We had the good fortune of connecting with Maren Hartman and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Maren, why did you decide to pursue a creative path?
I have been active in art my entire life. From designing my teacher’s bulletin boards in middle school to being the editor of my high school’s and college yearbooks, artistic design has been something I have been doing my whole life. Because of the image of the “starving artist” it’s not something I thought I could actually make a living at so I pursued my traditional career routes. So I started painting on the side and, little by little, I realized that creating art was something I could actually make a living at as well as be successful at the same time. They say that when you do what you love you never work a day in your life – that’s where I am now and it’s pretty amazing!

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
As a creative person, I have been doing art my whole life. When I was 12, my mom bought be a calligraphy instruction book and a pen and I started to learn calligraphy. I had my first paying job when I was 14. I did all types of calligraphy jobs throughout high school and college and once my first son was born, I planned on calligraphy being the job I did as a stay at home mom. Unfortunately calligraphy isn’t the type of thing people need year round and isn’t that lucrative. That, combined with the internet, computer printed envelopes in calligraphy fonts and every person with pretty handwriting deciding that they wanted to be a calligrapher, it became harder and harder to make a consistent income doing calligraphy. I tried other things like making calligraphy canvases and signs but I still did everything by hand. The people who were using either stencils or the cricut could turn everything around faster and cheaper so that wasn’t profitable for me. I have done a decent amount of painted clothing but that also is a niche market.

In my life I had done several oversized pieces of art, including mural, banner, etc., just because they were fun. I started to wonder if this was something I could actually do full time so I did some research and realized that maybe I could do that. I have come to realize that not only do I love to paint but that I love to paint big spaces. And although I do logos and character work that my favorite murals are the ones where my client lets me use my creativity and come up with the design and concept that I completely customize with what their concept is. When people recognize me as the idea person that is my favorite thing!

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Atlanta is a great city with so much to offer. When I have friends visit, i like to take people to the Zoo, World of Coca Cola, Ponce City Market, Little Five Points and Stone Mountain. If you like high end shopping, you can’t go wrong with Phipps Plaza or Lenox Mall. As for me, the type of shopping I like to do is at any of the wide variety of thrift stores or antique shops. My husband and I love to go to concerts and our favorite venues are The Fox Theater, Cobb Energy Center and Ameris Bank Ampitheater. There is so much great eating in the city to fit everyone’s taste buds. Personally I like to recommend the restaurants where I have painted their murals – lol. But if I have someone who has never been to Atlanta, although it’s far from haute cuisine, I always take people to The Varsity because it’s an experience in and of itself!

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
One of my main shout outs would be to my high school art teacher. She was always supportive and encouraging and taught me so much. I still have one of my high school friends Brian who says to me every time I do something that “Sister Janet would be so proud!” I like to think she would be too.

Another person who helped me to get me to where I am now is my friend Jill who turned me onto the Jen Sincero book series “You Are a Badass” which is basically about deciding the type of life you want to have, visualizing it and then making it happen. It was life changing for me and has become not only a mantra for myself but also my gift of choice for others when they need to discover themselves and the guidance, inspiration and instructions to make it happen.

The main person who has contributed to my career is my husband Jim. He loves, supports and encourages me to be the best version of myself all the time. He believed in me becoming a full time artist even before I was sure it would happen. His commitment to my happiness and success is unfailing.

Website: Www.MarenHartmanArt.com

Instagram: Www.instagram.com/MarenHartmanArt

Image Credits
MarenHartmanArt took all photos

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