. Being a first generation immigrant, Manalo discusses his experiences navigating around the physical and social structures of society through his work. As he explores this, home becomes a two-part environment where the artist is split between the Philippines and Texas. The latter sits on the southern border of the US. It is also important to mention that colonization of the Philippines by Spain, Japan and the United States resulted in erasure, colorism and colonial mentality; a frequent topic in Manalo’s work.
Music: "Ike is Gone" by Nick Gaitan
Transcripción en español disponible aquí:
https://fresharts.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/S2-E5-Spanish-Transcript.pdf
Reyes Ramirez:
Hello and welcome to "Should I or Shouldn't I." A "Fresh Arts Podcast" hosted by me, Reyes Ramirez, where we explore the decisions artists make every day to succeed in their creative practice. Hello, everyone. So glad you are listening to the Fresh Arts Podcast. Today we have a very interesting episode to say the least. Before we jump in, I just wanna give some context to the question itself, which is, should I or shouldn't I be both a parent and an artist? Obviously we have two guest today that prove that such a thing as possible. So we're not trying to imply that you shouldn't, but rather, we know that it's a question a lot of artists have and they have encountered. And really quote-unquote, difficulty there could be between being a parent and artist are perceived. And I will say that usually in the context of the show, there's usually someone who is, who is, and then there isn't, but today's guests are both. Both have children and I'm gonna play the part of someone who is ignorant to that world, 'cause I am, I do not have any children, but I think hopefully when I say that, when I kind of ask these questions, they come more from a place of curiosity. And so as always, I'm gonna let the guests introduce themselves, and then we'll get right to it. So Amy, if you wanna introduce yourself real quick.
Amy Malkan:
All right, my name is Amy Malkan. My pronouns are she and her, and I am a visual artist and a muralist based out of Houston. And I am a single mom to a three year old, going on four year old boy. And I've been doing my art all my life, but I've been doing it professionally and full-time now for the past six years, and I'm happy to be here. Thank you.
Reyes:
Awesome, Matt, please.
Matt Manalo:
Hi, my name is Matt Manalo. I'm an artist and a community organizer. I'm a founder of the Filipinx Artists of Houston, and I run an art space called the Alief Art House. I'm a father of two kids, a 16 year old and a seven year old. Yeah, I graduated with a BFA in painting at the University of Houston and school of life, I guess, as we would say.
Reyes:
It's the best school.
Matt:
Yeah, thank you for having me here.
Reyes:
Of course, of course. So I'm gonna go ahead and ask my first question. So, and Amy if you wanna answer first. What occurred first for you? Your art practice or your family, and either way how you entered it, how did you think about balancing both?
Amy:
Yeah, so my art practice started first, and my entrepreneurial journey started first before I had my son. And then after I had my son, it wasn't too much thought of how I was gonna make it work, only because at that time, my partner is also an artist and I'd already seen an example of how he was doing it with his former or previous relationship, 'cause she was also an artist and they had a kid together and they were also making it work. So that thought never crossed my mind until I became a single mom and figuring out how I was gonna juggle my time, especially with a kid that is super young and that I knew from the get-go, that he was going to be my priority and that I wanted to spend more time with him than anything else first during his developmental years. I'm still figuring it out only because he's three and each stage, if for those that are listening that are parents, know that each stage requires a different, set of needs for these kids. And so I'm constantly having to be flexible and adjust according to what my son needs and then what my business needs.
Reyes:
Thank you. Matt, same question now. What occurred first for you? Your art practice or your family and from which way you started, how did you think about balancing both?
Matt:
I guess for me, it would be my art practice because like what Amy said, I've always been interested in art, but I never had the privilege to be an artist right away, so I had to get into different careers first, and then I finally found what I really wanted to do for the rest of my life. And so I would say that the art came first and then the family came. And at that point, it became almost like a balancing act of trying to juggle both. Because I remember when I was doing my residency at Project Row Houses, one of the mentors had told me, "Are you married? "Because if you wanna be a successful artist, "you can't get married." I was like, "Okay, but I feel like I can do both." And so in a way, like what he told me, what that artist told me, kind of stuck with me and in a way, I'm making it work not to prove him wrong, but just to put that positive image in my head that you can be an artist and a parent at the same, 'cause I know a lot of my good friends are artists and they're parents as well, and they're doing good at both of their careers. They're great at parenting and they're great as being artists, and I admire them for that. And then being involved in this community and being surrounded with folks like Amy, is very inspiring and it makes it easier to know that there are folks that have families and are also doing their artistic practices.
