I’m Leaving My Job at Revlon To Become a Full-Time Artist

Soosoostudios’s name was born when my boss would jokingly sing Phil Collins’s song ‘Susustudios’ whenever I would walk by working as a graphic designer for Saks Fifth Avenue’s OFF5TH. My manager and I used to run the ship taking photos, creating email campaigns, and leading seasonal photoshoots to design direct mailers. It was a ton of work but I’d built up my stamina through the long hard years studying art in Korea at a prestigious high school, SunHwa Arts. 

My dream was to become a creative director at a Fortune 500 company where I would be able to create beautiful campaigns. However, as I slowly climbed up the ladder in corporate, I realized how painful it was. I learned that just being creative doesn’t provide you happiness and wealth. Every time I developed a campaign, I was knocked down by having to make over 50 revisions because the VP or EVP didn’t ‘like’ that shade of color. It was a constant battle fighting for a color change or a type change, and that dragged me down under. I would lose my motivation so quickly that I dreaded starting on the next campaign idea.

I needed an outlet. I started out by creating a sarcastic, drunk teddy bear named @bitterbeans. He would be my soulmate living off massive amounts of coffee and wine. At the same time, I started to create watercolor paintings and drew on wine glasses. I wanted to connect back to my roots in arts and start creating again. However, my full-time job and young kids dragged me back into reality, and eventually, I took a break from drawing.

COVID-19 actually saved me. I was furloughed for a few months from work and it was a dreadful time, I’m sure it was for everyone! I needed another outlet, a different one from anything that I’d done before. I was browsing through Pinterest one day and stumbled upon an alcohol ink art piece. It looked like watercolor but the colors were so much more vibrant that they caught my eye. I was mesmerized by the blends and gradients of the artist's work so I immediately ordered the materials to try it out. The first time I tried it, it was so freeing. It is such a beautiful medium, so soothing and calming to just let the inks flow across the page. I finally found my therapy and had the need to spread this beauty into the world.

Quitting My Job

I started to post my behind the scene process on my Instagram account and caught the attention of many of my friends. A dear friend of mine commissioned a large piece for her bedroom (a beautiful pink and gold artwork with botanical flowers illustrated over it) and I knew this was the start of something new. She gave me the support and confidence to believe in myself and showed me that I could actually do this for a living. She has suddenly passed away from depression and unfortunately, I and many others had no clue. I now dedicate my work to support mental health awareness as I know I have given her a glimpse of happiness through her struggles.

Her sudden death also made me realize that we only live once, and it’s really important to pursue your happiness in life. And nobody can do that for you, only you have the power to do so. I called my current manager at Revlon and told her the truth. She understood completely what I was going through, and since I wasn’t going to another job, I gave her a two-month notice.

I am in my last month now working on my last campaign photoshoot which has given me all the feels. I will miss this from time to time, but I’m so happy that I’ll be able to spend my energy on my body of work. 

Also during the pandemic, a friend reached out to me asking to teach her kids private art lessons. I was hesitant at first, but I realized I have all the skills and knowledge to teach children how to grow and think creatively through art. In high school, I learned most techniques using various mediums like watercolor, acrylics, oil, clay, design, and even photography. I now teach every day of the week as my classes have slowly grown! 

Starting the Business

As I am an artist and creator, I need to train myself to become everything else. I’m trying to learn something new every day. I have been taking business courses and one-on-one coaching sessions to get myself out into the world for exposure. I’ve been popping up at art fairs around town and recently won first place at the Bergen County Art in the Park Juried Art Show in NJ. My mother-in-law is now my manager, assistant, and nanny who takes care of my kids and I cannot wait until I can hire my first assistant! She has dedicated her life to supporting me and I owe her the world back. 

Owning your own business is crazy as your to-do list grows out of control, but also so rewarding as you are the only person who can also achieve all the things you want. You get to celebrate so many more wins in life, and ultimately make people happy by doing what you love. 

Summing it Up

I am super excited for the future, and my goal now is to slowly venture out into more galleries and meet other wonderful artists. I am so happy that I don’t need to travel 2 hours one way just to get to New York City and that I can work from home and see my kids grow up. It is honestly scary, but I know deep inside that I have so much more to give back to this world and so can any of you artists that are reading my story. My best advice that I can give to anyone is to believe in yourself that you can do anything! Then wonderful ideas will start popping up and you can find a solution to anything! 

Subscribe to Handmade Seller Magazine to read the rest.