Meet MELANIE ROYSTER | Visual Artist & Designer

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

Hi MELANIE, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
I started my business the beginning of the pandemic. Before the pandemic I was so used to suppressing so much and hiding a lot of myself. For a majority of my life I was a student-athlete and once I was done with my college career I was lost – I had a huge identity crisis. It was easy for me to distract myself with staying busy, always being with friends, and just always being on the go. Once the shut downs started in March 2020 because of Covid -I was struggling a ton. That first month I really had to sit in my thoughts and so many of the things I hid I found a way out. I was tired of staying quiet- I had stories and feelings I wanted to share. I wanted to highlight important topics and make people feel. So April 2020 I took the leap and opened up my art shop.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
My art has transformed so much these past two years. It started as a way to just express myself and also just bring joy to others. I would say now I create to really influence change or to bring about topics/subjects that are really important to me. I’m excited to just let this influence grow and see bigger change through my art. It feels good that I’m able to serve my community in the best way I know how.

It’s very interesting looking back on how I first started. I didn’t have a business plan. The first few months of Pandemic I was extremely depressed but I also got to confront a lot of things I used to suppress -like my love for art. So one night I just decided to start my art business and made an online shop immediately. The reason behind my business growth is that I work really hard but most importantly my connections. I’m blessed that I have a community behind me that really believes in my work and refers me to others for paintings/projects.

-Having a business has many challenges. The biggest challenge I would say is letting self doubt creep in. Which is very natural, then with social media sometimes you can feel like you are not doing enough. I’ve always expect so much from myself but have learned that I need to have a balance for my business but most importantly my mental health. Whenever self doubt creeps in, I just express my gratitude even more and give myself some time to just relax.

Some lessons I’ve learned on the way is that its okay to ask for help and that it’s important to be in organizations/communities that truly want to see you grow and vice versa. Being a business owner can feel really lonely -but you do not have to do it alone. We are all truly better as a unit. I wouldn’t be where I am if I didn’t have true genuine connections.

I want the world to know about my brand and story is that my true drive is to influence others that you can use your gifts (no matter how different) to help others and influence change. I whole heartedly believe that if you use your passions to serve your community you’ll continue to get blessings. I want more women of color to believe they can do something because they see me doing it.

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.
So most of my friends and I are for the most part very free spirited. So I usually don’t like to plan a hour by hour itinerary. It can be overwhelming and ends up sucking the fun out of exploring. I’m lucky now that I live in an area where there’s so many places you can walk to as well. I live in Downtown Silver Spring, which is also right outside of NW DC where there’s many places to go to for young adults.

When it comes to trips most of my friends want to enjoy good food and drinks, aesthetically pleasing places to go to, being outside in nature, museums and special landmarks. One place I would definitely take a friend for sure is around the Smithsonian Institution that has around 20 museums, plenty of food trucks, and many places to lounge/picnic around special monuments. Some other areas that have a similar vibe is the Navy Yard, National Harbor, Baltimore National Harbor, And U st NW.

I would also see if there is any concerts going on at the Filmore, which is walking distance from me and always showcases extremely talented music artists weekly.

And lastly, if they feel up to it we would do a hike or do a winery to spend extra time outside.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
There are so many to shoutout when it comes to the success of my art business. -I’ll first like to thank my parents and family for always encouraging me express myself through my creativity and art.
-I’ll like to thank my support system and the community that follows me on my social media platforms that continue to support whether its buying art, sharing my post, saving my posts, and/or saying my name in rooms I’m not in.
-I’ll like to thank Femme Fatale DC, Adriana COO and THe3rdinc, Laura Bacon CEO, being apart of these organizations/communities that advocate for women has really brought me so many opportunities and amazing connections.
-I’ll also like to thank artists who are really paving the way for new emerging artist but I want to give one of my favorite artist a shout out to one of my favorite artists, Reyna Noriega who is always open and never hesitates to give me advice and support.

Website: https://www.melroyart.net

Instagram: @melroyart