Amy:
I mean literally, when you said that Matt, the listeners won't be able to see my face, but it's like what? That's so weird that he made that comment. And then also, I literally in my head, I'm like listing off like Alex Ramos. I can like literally list off amazing artists that are doing amazing work in the community and have children. I think we offer something magical to our families that no other families can offer, is the creativity and the art in different perspectives and different ways of thinking and being. So I would encourage that those two things can happen, in order to be successful.
Matt:
I totally agree with you. I totally agree.
Reyes:
Yeah, and so kind of setting up the next question, I guess for me as someone who does not have children, I will say for myself like that's something as I do my life planning and thinking ahead with my partner, we're both still setting up our careers hopefully for long-term success, and that's already a lot of work. So every parent that I've met, I was like, "Oh man, "I can't imagine a whole life depending on me." But like I said, I agree with Matt and you as well Amy, that there are people who make it work and that is great to seek out in your communities. And so that hopefully sets up my next question is, and Matt, you kind of alluded to this, but what are some misconceptions, stereotypes or ideas that you've seen people have about artists with families? And so Matt, if you wanna answer that first.
Matt:
I think one of the things that folks don't understand about artists with families is that, we are actually very professional and we are the ones who, if you tell us to be there at that certain time, then we are there because we have to set our schedules beforehand and make sure that, hey, we need to have childcare so we can attend to this thing. So putting on that extra work, kind of in a way, sets us up in a sense where we're more organized, I think, but then I think the misconception would be where that we're too busy, that we're not able to make work because we're busy raising kids. But then, I feel like that could go with the same. When I'm working in the studio, my son is with me in the studio. So I create and he creates. And in a way, we're bonding and then we're making things together individually as well. And so he's also learning by seeing what I'm doing, and then it's the same thing with my daughter. She's older, but she goes in my studio and she grabs some of my tools and use them. And I just love seeing that they're still continuing, just being creative. Even if my kids don't want to be an artist when they grow up and who knows if they want to be one, because there are struggles involved in it, you know? And knowing the situations of artists, especially in the pandemic, it hasn't been easy for us. And I know that the kids see that, and these are also issues that arises in marriages. And so, yeah. I mean, those are one of the things I think when it comes to scheduling or just being organized. I feel like when you're an artist and a parent at the same time, we don't just play around. You tell us that this is what we're doing, this is what we're gonna do. And because like what you said, Reyes, we have people that depend on us. So the food on the table depends on it, and so we don't play around where we are 100% serious about the things that we do. And when we do it, it's always gonna have to be 100%.
Amy:
Yeah, I can't afford not to show up to a meeting, to just be like, "Oh, I got caught up in something else," or not to be late, 'cause they're making note of that and could possibly deter them from hiring me on for a potential project. And this is my bread and butter, and I've worked really hard to get to this space to be able to bring in constant commissions, to support my son and I, and a certain lifestyle that I desire to live. I would consider us like, we're on it. We don't have a choice to be anything else other than professional.
Matt:
Right.
Reyes:
And Amy, is there anything you wanna add to the question of, what are some misconceptions, stereotypes or ideas that you've seen people have about artists with families?
Amy:
I think Matt probably covered all of them for us. I think you did good.
Matt:
Sorry.
Amy:
No, don't apologize. You did good. I think you were very eloquent, so I appreciate it.
Matt:
Well also, I think one of the things is that, because we're also rearing children, that we don't push the boundaries enough, and I think that's completely wrong because, we have great artists in Houston who's doing those things. There are artists, parents who are pushing boundaries in terms of topics when it comes to sexuality or women's health. There's like Brian Ellison, who does The Black Man Project. I mean, I don't know if it's just Houston, but there's a lot of good folks here.
Amy:
And also, I think it's like, we have to be careful of stereotyping. If they're family people, then they're gonna be like PC and just like this. We're still our own people, and we still have our own ideas and thoughts and the way we view things in our creativity and our artistic expression, and that has nothing to do with having a family or children. That's just our own perspective.
Matt:
Right.
