Meet Krystan Ivey | KrissysWork – Fine Artist & Illustrator

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

Hi Krystan, how has your perspective on work-life balance evolved over time?
I started working full time when I was 14 years old, and had been familiar with labor long before then since my family owed a laundromat. For most of my life, I have understood the give and take of working, but my view on what it means has transformed drastically.

As a teenager I worked between 40 and 60 hours a week, work provided me with the funds to take care of myself and all of the validation I needed. Being good at my job and being able to work entire days away was the entirety of my self worth. As an adult I’ve spent years trying to build myself outside of a restaurant or corporate position and a huge part of that has been acknowledging that I am an artist. I am drawn to beauty and creation and wonder. In order to create, I had to stop giving so much of myself away to jobs that were distracting and overwhelming. In this, I learned my own meaning of work life balance.

I’ve left behind incredible roles in the pursuit of finding myself, the artist. For me, balance includes sacrifice and I no longer lean on my job as a definition of myself. I work enough to pay my bills and keep myself alive, I sacrifice benefits and savings for inspiration and energy, and I put up with the fact that I must work in order to live a life full of art. I balance what is necessary to balance, so that I may exist without the weight of self uncertainty.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
I’m excited to say that I have found my place within the art world. I belong among other women, using art to communicate our experiences and understanding of the world around us. I am only as different as each moment I’ve lived in.

My art is stylistically unique as a result of my interest in illustration, storytelling, and folklore. I am a painter and a fine artist, but my line work is stark and my colors are vibrant. I’m creating worlds that exist within our own, they are free from capitalism and the patriarchy, they celebrate the wild hearts of animals and women, and relish in the ample beauty of natural and domestic worlds.

Professionally I am only successful in knowing who I am and what I want, I have friends and family who support me, and have begun to understand the ups and downs of inspiration. I am still learning ways to make money through my passion, and hope to continue making work that speaks loudly, building a bigger audience for my art.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
As a Columbus local who doesn’t get out much, here are my recommendations!

Breakfast – Fox in the Snow
Brunch – Northstar Cafe
Lunch – Brassica
Dinner – Harvest Pizzeria
Dessert – Jeni’s

During the week we’d probably go to a few local parks like Blacklick Woods, Audubon, and Highbanks Metro Parks for a hike and picnic. Then it’d be time to get lattes and snacks at Roosevelt Coffee shop before visiting The Book Loft of German Village to get lost for a few hours. I’d want to see a movie at a Marcus theatre, do trivia at Land Grant, and end a few evenings with a performance at the Funny Bone, Ohio Theatre, or Axis.

Columbus is a wonderful city with so much to do and see!

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
My first shoutout goes to my husband, Adam. While I’m floating through space his feet are firmly on the ground. Even though he is practical, he has always supported my decision to go back to school and chase my dreams. There was a time when I was ready to give it all up, and all it took was for him to say “I love that you’re an artist” to remind me that I also love that I’m an artist. I know that as I embark on a (famously) unstable journey into freelance artistry, he’ll be beside me cheering me on.

My second shoutout goes to my closest friends (in alphabetical order: Ethan, Danika, Lauren, Maddy, and Miranda). Whether it’s coming to shows, offering me honest feedback, or helping me live a life full of love, my life and my art are better because of them.

Website: https://krissyswork.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/krissyswork