Today we’d like to introduce you to Lindsay Dawn.
Hi Lindsay, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
Growing up in a small town in Canada, fulfilling my dreams of being an artist – as my profession seemed out of reach and unrealistic to everyone around me although I never strayed far from a paintbrush. I moved to LA when I was 19 from the town I grew up in, with intentions of doing special effects makeup and soon learned that I couldn’t escape my passion for painting. Since moving here, my life has been filled with some of the most challenging and rewarding experiences, a lot of things I couldn’t have ever imagined I would experience, and an outpouring of opportunities that were beyond what I ever deemed possible. Sometimes I feel like I have lived a thousand lives in the time I’ve been here. Painting and creating in general are not separate from who I am, rather, are who I am and are also the only things that keep me grounded while giving me the ability to express myself freely. That has been a consistent feeling my entire life, I’ve been painting since I was a child, obviously like any kid I had my phases of thinking I wanted to pursue a different profession because that’s what the system teaches you to do, but being a creative it was almost impossible for me to do anything but paint. I had a short period of time while I was in makeup school where I don’t even think I looked at a canvas, then shortly after dropping out of makeup school because I felt I had a lack of creative freedom, I came home one day, and my best friend at the time who I lived with had bought me an easel, some canvas and paint and when I walked in the door she said “this is what you’re supposed to do” and I haven’t stopped since. Having big dreams and a big personality behind my talent have been vital, but I think another factor that has made it possible for me to fulfill my dreams is living in one of the most opportunity filled cities in the world, so once I learned how to filter through and do things that resonate with me, I’ve learned to navigate. I always strive to test my abilities by trying new things, I have this ‘I can paint anything I try’ mindset, which I think stems from my mindset of at least trying to do anything I want to do and not being afraid of the outcome, that keeps me in this mode of exploration trying to develop an artistic style for myself in the midst of painting commissions for people I probably never thought would be possible especially as a 20 something years old, and still so early in my career. Where I am today, as a female artist is a cultivation of many years of some of the best and worst experiences, sacrifice, struggle, determination, consistency, manifestation, hard work and is only the tip of the iceberg of where I’m headed.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
This road has been the farthest thing from smooth, more like one of these LA streets with so many potholes that you’re not sure your wheels will fall off or not but you take the road anyway… LOL. There have definitely been a range of obstacles, some a lot more challenging than others. Some that I’m still healing from. One struggle that has been pretty consistent for me, especially as a kid moving here from a town with like 30k people, has probably been trying to stay true to myself and everything I believe in, this may seem easy for some people, but its most definitely easy to get lost when you’re surrounded by so many things that seemed so out of reach your entire life, I actually have this one on lock now though, I’ve managed to learn how to maintain a balance between things that are in alignment with my purpose and things that just don’t fit the script.
Another obstacle that is still something I’m trying to navigate through is trying to find myself, and I don’t mean as a human, as an artist, I think this is something a lot of creatives struggle with, trying to figure out how to express yourself in the most powerful and efficient way possible, this is something I’ve had to teach myself to separate the perceptions of the external world and just focus on my own voice and how I can use it to contribute to a higher purpose. Aside from that, I definitely have a long list of obstacles that I’ve overcome, but they were minimized last year when I lost my mom, that by far has been the biggest struggle I’ve ever dealt with. I made a lot of sacrifices when I moved here, being away from my family was one of those, never really realizing that a few years would turn into the rest of my life, my mom was my bestfriend, and the reason for everything, she’s the reason I had the courage to follow my dreams and keep moving forward at all costs, after losing her I am more fearless than I’ve ever been, I found a sense of peace knowing that if I can survive physically losing the only person in the world I thought I couldn’t live without then nothing else can break me. Since then, I’ve focused on the one thing I know how to do, which is turn my pain into a masterpiece.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I am a painter, I specialize in abstract, contemporary & realism. Many people know me for my portraits, most of which are done in shades of black and grey. For those who have been following my work for a long time may know me for painting the female body, often incorporated with abstract accents and backgrounds. Something I am most proud of that also sets me apart from others is my versatility, as a painter most people focus on one style or two styles that are closely related, for example the majority of abstract painters primarily focus on abstract pieces, same thing goes for portrait painters. My ability to incorporate realism into an abstract piece and make it work is something that a lot of artists don’t do.
How do you think about happiness?
Creating makes me happy because it allows people to express themselves in the most pure form. Whether it be visual art, music, dance, fashion, film, etc. It all stems from someone’s imagination or an experience they had, when you combine that idea with passion and freedom, then you get all the things that make this world so exhilarating.
Contact Info:
- Email: info@lindsaydawnstudios.com
- Website: www.lindsaydawnstudios.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/itslindsaydawn/?hl=en
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lindsaydawnstudios/
