Today we’d like to introduce you to Katy Feiling.
Katy, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
Growing up, I always wanted to draw. It didn’t matter if I was watching “The Little Mermaid” or “Star Wars.” Something always inspired me to draw. Every time I had some markers and a white piece of paper, I was there drawing. I was a happy kid.
I remember taking an art class in sixth grade, and one day, I was sitting at the coffee table working on my homework, when a commercial for an art school came on. “Maybe I’ll go to art school,” I said to my father. “You’re not good enough,” he replied — not mean, just realistic. I guess I didn’t know it then, but I think at that moment I set out to prove him wrong.
I dabbled in art all throughout high school and loved my art classes, but I didn’t really discover my passion for it until after. I bought Prismacolor markers and pencils and acrylic paints without really knowing what I was getting myself into, and I dove in. I worked every day at it, experimenting and just falling more in love with creating. Then I applied to Azusa Pacific University as a Studio Art major, and in 2014, I graduated with my Bachelors, effectively proving my dad wrong.
Today, I’m working freelance and pursuing my MFA in Illustration through the Academy of Art University. But I like to think it’s still the same as when I was a little kid. Give me a piece of paper and a pencil, and I am content.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
There have absolutely been obstacles. Art, obviously, can be not the most stable or lucrative career. It really takes time and dedication, blood, sweat and tears. My Junior year of college, I actually changed my major and had decided to become an English teacher. I had officially changed over, done all the paperwork and registered for all the correct English classes.
Subconsciously, something felt wrong, though and then I went to Target one morning and had an unusual encounter with a random lady shopping with her kids. Noticing my Azusa Pacific sweatshirt, she struck up a conversation with me and said she was an alumni.
Then she talked about how she struggled with deciding her major, and no matter what I decided, not to panic. “It always works out,” she said. I changed back to an art major that week. I probably never will see that woman again, but I am forever grateful for her encouragement.
Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about Katy Feiling Art – what should we know?
First and foremost, I create art to tell a story. I believe all artists are storytellers at heart.
As a child, I loved to tell stories through painting and drawing, and that still holds true today. People and characters are my favorite subject to depict. A portrait might seem like a relatively straightforward thing — just a picture of someone, really — but it’s so much more than that. It’s celebrating the human and the marks they’re leaving on this world. It’s depicting someone’s story and the beauty in it.
I lost my dad in November of last year. As I began to grieve and process his death and absence, I really started to think about how small we all are in the grand scheme of things. There’s this huge universe out there, and it’s been here far longer than we have, and it’s going to be here far after us. It can be cool, maybe kind of scary, but really just beautiful.
This year, that’s really been the focus in my art. Maybe there’s a spiritual aspect to it, but really, I’m just fascinated with stars and space and knowing that there’s something larger than life out there.
Any shoutouts? Who else deserves credit in this story – who has played a meaningful role?
My dad deserves the most credit, obviously, for his initial doubt! Just kidding. In all seriousness, he was one of my biggest cheerleaders. He’d build me panels of any size. He let me take over his office and turn half of it into my studio. He drove down to my school to help me with installations for my art show. Just anything I needed, he was there to help, no second thoughts.
My mom, of course, is the other half of my biggest cheerleaders. Even when I have made something that I truly think is trash, she never agrees, and always, always keeps it. She never lets me actually throw it away. There’s a rather large painting hanging in the hallway that I absolutely hate, but it’s one of her favorites, and I don’t think she’ll ever let me take it down.
My sister, too, is a huge supporter. I know I can always turn to her for an honest opinion or suggestion. And she’s a very loyal customer, too, which I always appreciate. Really, I am just surrounded by friends and family that really lift me up and encourage me. I am very fortunate.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.katyfeiling.com
- Email: k.feiling@yahoo.com
- Instagram: kfeiling
- Other: www.etsy.com/shop/kfeiling
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