Meet Yesenia Popova of Yes Pop in Glendale

Today we’d like to introduce you to Yesenia Popova.

Thanks for sharing your story with us Yesenia. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
As far back as I can remember, I have always loved art. No matter what came to mind or whatever the assignment was, I always found joy creating it. I’m originally from Russia but then moved to LA when I was three years old when my mom found better job options. At six years old, I started taking art classes and continued till my senior year of high school. But through those years, I only did art as a hobby or something to pass time, it was something that just simply enjoyed. But throughout those years, I wasn’t sure about what I wanted to pursue in the future or who I want to become as a person.

As I grew and observed others in high school, I then realized art can actually be a successful career. When I did start taking art more seriously and showed success through it, some people didn’t believe in me or at other times people wouldn’t understand why I wanted to pursue it. But with all the negativity I was more lucky to have friends and family that believed and supported me through it. Without the guidance of my high school art teacher and the love from my mother, I wouldn’t be where I am today. And luckily, I was accepted into ArtCenter College of Design and graduated in 2017, and I can happily say I work in the entertainment industry now.

Great, 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?
It was definitely not a smooth road. There were always ups and downs and I could make a list of all the issues I have, but I think the number one thing that still challenges me is working to be independent. Not to say that I don’t appreciate the help I get along the way, I’m very thankful for that. But as an artist, it gives me some validations that I’m able to do what I love and able to support myself along the way. That has always been a goal of mine and I’m slowly getting there!

For the longest time, I always had this issue where I thought I wasn’t doing enough, and that only got worse when I started college. At first college for me was intimidating but very exciting. But right away I noticed the people around me were older or had more experience, few were able to get jobs right away when they barely even finished school. It felt like a completion with one another. I was worried that I couldn’t catch up to my peers or have a good representation of myself. And because of that, it really made me push myself to work harder and try to get better. But then after graduating from college, I realized I rushed through a lot of things, like missing out on time with my family, devolving my art, and taking care of myself. But through the hard work and struggles, I learned that it’s ok to make mistakes and only the best masterpiece can never be rushed or completed.

After graduating college trying to find work was hard but I expected that. There were some opportunities here and there but it was a very slow build-up which lasted a year. As much as I hate to say it, I’m glad some bad things had to happen through my life, it helped me learn and grow on how to be an adult.

We’d love to hear more about your work and what you are currently focused on. What else should we know?
Right now I’m kind of a bit of everything at the moment, I take on different job titles from here and there and it’s actually fun for me, I get to experience different things that I never thought that I would get a chance to do. But what I really hope to do and I’m still working on to achieve is working as a background artist for animation or tv.

Do you look back particularly fondly on any memories from childhood?
Most of my favorite memories are times that I spend with my mom, but the one that is most special to me was going to Griffith Park and riding on the little trains and horses as many times until I get dragged away. Now that I’m older and I have two younger siblings, I want to give them those same happy memories that I had as a child so that they can remember forever.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.yeseniapopova.com/
• Email: [email protected]
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/yesenia_popova/?hl=en
• Twitter: https://mobile.twitter.com/Yes__Pop

Image Credit:
Yesenia Popova

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