Reyes:
Awesome, thank you. I think kind of, I guess like, 'cause bringing up your comment earlier Matt of like, if you have a family or you don't have a family, you don't have kids, and I've heard other people, say that that's what they've been told, particularly women artists where it's like, if you have kids, it's done. The career's done or something like that. And it's like, I guess you all both talked about it, like you don't have time to mess around. You can't not be professional because you have a mouth to feed. And so I think there's an interesting almost politic attached to having artists to have on command and beck and call to be like, it's almost be like exploited in a way to be like, if you have a family, 'cause if you have a family, you're probably gonna be like, "No, I'm not gonna do that. "That's not enough pay for me or for what I need to do." Like you said Amy, to want and demand that, the lifestyle or the pay that you deserve. And I think there is maybe an interesting politic tied to being like, if you have a family, that means you're dedicated to something else. You're not gonna be able to be talked into or exploited for my purpose or my end.
Amy:
I mean, I had a client who wanted after the commission was closed, wanted me to come back up there and fix certain things. That's a whole other story about contracts, and so we won't get into that, but she did then say, she was trying to be helpful and she was... I never tell a client that I can't come and do something 'cause I have scheduled something with my child. I just in my narrative that I've made up in my head, I feel like it almost undermines my professionalism and just like my business in itself. I don't want them to think like this is like a little mom and pop business. I run very efficiently. And so, it's not like I'm like half assing and throwing things up and just kind of hoping something. So she made a comment and said, "Well, I know you're super busy with your little one. And so if you can't come up here, then you can hire another artist to do some other
Matt:
Oh gosh.
Amy:
I was like, "No, I will not hire another artist. "This is my work, I will go up there and do it. "It has nothing to do with my child. "That has nothing to do with you. "That's on my end to figure that out." I didn't say all of this stuff, but it's interesting like that was a comment that she made. I don't know if she meant it in whatever way I took it, but that's how I took it, you know?
Matt:
Right.
Reyes:
Well, I mean she didn't have to mention and be like, "I know you have a kid," it could have just been like, "Oh, if you have time."
Matt:
Yeah, yeah.
Amy:
Or just let me know when you can schedule this in, you know? Right. That's it, but.
Matt:
I mean Reyes, you also talked about like, with women artists being told that once you have a kid, then it's over. But I think what we need to do, is also change that system where we're making art accessible for everyone where it is accessible for women artists who are rearing children and who have children because we're still living in a time where, women artists aren't shown enough in museums either, and in spaces.
Amy:
And artists residencies too. They don't offer--
Matt:
And artist residencies.
Amy:
Artist residencies that help you with childcare. So certainly these are off limits or it's not even, I can't even apply to and have a chance to be a part of certain things 'cause I have a child to take care of. I mean, that's a whole other subject too, around working moms. You never hear the phrase working dad. Are you a working dad? It's just like a blasphemy. But for a mom, it's like, are you a working mom? That has to stop. And so I think I would also be who've, the organizations that offer residencies to offer single mom or mom residencies to be able to bring our children with us to be a part of the residency program. I do know that there is one. I think Project Row Houses if I remember correctly, was offering a residency for moms with mom artists. So it didn't matter if they were single or married, but I thought that was pretty cool.
Matt:
Yeah, I mean, there should be more grants, especially grants, you know?
Amy:
I agree.
Matt:
Yeah. I agree with that.
Reyes:
Awesome, that's actually part of a later question, but we'll get to that.
Amy:
We can mix it up. We can mix up the questions and we end up following the topic.
Matt:
Yeah, that's good.
Reyes:
Yeah, we're good. All right, so like I said--
Matt:
I like this talking.
Reyes:
In that line of thought, what are some resources or opportunities you'd like to see made available for parent artists? And so, we've already said residencies. I'm happy to see that there are some out there, but obviously there could always be more, or I think even some residencies, I think even have a rule that says you can't bring family to some of these, you just take yourself for whatever reason. But yeah, what are some resources or opportunities y'all would like to see made available for parent artists? Matt, if you can answer that first.
Matt:
You sure? I might answer everything else
Amy:
You did Matt, go for it. Let's do this.
