Meet Clara de la Fuente | Acrylic and watercolor artist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Clara de la Fuente and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Clara, we’d love to hear about how you approach risk and risk-taking
.When I was 24 I moved to the US from Spain. On an early morning of November, I got an email offering me an internship in the US. Five minutes later, I emailed back accepting it. I had no clue where in the US I was going, and honestly I didn’t care.

To me it was a no brainier; you only get these chances once in life. After the initial hype, I was like: oh my, am I moving into another continent?!?! It was a mixture of excitement and fear. However, that was the most pivotal point in my life.

Once I moved here I got exposed to many different cultures, activities, ways of thinking… Moving here as a young adult helped enrich my values, my goals, gave me a very different perspective of life. Also I started doing several new activities, one of them was… painting!

My 2nd largest risk was to exhibit my artwork for the first time when I had only been painting for a short period of time. I got in touch with an artist group in town which connected me to a venue who was looking for artists. It was part of an art festival in town, but you had to do most of the legwork and preparation yourself. I was terrified but I still went all in: selected my best artwork, prepare the display, plan a reception… and then, magic happened. Not only a lot of people came, but people started making offers for my artwork.

Seeing how others could connect with my work to the point that they will pay for it meant the world to me, and encouraged me to keep painting. I didn’t even think of prices because I was just happy to show my artwork to the world.

In 2021 I decided to go all in, set a store online and do an official launch. I was terrified (again) because I thought nobody would care but it was quite the opposite, most of the collection was sold out after 1 month, and I sold my first painting online within 1 hour of launching!

Of course not everything went perfect for me, far from it. The first time I got rejected to be part of an art show I took it pretty personally. With the time, I understood there is nothing personal about that. You just have to keep applying and improving your skills.

All humans are againt to risk. It’s our brain is trying to protect us but best things in life come from a big risky jump to the unknown. Also, risk taking is like a muscle, you can train it.

10 or 15 years ago I read the following and stuck to me: If you look back, most of the regrets you have in your life are for things that you didn’t do, not for that things you do, so go for it. Sounded like great advice to me.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I am an acrylic and watercolor artist who paints the emotion behind locations of the 22 countries I visited. Everything I do is strongly focused on color and organic shapes. My art represent the desire of adventure and losing one-self in nature. It’s about the calm that you experience when you are by yourself surrounded by nature.

Skies have become a highlight in my work since I got mesmerized by the beauty of the skies in the Midwest, where I live now. The perfect gradient of the colors, the shapes of the clouds, sunsets, sunrises, storms… the sky offers us a magnificent show everyday. For several months of the year I drive back home around sunset time heading West so I can observe its beauty in all its magnitude every day.

Life is all about cycles: day and night, seasons, personal changes, everything comes and goes… Sunsets, sunrises are common elements of my artwork as they have a special meaning to me. They remind me that every day is a new beginning, a new opportunity. You can have a bad day, but in a few hours the clock will reset and it will be a new day a new chance. To me that´s magical.

I recently started painting stormy skies as a reminded that there is always calm after every storm, in the sky and in life. In America a lot of people spend a large amount of time alone, and more now with remote work which can have a detrimental effect in our well-being.

To me is important to have these visual reminders in the form of paintings around my home, not only because the bright colors lift my spirit but also to have a reminder that whatever it happens, things will eventually be OK. After every storm, the clouds eventually go away and the sun always rises.

I explored this concept deeply in my most recent collection, called Midwestern Vistas. A collection of expressionist landscapes where the skies are the highlight.

~~~~~~~How did you get to where you are today professionally. Was it easy? If not, how did you overcome the challenges? What are the lessons you’ve learned along the way.

Being an artist is not an easy job as it comes with a lot of uncertainties. The reality is that takes many years for your career to get traction and many people quit before it happens. After 5 years, I recently got some people recognizing my work, knowing the name of my paintings and telling me that they were keeping an eye on my trajectory.

You probably have heard this before, but the key is to really love what you do to the point that, money or not, you will be doing it anyways. Consistency is key, and passion is the drive what to keep showing up.

I have done 11 shows and have no plans of stopping anytime soon. Doing collabs, applying to group shows, creating your own, telling your story on social media, … everything counts. It’s hard work and sometimes it feels you are talking to a wall, that nobody cares, and that could feel pretty discouraging, but you need to keep going because this is who you are and because there are people who do care, and you have to keep showing up for them.

Another important realization that helped me a lot is to understand that unless you have representation you’re a business owner. This means, you need to learn the business part of it if you want to successful. I was completely clueless about business so I made a good investment in a great online business course and it is really paying off. Read all the articles about entrepreneurship, network with other artists, got books from the library, … I try to educate myself as much as I can.

Finally, if you’re just starting, things may not be clear from the beginning, and that´s OK. The best way to clear up your direction is getting started with something and test it. It doesn’t have to be perfect, just 70%. Perfection is the best excuse for procrastination. Show your work. Take the risk. Apply to that show.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I don’t live in Atlanta, but I have visited several times and loved the city. One of the things I admired the most are the murals. So first stop, for sure, will be Cabbage town and the Krogg Tunnel. I am a big fan of street art. Painting a mural requires so much skill and I always admire mural artists. After a long walk and a ton of photos by the murals, we will grab some food at Krogg Street Market. So many good places to try out there.

We will definitely stop by Sister Louisa’s Church of the Living Room to have drinks after and play some ping-pong. That place is worth seeing.

A while ago, I had the best bbq ever at Twin Smokers, but I believe it´s closed now, too bad.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
There are SO many people who supported me and helped me during this journey.

Just to mentioned a few, I want to dedicate this interview to my best friends Sheila Parinas and Skot Wiedmann who are my biggest fans and supporters. They are also artists. We all encourage each other to keep creating, even during the difficult times, and give each other feedback.

Also to my friend Ana Larriba from Spain who helped me create my first logo and business cards just a few days before my first show. Of course to my family and my friends in Spain who were extremely confused at first about my artist side, but they still support me unconditionally.

Last but not last, to all the people who have one of my paintings or prints at your home or office or come to my art shows. You guys believe in me, connected to my work, and that means the world to me,

Website: www.claradelafuenteartist.com

Instagram: www.instagram.com/claradelafuenteartist

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100041555601357