Today we’d like to introduce you to Adriane Tsai.
Hi Adriane, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
My artistic journey was jumpstarted by my unconventional educational path. I was homeschooled since I was six years old which gave me the freedom to pursue art and other creative interests. My parents’ homeschooling philosophy was that my interests would determine the content of my education, and because I was only interested in art, I started developing my craft at a young age.
At age 13, I started taking art classes at my local community college and continued there for the next five years. By the time I graduated high school, I completed two art certifications in Entertainment Arts and Illustration. Soon after graduation, I was fortunate to start my first freelance job creating characters and illustrations for animated videos.
Since then, I have been working as a freelance illustrator on various projects and have just illustrated a bilingual children’s book, “My Favorite Gift.” I’ve also been teaching digital art classes at a homeschool learning center that I attended when I was a kid, so it really came full circle.
I am currently represented by James McGowan at BookEnds Literary Agency and am looking forward to illustrating fantastical and inspiring stories.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey have been a fairly smooth road?
I’ve been very fortunate with the opportunities that have come my way. One obstacle that comes to mind, though, is in 2020 around the time the pandemic hit, health issues that I dealt with on and off since I was a kid resurfaced, but this time they were a lot more severe. Just a few years before I felt invincible, but now it seemed like every little thing affected my health. It was frustrating because I tried so many remedies, but nothing seemed to help.
I realized that one of the causes of these health challenges was overwork, and what drove me to overwork was a sense of perfectionism and the need to succeed. I wanted to reach a point in life where I could finally say “I made it,” and then I could rest. Art is typically an unstable field, and as a freelance artist, there is always more we could be doing. If we aren’t working on a project, we could be marketing, posting on social media, making personal art, etc.
The blessing and curse of doing what we love is that we are very passionate about our work and always want to improve, but it also puts a lot of pressure on ourselves. Our passion, our work, and our self-worth become so intertwined, it becomes really hard to take a break from work.
Now I give myself grace and try to not feel guilty about taking care of myself. It’s so important to be physically, emotionally, and mentally healthy to create good work!
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I am a freelance artist and children’s book illustrator. I focus on incorporating whimsical shapes, inviting colors, and imaginative storytelling into my work. I especially love fantasy, nature and adorable creatures. My goal is to bring childlike wonder to life!
What has been the most important lesson you’ve learned along your journey?
I’ve learned the importance of balancing work and physical/mental/emotional health.
The pandemic along with my health challenges really helped me reframe my priorities and put things into perspective. It made me think if at the end of the day, I would be happy with how I used my time.
I realized that there were a lot of things I worried about in my daily life that felt urgent but would not be important to me in the long run. I wanted to be happy now, not 30 years from now.
Letting go of the need to succeed or “do enough” gave me peace and was the first step to finding work/life balance. We get to define what success is for ourselves and we get to decide what is or isn’t important enough to stress over. When I am able to maintain this balance, I find fulfillment in both my personal and professional life.
Contact Info:
- Email: [email protected]
- Website: https://adrianetsai.myportfolio.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theartofadriane/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theartofadriane/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/theartofadriane
- Other: https://www.etsy.com/shop/LittleAdrianeArt