Matt:
I am a working dad as well, but like what Amy said, it's implied, which is the politics of things that needs to be changed. I would like to see where a residency could be, for the whole family maybe, right? Because there are couples who are both artists, or there are single parents who would love to involve their children in creating with their work. I would love to see residencies where, like what Amy had mentioned, where childcare is involved or there is a specific or specified money allocated for childcare, you know? So you'd get like a stipend, an artist stipend, and then there'll be a separate stipend for that. Just more support really because, if we're gonna try to really create a sustainable environment for all the artists, then we have to include everyone, and that includes parents. We assume that artists are always just--
Amy:
Free, gypsy soul.
Matt:
Yeah, right.
Amy:
Yeah, I agree. I mean that's basically it. Just support financially and being inclusive of parents and just being cognizant, granted, and not everything can always include parents and the children and families, but to just be more considerate of, if a program has the opportunity to do something like that, then go ahead and offer it. I do know like, I think it was called Zocalo or Zocalo Apartments, they were offering that residency programs and for the whole family. So if you were one of the winners, that you could move into a one bedroom or a two bedroom and your family could move in with you to do the residency program, which I thought was pretty cool.
Reyes:
I think some other things that y'all mentioned, are grants, I would like to see that as well. And I think in general with, I think there was also like a funky part of living in Texas where even like arts for children is dwindling, and so it's left to businesses or nonprofits to pick up that slack. And I think there's an inherent downplaying of the importance of one art, but also the idea of art as something that, how do I say this? If it's art for children, then it has to be in a very clean, precious idea of art. And I think you all have talked about like, there are artists who have families that dive into very deep and like--
Amy:
Provocative or taboo--
Matt:
Provocative and taboo.
Reyes:
Yeah, and I think there's just an interesting way of how, and I'll speak as a Texan, and someone who lives in Texas that, there is that division of like, okay, art, serious art is, if I can do this, but not good art is stuff for kids are like, it's not as serious, but then it's all in kind of in flux. And I think there is kind of... I guess what I'm ultimately saying is like, I would also like to just see in general Texas, and usually maybe I'll even say the United States, they should just focus more in providing arts to families, but in a way that's more freely available and more in-charge by parent artists, rather than so removed to detached. But I guess all that is to say that, I think there is just a weird ideation of art and how it can be. If it's for families, it has to be a certain way.
Matt:
Right, yeah.
Amy:
Yeah.
Reyes:
So I think painting that point, but I guess then, my next question is then, how do you balance your art practice and personal life and what are some tips for current parents/artists or parents to be, to consider? Amy?
Amy:
Yeah, so I think this is great that Matt and I are both on here, 'cause A you get a female and a male perspective, and then also, you get a single parent perspective and a two household perspective. So for me, it's really about being very intentional about scheduling and everything is on my calendar. And if it's not on my calendar or if I put it incorrectly on my calendar, which was what happened in with this interview situation, I was under the impression when I saw it on my calendar, was for next, for like today and at 11:00, not last Friday. Anyway, so I have to be very intentional about my time and review every day in the morning, like what am I gonna be doing today? What is my priority for my business and what are the things that I can accomplish today? And I don't make my lists this long laundry list of like 20 items. I pick like one to three items that I know I can accomplish because I'm also raising a three-year-old who is with me. And he has his own set of schedule that I'm also maneuvering through. One of the great things for me is that, the other parent is involved and he does go there quite often. And so with those planned visits to his dad, I'm also able to schedule my projects accordingly. And so, I'm just being very organized. And then on the days where things happen, 'cause life's not perfect, I give myself grace. If I wasn't able to get something done, maybe my son had a meltdown and I needed to be with him a little bit extra time, or maybe it was just like, we were both having an off day and it was like, we just need to say F it and go to the beach and recoup and rejuvenate there. I'm learning more and more to go with the flow, and then figure out where I need to close the gap the next day and not beat myself up about it, because things happen, 'cause it won't do me any good if I go to the next day and I'm beating myself up, for something I didn't accomplish yesterday, but now it's carrying over to the next day, and then I'm in an emotionally weird space, and I still am not able to accomplish anything. So learning to give myself grace and compassion, and staying focused and self-motivating myself, 'cause there are gonna be days where I'm so tired and I would like to go to sleep early with my son, those are the days when I'm like, "Just get one thing done and you'll feel so much better." Those are things being intentional with my time, giving myself grace and compassion and just being motivated, just to take the next step and do one thing.
