the art of resistance: interview with hannah brancato

Hannah Brancato is a curator and an artist. She received her MFA in Community Art from MICA. Brancato is currently organizing a series of actions and events to fight the culture of rape; working with activist collective Greenpants to create large scale projected videos about hidden histories and injustices; coordinating a women's leadership project, Mother Made Baltimore; and teaching part time at the Maryland Institute College of Art.

Tell us about your background.

I grew up in the suburbs of New Jersey and Connecticut. As a kid, I was always interested in storytelling, making images, and making things, but I didn't always consider this to be art and wasn't exposed to much contemporary art. As a middle child in a big family (seven siblings altogether), I had lots of practice communicating. At MICA I met working artists who participated in a variety art worlds and that was when the idea of being an artist became a reality for me. I've always been someone who is interested in context, mediating, and approaching things from a few different angles at a time, so when it became clear that these characteristics were as necessary to being a contemporary artist and that these ways of thinking could become a part of my work, I realized I could make a life as an artist.

In your personal statement, you say that producing art and culture is an effective form of resistance. At what point in your career did this belief begin to guide your work?

In 2007 I travelled to Turkey with a group from MICA. Though I expected to learn about textile production and history while in Turkey, we were constantly surrounded by tourist industries that were selling vaguely ethnic looking items made in factories throughout the world with no connection to Turkish culture. But in one town, we met a group of women who were making and selling dolls modeled after Turkish women. I was struck by how profound it was that these women were profiting directly from an industry that otherwise did not seem to benefit poor or working class Turkish people, and definitely not women. And, they were doing that by selling simple hand crafted dolls - not labor intensive carpets. The experience made me think about how a group of women working together might be able to change or alter things where I lived, in Baltimore.

Upon returning from Turkey, I began working as a volunteer at the House Of Ruth Maryland. The projects I did there were intended to create a healing space for participants, and also to build awareness of domestic violence. My approach to community art turned out to come back to the way that I thought about art as an undergrad, but after the trip to Turkey I added another couple of elements to the mix. Instead of only thinking about the way that viewers experience the end product - the thing made by the artist - I began to focus on how the process of making art can create change, on the political and social context in which art is made, and how art can perpetuate old ideas or create new ones.

How, in your opinion, does the act of making something become a vehicle for social change?

I've found that a lot of change happens through the process of making projects in a group. Mother Made is a project in which a group of women facing financial challenges are working together to build a social enterprise. We are making and selling bags and dyed items like scarves and napkins, but we are also building a really specific and small community that provides emotional support to the ten women involved. We are trying to build a horizontal structure in which the workers make decisions for the program, and most people in the group are not used to being leaders in that way.

We now have regular meetings during which we make decisions for the program, but the first one was amazing. The group needed to decide how money for a particular job would be divided. I saw people in the group speaking up and taking ownership in a way that they hadn't until that point. I saw women who hadn't been part of decision making in a job before come to the realization that their opinion mattered and that voicing the opinion was important to the well-being of the group. This meeting was emotional and exhausting because so many light bulbs were going off, so much learning was happening and the group was really building itself. This is an example of individual growth really clearly lending itself to social change, because the people in the room became aware of their agency - their ability to act and the make a difference in their world.



What does Baltimore City offer that is particularly appealing to you as a working artist?

I love Baltimore because it is a small city with a lot of history. Everyone knows everyone. After only working as an artist, in neighborhoods and doing activist projects for about five years, I've begun to see people I know from a community center at a United Workers action, or I'll meet someone at an art opening who later gets involved with Mother Made. And though it is a city full of injustices, it is also a place with a history of resistance, of communities fighting for social justice, and I've learned a lot from becoming a part of that history. It is inspiring and moving to be a part of creating real change, and to be able to work with other people who really understand the role that art and culture has to play in making that change.

Tell us a personal tidbit about yourself that most people don’t know.

I know the words to most of Mariah Carey's songs.

All images courtesy of Hannah Brancato. To see more of her work, visit http://hannahbrancato.com/.

SKILLED: Part Two {Gloria Garret}

This is an edited transcript of an interview with Gloria Garret by Hannah Brancato, from September 8, 2010.

"Gloria Garret, also known at the Mother of Make-Up Art, is a self-taught artist who has been drawing and making jewelry all her life. We first met at the 2010 SoWeBo Arts Festival in Southwest Baltimore, when I was selling the Jewelry Project products. Gloria’s energy is truly contagious. It was a real privilege to interview her, and I am so happy to be able to share that."

