Today we’d like to introduce you to Cayce Hanalei.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Cayce. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
I grew up loving all things art, I never really took it seriously until college when I started pursuing a Fine Art degree as well as a Business degree. I gained a lot of experience in the art business world during college through a different internship at galleries, museums, and also an internship through the Timken Company where I was selected to install and run a gallery inside their world headquarters. It was there that they told me about the Timken Museum in Balboa Park in San Diego. That was the moment I started to think about moving to the city of San Diego.
Once I graduated, I moved to San Diego to start my career but eventually ended up feeling defeated. There weren’t many jobs in the San Diego art scene that would take anyone at the beginner level that wouldn’t take an unpaid internship or who didn’t have a graphic design degree. So, I settled for a basic administration job and forgot about my art.
It wasn’t until I met my boyfriend, now husband that I started pursuing my art again. He saw my work (I’m a portrait artist) and he begged me to “Enter a show, any show”. So, I started painting again and entering pop up shows around San Diego. I got to know many people in the art scene and started making connections. I started getting accepted into more prestigious venues like The Studio Door, La Bodega Gallery, Art on 30th and a few others.
After about 8 months of being active in the San Diego art scene, I was offered to curate the monthly art exhibitions held at Mike Hess North Park. I gladly accepted and my family surprised me by filling for Hanalei Artworks LLC and make my business official. Once I started the monthly exhibitions at Mike Hess Hanalei, Artworks took off and we started hosting many shows a month at a few different venues around San Diego. During the two years that we hosted and curated shows, we ended up hosting over 50 art exhibitions which helped hundreds of local emerging artists get their names out to the community.
As of now, I have decided to push Hanalei Artworks in a different direction and give the exhibitions that we have worked so hard to build back to the local artists.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc. – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
It has been anything but smooth. With that being said, I know that it is completely worth it and I wouldn’t change any of it. I know this is what I’m supposed to do, even if I have to change directions a little bit this is still where Hanalei Artworks is supposed to be.
Any young women just starting out should know that you will get discouraged. You will get frustrated. You will have panicked moments and you will get burned out. Having a woman-owned small business is so hard but I know that you can do it. The key to it is to go strong, be fearless, and also be kind to yourself. I learned that the hard way.
I didn’t give myself enough credit and pushed myself way too hard. As a result, I ended up burning out, and I almost lost everything. We are our own worst critics. So, you messed up, so what? Everyone messes up, learn from it, dust yourself off, and keep being confident. So, you’re tired, it’s okay to take a break, rest and revisit it tomorrow. So, you’re frustrated, take a step back, take your time and think about the best move.
Be kind to yourself, what you’re doing is amazing and something only you can do. You got this.
So let’s switch gears a bit and go into Hanalei Artworks story. Tell us more about it.
So, as I said before, Hanalei Artworks started out by hosting art exhibitions for emerging artists all around San Diego in unconventional spaces. We proudly did this for two years, but I realized that Hanalei Artworks may need to take a different direction than I was originally planning.
I’m so grateful for the two years that we spent hosting these shows. Saying that I learned a lot is an understatement. I honestly feel like I crammed ten years of experience in two short years. Owning a gallery is my goal and dream for Hanalei Artworks but it just may not be in the cards at this time and that’s okay. I have decided to take a break from the curating and focus on my own art and passion for painting.
I have decided to start marketing my ability to very skillfully paint live during special events. I have over ten years of experience as a portrait artist. Many people know that I can paint very well, but what many people do not know is that I complete these pieces within hours. I can paint well and fast and after a lot of positive feedback from countless events, I have decided to start offering this service to the public. I am mostly catering to live Wedding painting, but I can be hired for any type of event including; fundraisers, company events, birthdays parties, baby showers, etc. I am setting to launch this specific part of my business in mid-September of this year.
Looking back on your childhood, what experiences do you feel played an important role in shaping the person you grew up to be?
Not necessarily any specific experience but I know that my husband and family have had an extremely positive impact on me being able to pull this off. I dont think I would be able to do all of this without their support.
They’re the ones that encouraged me to follow my dreams when I didn’t even believe in myself. They filed for my LLC. They helped me pay for my education. They helped me buy my first business computer to get me started. I couldn’t have done this without them and their constant support.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.HanaleiArtworks.com
- Email: info@hanaleiartworks.com
- Instagram: @hanaleiartworks
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HanaleiArtworks/
- Other: Personal Art Instagram @caycehanalei_art
Image Credit:
Hanalei Artworks
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