Reyes:
Yeah, awesome. Matt, same question.
Amy:
'Cause I already answered your question Matt, you don't even have to answer, right?
Matt:
I may have some couple of things. But totally about scheduling and being intentional about it. The pandemic has been weird and we're still in it, but yes, scheduling just from phone calls to virtual meetings, to in-person meetings, to activities and all that. And communication for me, sorry. I have to communicate with--
Amy:
He had something to say.
Matt:
I have to communicate with my wife Samantha, and we need to make sure that our schedule, if I have to do a job or an interview or have a meeting at a certain time, then she can be home with the kids or I can be vice versa. But then for the most part, I try to do that. I try to do like my studio time or my meeting time in between the times where I drop off my kid and I pick up my kids, so I have that free time. And then if I don't get anything done to that, then once the family's home and set and ready for bed or whatever, then that's when I get back to my studio but then I can't really stay up that late, because then I have to wake up early in the next day. So it's all about communicating what you need to do with your partner and then just making sure that your schedule is aligned and also being flexible. If something happens that you need to switch up some things, then you kind of have to do that. And if it's super important that you're gonna have to miss a meeting, then you're just gonna have to tell them, and hopefully, the other person understands. And people have been so great so far, about being more understanding about certain situations and I'm really grateful for that. It's almost really in a way where you're just, it comes to a point where you're not even trying to balance it. It's almost where it just goes together. You know what I mean, Amy?
Amy:
Yeah. Well, you have a lot more years of experience than I do, 'cause you have a, you said a 14 year old and a seven year old.
Matt:
A 16.
Amy:
A 16 year old. And so you have 16 years of practicing and getting better, and then you gotta redo with the seven old, and redo.
Matt:
It's completely different though.
Amy:
Yeah, it's completely different. But you have a lot. Yeah, it does. It gets easier and I'm on only year three, and it eventually just becomes like second nature where you're not really thinking about it, you're just doing it. You're just like, "Okay, this is why I gotta do, "so I've just gotta do it." The other thing I wanted to add though too, I don't separate the two for me. My son has attended all my meetings because at that time he wasn't going to school. And even right now when he's going to school, it's only on Tuesdays and Thursdays. So I can't schedule all my meetings only on Tuesday and Thursday. It doesn't work like that, you know? So I have yet to have an issue where a potential client or a client has said, "I can't believe you brought your son." I think they're understanding, and I think they've become even more understanding during the pandemic to be like, it's gonna be even harder to get childcare with everything going on and B, people having their views of COVID and how they want to maneuver and handle the pandemic. So I have not had an issue and I encourage a lot of artists and single parents, whether you're a single mom or a single dad, bring your child to the meetings with you. I think it also is like that is school for them. My son knows how to say hi, how are you? Nice to meet you, how are you? Shake people's hands. We bring his iPad along, he's taking notes of the meeting, where he's drawing scribbles and I'm like, "This is not what you're supposed to be doing," but I mean, that's free help and that's what I get for hiring free help instead of paid help. But he comes along with me with most of my things minus production days, that's when I really can't. He's now little where he can fit into my little harness where I was being able to bring him to paint production days. And then that's when I have to schedule help and find babysitters. But you make it work and you try to figure out a way to balance both at the same time sometimes. It's okay for those two worlds to overlap one another.
Matt:
Right, I used to bring my son to all my meetings. I will be that dad with a stroller all the time and he would talk to people who I'm talking to, but I would tell the client, I was like, "Hey, I'm bringing my kids with me." And, you know.
Amy:
I used to start doing that and then I was like, "I ain't doing it." This is just like, you go and just meet him at the meeting. And I think a little bit on the other hand, is as artists, we can get away with it, 'cause they already have a stereotype of artists being weird people and don't follow rules. So I was like, "Well, shit." I guess she's bringing the kid to the meetings, might as well take advantage of that stereotype.
Reyes:
All right, that's a good point. I guess so again, as I said, I'm coming from a place of ignorance. I do not have any children. And so I wanna set up a question, the idea that one thing that I'm worried about, personally is like, so as a writer, I write and so I set aside time and I sit down at my desk and I write, and one thing that I've always feared is, when I have a child, I'm like, I want that child to have everything, and so I'm gonna give them everything that I can, but I also understand that my art is also like my passion, and that's my life. And so I guess like, hearing you both talk about how it even becomes just more natural to do that, I think that it makes me very happy to hear that I can do both 'cause they both would be part of my life, they would both be part of me. My writing is intrinsically part of me, and that child would also be intrinsically part of my life. And so it's very inspiring to hear you two talk about that.
