Learning and growing from mistakes with Molly Lentz
Recently I shared an interview with Molly Lentz where she talked about selling art on Etsy and Faire. During that interview I was surprised when Molly started to talk about a big mistake she made in her art career. My initial surprise turned to admiration and respect as she bravely, and in a very vulnerable way, retold what had happened. I think Molly’s mistake and what she learned from it can help us all be better artists and better members of our arts’ community. Enjoy.
Hi Molly! Recently you made a mistake and learned an important lesson from it. Will you share?
Yes, I learned a very important lesson. I did something that I wish I could go back and undo. I’m going to be vulnerable and share it with everyone and hope that others keep an open mind.
These days there are so many ways to follow artists and find artwork on platforms like pinterest and instagram. This can sometimes make it very difficult to come up with art that is unique and a true reflection of yourself. It can also breed self doubt as you compare your creations to others' (please don’t do this, you have something special to give).
At a specific point in my journey, I crossed a line where inspiration became imitation. It shames me (and makes my palms sweat) to admit that but it’s important to me to share and be honest about this experience. It is a reminder to pay close attention to what is inspiring you and where that inspiration is coming from.
Do not be afraid to be yourself, be unique, do something that’s different. Finding your style and your voice can take many many years (I’m still working on that) so be patient with yourself. Please know that you have something amazing to offer the world and your audience will find you and cheer you on.
How did you realize you had crossed the line from inspiration to imitation and how did you resolve that for yourself as an artist?
I'm still beating myself up about it and probably will for the rest of my career. This is why you don't want to make the same mistake as I did. It will be something that causes you to question your authenticity as an artist and what you stand for.
I knew I was crossing the line because I was looking to other artists for ideas. Let’s say I needed to design a new birthday card, I’d think ‘what cards are these artists doing?’. I noticed this pattern and I knew it had to change; my inspiration needed to be something that came from only me and my life. I proceeded to unfollow many artists on social platforms and unsubscribe from email newsletters. If I was going to make a change, I needed to stop seeing their work pop up on a daily basis.
Months later, my worst nightmare happened. I was excited to see an email from one of my favorite artists in my inbox, until I saw the subject line: "Cease and Desist". She had customers telling her that my drawings were starting to look a lot like hers. It was sad, embarrassing, terrible - all the horrible and gut wrenching feelings. Here was an artist that I admired angrily writing to me, rightfully so. I just have to add that she allowed me to apologize and, in my opinion, gave me a lot of grace which I am so thankful for.
There was a lot of crying and soul searching after that - mostly because I had hurt a fellow artist and that's something I never wanted to do. I consider myself a good, caring, genuine, supportive person and what I did doesn't align with any of that. Trying to reconcile that has been one of the biggest challenges for me and how I'm choosing to do that is by owning it, learning from it, and never allowing it to happen again. It was the wake up call that I’d say has and will forever change my career for the better.
After this experience what steps have you taken to find your own style and voice?
I began a social media cleanse - aka unfollowing many people. That may sound mean or unsupportive, but the artists that were doing similar things to me were too present in my life. I needed to silence the things that were blocking me from truly exploring and allowing myself to be ME. Granted, I didn't even know what "me" looked like yet but that was okay.
At the beginning of this year I had to undergo surgery which meant I had a lot of downtime while recovering. I did so much drawing - not for a specific product, not for an instagram post, but just for the fun of it. I subscribed to Skillshare and began taking classes, exploring new things like typography and portraits. This opens up all kinds of opportunities to discover your style because you’re outside of your comfort zone. Also, if you're on Instagram, there are so many amazing drawing challenges. It can be really hard to come up with artwork concepts and these challenges do that part for you. They are also a great way to join a community of other people who are on the same journey.
With all of this said, I'm still a work in progress, but I am so much happier being true to myself than I ever was trying to catch up to what other artists were doing. Removing any pressures can open up your world and allow things to happen organically.
How would you describe your style these days?
I would describe it as playful, joyful and brightly colored. I want my artwork to make others feel seen, cheer them up or take away some of life’s stressors just for that moment. I absolutely adore nature and often call it my "church" - so I will almost always include some flora and fauna in my drawings. Overall I am really enjoying playing and broadening my illustration capabilities. Stay tuned!
How can readers connect with you?
You can find me on Etsy and Instagram. You can view my portfolio here. And you can also reach me via email.