Meet Angela Bawden | Artist/Painter – Art Gallery Owner

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

Hi Angela, we’d love to hear about how you approach risk and risk-taking.
I wouldn’t be doing what I do today without taking the risks that I have taken on my journey. I feel that taking risks in life is necessary for us to realize our potential. Without taking risks we aren’t able to see what we are really made of and what we are capable of achieving. Taking a risk on something we feel is in line with our soul’s intention removes us from our comfort zone and opens doors that would have never appeared otherwise. When we avoid risk-taking we stay stagnant in the same place. If you change nothing, nothing changes.
I feel that many people who are afraid to take risks are afraid of losing security. I believe there is no real security in the material world. The only security we really have is who we are at the soul level, No one can take that from us. We come into this world with nothing but who we are and we leave this world the same way. No matter how secure our job is, the company we work for or the business we are in, any of these businesses of all sizes can fail.
It’s fear of failure, rejection and loss that keeps people from taking risks. Taking risks is the path that leads us into our power, our strength.

I have many examples of taking risks in my art career. I also have a lot of experience with failure. I wouldn’t change any of it.
My failures have taught me so much about myself and what I’m capable of. After years and years of trial and effort, I now take rejection and failure as a redirection. I use it as a guide to direct me to what is truly meant for me.
As an artist, I have taken all the rejection and failure and used them as building blocks to trust myself in pursuing my soul’s intention and following my dreams. Failures aren’t actual failures if they serve a higher purpose. I like to look at failure as a redirection. I have learned to believe in my ability to align with what is right for me. I get redirected a lot, and I have learned to embrace it all, for all of it has led me to where I am now and will continue to guide me along my journey.

Any successful artist would agree that it is extremely hard work to make a living as an artist. You always hear the starving artist tales. I’m here to say “Ignore all that!”. It is achievable, you can be a full-time successful artist or creative. It can be accomplished; you can thrive as an artist if you can learn to persevere through rejection and failures. It’s an important muscle to build, to be able to take risks knowing that you might fail. It isn’t a failure if you learn and grow from it. You learn you what you are made of. You learn that it’s ok to not know where things might lead, to not know if something will turn out to be a success. Anyone who has ever created something of real value in this world has taken risks.
Nothing can be taken from us that is meant for us.

In my decision to open an art gallery, I was terrified! It took me way out of my comfort zone. I did it anyway. I’m doing it! What’s the worst that can happen? I lose money.? I get rejected by the community. Regardless of the outcome, It is so much better to take the risks than the regret of “What if, what if I hadn’t taken the risks and gone after what I truly desired?”

It is always a financial risk to open a brick-and-mortar retail space, let alone an art gallery. This is a risk I’m willing to take.
This has been my heart’s desire to create for a very long time. I believe the timing for this endeavor is right for me. Will it fail? Maybe? Will it be received well? Maybe?
Will it thrive? Maybe? I don’t know, I don’t have the answers.
Will all this dream chasing and taking risks be one of the best experiences of my life? Regardless of the outcome, I believe so.
There is beauty in not knowing. This is living, to have the courage to take risks and go for the things that align with your heart and soul! There is no better adventure in my opinion. I’m realizing that life is about the journey not the destination. I’m enjoying the ride as I get more and more comfortable with taking risks.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
When people I meet discover that I’m an artist, I almost always get asked the question “What’s your medium?” and my answer is usually something like ” All of them”. I work with a wide range of media, including oil paint, acrylic paint, watercolor, inks, plasters, polymers, resin, and gold leafing to name a few.
I enjoy the free-flowing artistic expression of playing with different mediums and incorporating various distinctive techniques into my work. I don’t like to put my creative ideas into a box of a certain style or medium just because the art connoisseurs say that artists should stick to one thing.
In saying that, I have built a large body of work that I call abstract realism. I am known mostly for my abstract realism style paintings. I use realistic subjects with a lot of detail and realistic features mixed with abstract backgrounds and concepts mixed into the composition. It gives me the freedom to be able to express my creative nature by capturing the beauty of our real world such as animals and nature and intertwining it with the free expression of abstraction. This type of work I do mostly, but I am always ready to try new things and challenge myself with new mediums and styles. I enjoy freedom in my expression with all my art.

I grew up in a large family of artists. My Father Dee Jay Bawden is a professional sculptor. He sculpted in our home studio my whole life. My siblings all have artistic talent and we all enjoyed helping sculpt large life-sized monuments. It was good for me to be able to express myself creatively growing up and it was always supported by my parents. I would admit that I have talent.
When people tell me I’m talented, I take it with a grain of salt. Talent is a huge starting point, but it takes a whole lot more than just talent. It takes practice, trial and error, and perseverance to master anything. The 10,000 hour rule is a real asset to anyone in the creative field that wants to master their craft.
I refer natural artistic talent to that of athletes. You can have great athletic ability and talent, but it will only take you so far. You have to show up over and over put in your time and practice to become the best version of yourself and realize your full potential as an athlete. Same goes for anyone with any talent. You can naturally be good but there is always room for improvement. Don’t rely on talent, rely on showing up.

I’ve been a professional artist for 20 years. It took years of dedication and hard work both on the business side as well as the creative side to be able to make ends meet full time. Throughout my art career I have experienced many ups and downs.
I contacted many galleries asking for consideration for representation with no responses, but still I kept trying. I put my work out into the world. Sometimes it was received well and other times it was not.
After much effort, I was able to find a few great galleries to work with. It was a lot of work and took a lot of perseverance. I also had to leave a few galleries due to dishonesty and shady dealings. I had to know my worth and claim it, even if it meant leaving a so-called prestigious gallery.
I partnered with a major art publisher, and my work gained international exposure. It was available online and in various retail stores, including large home improvement chains and décor shops.