Amy:
I mean, there's a phrase, right? Whatever you want, you'll make time for whatever things that you want or desire you make time for those things. I think it's also, the world is based on fear, like fear mongering and scarcity mindset and makes you choose. You really can't have it all, and I want to encourage the listeners and anyone that I really come across that, you really can have it all. It may look different than what you imagine having it all, but you really can have it all and you can really create whatever life you wanna create. So if you do wanna have children and be an artist and travel the world, you can do it. And I'm speaking from experience, like I'm doing that. So I think that's more of a scarcity fear-based mindset, and I want us to shift towards a more abundant mindset that anything really is possible. You won't ever hear me say to someone and be like, "Oh, are you married?" "Well, you can't be married and an artist at the same time." Like that's some dumbass shit right there. Okay, . Sorry for cursing.
Matt:
I mean from my experience, the first three years was always a challenge and it was probably like the slowest time of production for me. And I think that's what makes some artist parents stop what they're doing, as being artists is because, I mean the first three years is, and you know this Amy, it's like super important. You have to be there like almost 24/7. But I feel like, because we know what art does for ourselves, then we have to not let go of that and we need to still get in touch with that side of ourselves. So if you decide to have children Reyes, then you know--
Reyes:
It's gonna happen.
Matt:
You have to do write with your children. They can even be your inspiration.
Amy:
I mean it's a lifetime, it's another child of ours. Art's another child and it's not like you have, like Matt, would you say you have less amount of love for your seven year old than you do with your eldest or you equally love them both?
Matt:
Yeah, I do.
Amy:
It's not like you have to ration up, because your first child got all the first love and then you had to rush and be like, "Oh, I only got like 3% left." Love is infinite. There's abundance and love, and art is almost like your child. You'll never have to choose between the two. Now you may have to make choices in your day-to-day of what gets your attention, but not to choose that both can't exist. And I also just wanted to add too for me, so just a little backstory. So after I left the dad, that was an abusive relationship. And typically in an abusive relationship, people really only recognize the sexual, physical and verbal, and mine wasn't any of those three, mine were the other four, which was psychological, emotional, mental, and financial. And so when I left, I had $0 and I had to make a decision. By then, I'd already been full-time for two years. So I had to make a decision if I was gonna continue and rebuild my business or get a corporate job, go back to corporate America. And for like three months, I was kinda like on my footwear in both ponds. And I was going for interviews, but nothing was really happening, but I was putting out there like selling, making, accepting commissions, but nothing enough substantially to know that my son and I could live off of. And finally, I remember seven, eight months down the line, I was like, I gotta make a decision, 'cause something is not panning out for me. I need to either say, "Okay, you're gonna be back in corporate "so that you could support your son or you need to just dive "all the way in." This is just for me, and this may not be for everyone, but I was like, "You have to make a decision. "You can't half it." And so as soon as it clicked that I was like, I'm going for the art. I didn't come all this way, started my business 10 years ago, becoming a waitress and then being able to make that leap in 2016, to then get derailed due to personal reasons, and then having a one-year-old to stop now, it's like, well this is just a speed bump, but we just gotta figure it out. And for me, it was the biggest motivator 'cause I wanted my son to live a certain lifestyle, and I knew I could only curate that through me being an entrepreneur, an artist entrepreneur. And I hustled my tiny little, tushy, well, in that case, he was a big tushy back then, he's been exercising. I mean, last two years, I say it very sensitively, my business grew tremendously. And this past year, I had record numbers and closed three, five figure deals back-to-back and with a three-year-old and a toddler. And I say this, not to brag, but to inspire the listeners to be like, no matter what hardships you're going through, if you are determined and you just have passion for it, keep at it, eventually it's gonna pop off for you. Things will start coming together in alignment. The universe is gonna support you, because you already know. You are like, I'm doing the work, then everything will take care of itself.
Matt:
Yeah.
