Meet The Makers: Bourne says stay curious, persistent in creativity

Northwest Arkansas is a hotbed of artistic talent. In this year's first Meet The Makers, we shine a spotlight on one of the folks who make up the creative, diverse heart of the state's art scene.

Meg Bourne is the founder and executive director of the nonprofit Art Feeds, where she and her colleagues use art to help students process trauma and express their emotions. Somehow, she still finds time to maintain a second career as an indoor/outdoor muralist.

Please tell us a little bit about your work. What do you create?

I'm a multidisciplinary artist. My work spans from studio practice to mural installations, both indoor and outdoor. My studio work has a focus of acrylic painting on canvas, textile and paper. My aesthetic on both my studio work and murals is playful, with thick textures, bright and bold colors, patterns and organic shapes. It is my attempt to give attention and delight to the unintentional. I adore the element of surprise and exploring themes of play, balance, movement and curiosity. The intention of my work is to create unique color composition, abstract shapes and familiarity that both evokes a bold presence in the space and gives viewers a sense of connection to themselves and each other.

When did you first start thinking of yourself as an artist/creator/maker? What were some of the first things you remember creating?

This is a fascinating question. I've been creating, or bringing things into existence with drawing, painting, sewing, dancing, etc., since the time I can remember. I believe deeply that all people are creative and tend to shy away from the term "artist" because it feels exclusionary, when I know that creativity is accessible to all people. My creativity, in this specific realm, looks like paint and walls or paint and canvas. For others it could be finding a specific taste with a longtime recipe, planting a garden or even, (although some may disagree) bringing order to numbers in an Excel sheet. We all create, we are all creative, I just think I understood from a young age that I was most connected to myself and the world when I was (am) making things. From my childhood art table, to a cake decorating phase in adolescence, to sewing my own clothes in high school, enrolling in a pottery class last year, or picking up embroidery in early quarantine, l I've always had a curiosity to how things are made. I often ask myself, "I wonder if I have the ability to do that?" and my favorite part of creating is the process, trying and failing and trying again, over and over, seeing that, in fact, most of the time with enough effort and exploration, I can do that.

I've created art all my life and mostly given whatever I create away. As I mentioned, I'm in love with the process over the product. 2020 was the first year I started taking commissions for murals and paintings. It started as a space for me to keep my own sanity in early quarantine when a friend asked me to paint their wall, then commissions for art on canvas and murals in indoor and outdoor spaces kept rolling in. I began Meg Bourne Wall Art in March 2020 and had created 16 murals and sold several large scale art pieces by December 2020. I feel such deep gratitude that in a very difficult year, I was able to make my work available to the public, which helped me create space for my own mental wellness as well as create a bright spot in other's homes and in public spaces.

Where can we see/purchase your work?

You can visit my web site at megbournewallart.com, email [email protected] for commission inquiries and find process videos and recent work on my Instagram at @megbournewallart

Was there a teacher, relative or friend who particularly encouraged you to pursue your art?

One of the biggest gifts of my life is the community of people that surround and encourage me. I have parents who raised me to believe I can try and fail at anything, but also taught me work ethic and dedication. I have an endlessly encouraging partner and a tribe of women who are all incredibly talented in their own rights but so encouraging of me and my own creativity. We encourage each other to take risks and celebrate the accomplishments of each other. Two of my murals earlier in the year were for close friends Channing Barker and Meredith Benfield, and it's been wonderful to work with designers like Sarah Smith Designs out of Northwest Arkansas, who has used my work in her own house and for her design clients, as well as Kim Lewis Designs out of Austin -- who is a dear friend I get to collaborate with and create for personally. My best friend Brooke LeMasters puts up with my texts in process -- "do you think this is done?" I trust her so much creatively that I can take her opinions and criticism on where the work is going or thoughts on a new idea. I feel really lucky to live in Northwest Arkansas as well, as we have myriad creatives that tend to be so welcoming and encouraging of each other. I'm intentional about curating my life to be filled with people who inspire and push me -- there truly is something to the formula of the "five people you surround yourself with."

What is one tool in your studio you can't live without?

My earbuds. I listen to podcasts and books at an alarming rate. My interests run the gamut -- podcasts on spirituality, current events, economy, science, the human experience and more are always in my ears when I'm painting. In one mural piece I might listen to "Poetry Unbound" (my favorite poetry podcast), as well as Freakonomics Radio on compassion in the healthcare system and a Radiolab episode on the science of seeing color. What I listen to while I'm painting lends a certain energy to the piece, which is why I document each podcast episode or book I'm listening to on my Instagram while the work is being created.

What is the best piece of advice you've ever been given?

I was part of an awards ceremony once where Sabra Tull Meyer won Missouri Arts Council's artist of the year. In her acceptance speech she shared the many facets of her life -- that she was a wife and a mother and an employee, and at 50 years old she went back to school for her Master's Degree in Fine Arts. She stood on the stage in 2014 as an 86-year-old woman that became a bronze sculptor in what most would call "late in life" with over 70 sculptures to her name. In her speech she said something I will never forget: "You can live so many lives."

Both creatively and personally, this is some of the best advice I've ever heard -- it's never too late to begin a new creative path, explore something new, try something you've never tried before. I try to pursue my life and art with the same kind of confidence and curiosity. After all, we only get one life, we may as well loophole the system and create many lives in that one.

Do you have any advice for a creative just starting out?

Stay curious and persistent. Get comfortable with poor quality work when you're first starting. It's OK to be bad; you'll be bad until you're better. A gift of the universe is that the more you practice diligently at anything, the better you will get at it. I observe that most creatives begin to create because they have a lens or perspective on the world they are trying to share, and when you first begin in your craft, I think it's best to release the expectation that your work will be great. It will take time for the work that you are creating to match the perspective you have in your head and imagination. I think that often people can get stuck thinking they are "no good" and "not talented." While I do believe talent, perspective and aesthetic play a role in creating, I also think that so many people stop the creative process (or writing, or painting, or dancing, etc.) because they try and at first are terrible at said thing. The first things you make will be a little terrible. Keep moving, and practicing and repeating, and you will improve on your craft. But get comfortable with not knowing and maintain curiosity on how to get better. Don't box yourself in, and give yourself space to grow, change and explore. There is likely not a single creative you admire that hasn't practiced diligently for a long time. That work you admire endlessly may have taken months or years to produce. Get comfortable and curious with the process and don't expect to be good with your first piece of work.