Reyes:
Wow, well stated. Thank you. Thank you, you two for those great answers. And so the last of the formal questions. Well, how has being a parent influenced your work, Matt?
Matt:
-I mean, it's part of me. It's part of the narrative that I'm sick of telling in my work because it's all about identity and being in a dice or an immigrant and all that. And then, that affects me politically and thinking about the systems that we live in, and it makes me question a lot of things, and being a parent, it kind of makes you see all that, like with healthcare, are you getting paid properly? Is it livable or things like that, because if I probably was just a single person, artists, I probably wouldn't even think about these things. I mean, I could think about these things, but it probably wouldn't be like a priority where I have to really fight for it or speak up for it and do something about it. So in a way, I think it makes my narrative more authentic to myself because of these sensitivities that I have with these issues, then I'm able to discover a lot of things about myself as well, where I stand, and the values that I have from all those that I have and how that's gonna affect my kids in the future and seeing that directly happen to them, and seeing what's happening in their schools, and all of these things basically.
Reyes:
Thank you. Amy, same question. How has being a parent influenced your work?
Amy:
I mean A, it definitely has influenced my work. It's influenced my artistic style. And for me, I've become a lot more in tune with my own heritage and culture. My background is Indian and my son is biracial. He's half black and half Indian. And so I want him to know this side of his heritage and culture. And so it's influenced in what I desire to paint and that's one aspect. And then the other aspect is me advocating the importance of arts and arts in school, and not only visual arts, but all types of arts like writing, music. I mean, I'm passionate about not STEM, but STEAM. Arts should be included with STEAM. It's very important that creative thinking that innovation that comes from exploring your own creativity, and that should be a core subject matter. And so now having my son and seeing how typically the arts is one of the first things to get defunded in a school, I want to use my voice and be very loud and aggressive to demand that arts day, in our school systems. It's really important. So I wouldn't say I was as passionate if I didn't have a child. I'd be like, "Yeah, it doesn't really affect me." But now that I know it affects my son, I'm very passionate about it.
Reyes:
Absolutely, all right. Thank you two. Now I'm gonna ask you some really quick questions. We have a little bit of time. I'm gonna ask some kind of lightning round questions. You just answer as quickly as you can, if you can. So Matt, some artists in Houston whose work you've really liked lately?
Matt:
Parent artists?
Reyes:
Any.
Amy:
Oh yeah, that's difficult. Okay.
Matt:
Oh my gosh. This is a really hard question to ask.
Amy:
Okay, well I'll go. I like Franky Cardona. I really love his work. I love this new guy that I just followed. He did these flowers under the underpass. I can't remember his name. Sylvia was his assistant, but he did a beautiful job. Anat Ronen, she's one of my favorites. I like her style.
Reyes:
Awesome, is this just a pass from you Matt?
Matt:
I mean, I could say a couple of, I love my friends who work as artists and I admire, especially my parent artists as well, because they're just keeping it real.
Reyes:
Can you name drop some, or?
Amy:
Are you like on a gag order or something or are you gonna offend people?
Matt:
No.
Amy:
Are you gonna be like, something.
Matt:
I just wanna make it equal for everyone.
Reyes:
Fair enough, fair enough. All right, let's see. Another quick one, favorite place for takeout in Houston that you have fallen in love with lately? Amy?
Amy:
I was on a Los Tios binge for a little bit. I'm obsessed with Mexican food, even though it's not good for me, but yeah. A little bit of TexMex, I've been bingeing on that for a little bit.
Reyes:
Thanks, Matt?
Matt:
We haven't really been big on takeouts. If anything, my family and I, we either dine in or have a pizza delivered. The closest one to our place is like, the closest and fastest pizza to get is Domino's, which is kind of sad, but I mean I'm a parent, so I could say the takeout food would be Costco.
Amy:
Okay, yes, H-E-B. I'm all about some of like--
Matt:
Costco pizza, Costco chicken bake, Costco...
Reyes:
Nice.
Amy:
Yeah, H-E-B has some pre-made food which you can pop them in the microwave.
Matt:
It's funny because I just saw this meme talking about like clubbing now when you're an adult, the club that you can go to, is like Costco club or Sam's club.
Reyes:
All right, well thank you, you two, for today's really great conversation. Thank you listeners for listening, and I'll catch you next time. See you
Matt:
Thank you.
Spokesperson:
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