-Hannah Brancato

Do you want to start introducing yourself?

Hello everyone, my name is Gloria Garret. I’m the mother of makeup art. When I say I’m the mother of makeup art that means I paint beautiful pictures with makeup: lipstick, eye shadow, eyebrow pencil, and I use other household items like ink pens and white out and scissors and rocks and markers, and I draw people doing everyday things. One of my favorite pictures is one I painted of children playing in the playground. Got one of grandmother cooking cookies; I have one of my daughter helping me roll dough to make cupcakes. So I do things that people can enjoy looking at- people doing happy things.

Did you make the jewelry you have on?

Yes. Another thing I’m really passionate about. I’m a recycle artist- that means I take everyday things and make things out of them. The necklace that I have on- can you guess what it’s made of? Yes- it’s made of soda tabs. My earrings, ok? My beautiful earrings. I had a girlfriend who made these; you know what she made these from? Soda cans. Then these are recycled beads. I also make beautiful dolls from bottles, from toilet paper rolls, and I also make earrings from marbles. So I do a lot of things.

What is it that you like about those materials?

Two things: First of all, all the materials I use are recycled. Means that people give them to me instead of throwing them in the trashcan. They give them to me and I make beautiful things out of them. I don’t melt them down, ok? I don’t hoard them. They give them to me and God gave me a special talent, where I can beautify them and they can beautify his world also.

So how did you get started as an artist?

That goes back a while. When I was five years old, my mother used to buy coloring books for my siblings and I. And she would buy me plain paper. And I could look at the coloring book and draw the pictures without tracing, so I didn’t have to share.

Also when I was eight years old I was taught to write poetry. And that was really nice. I performed for my family and they gave me a quarter because I would come up with songs and dances. And I do that now- I am also a performer. But when I really started making things was, I guess I was in my 20’s when I got my poetry copyrighted and I started selling my poetry. That was really special to me. And then I was about 25 years old, I got my hair cut short, I stopped getting perms, and I needed earrings to accent it. So I went to the craft store and I figured out how to make earrings. Then once I made the earrings I said, I want a necklace and bracelet to match. So people came to me and said, “That is really nice.” So they would ask, “Can you make me something?” and I said yes.

Then after that, I wanted to do something with my poetry and children’s books. So I called my mother and I said, “You know what, I want to do children’s books, but I am going to have to hire an illustrator.” And she said, “What you mean you have to hire an illustrator? You’ve been drawing since you were 5 years old. Pick up a pencil and paper and start drawing!” I forgot that I had drawn as a child! So I started drawing and now I have over 100 children books, done in ink pen, black and white.

Five years ago, someone died in my family, and I said, “God, please help me bring beauty back in my life.” Then my mother called and said, “Gloria I have some makeup for you.” And I went picked up the makeup and I said to myself, before I picked it up, “Wait a minute: you paint your eyes with eye shadow, you paint your lips with lipstick, you paint your cheeks with rouge, maybe I can paint a picture with it.”

I take every September off. Like I said I am a performer, I teach line dance, I do history shows, I do craft shows for senior citizens. But every year in September I take off because it gives me a chance to create something new. So that year I took the whole month of September off, and I figured out how to paint with makeup. People ask me what’s the secret, what’s the secret? You know I can’ tell them the secret! [laughs]

That first year I know I painted about 2 or 300 pictures and I just loved it. Loved it. And I had these pictures and I started showing everybody these pictures. Then I went to the office store and I reproduced them and I laminated them. And people started asking me, do you sell them? I said of course! They said how much? And I didn’t know how much to sell them [the prints] for. So I did it for donation. Give me a donation. And I was surprised what kind of donation I got.

So someone told me, go to the American Visionary Art Museum. Go there, call them! Gave me a name, Rebecca Hoffberger, and I called up and she wasn’t there of course so I left a message. The next day, Ted from Sideshow (that’s the gift shop there) called me up, said Rebecca asked me to call you. And this was in November 2005, I had started painting in September 2005. And I brought them down to him. I had prints then, because I had the originals but wasn’t selling them yet. He bought the prints. The he asked me, do you have the originals? I said sure. He said bring the originals down. Then I brought the originals the next day and he’s been buying them ever since.

And I sell my stuff at farmer’s markets, at festivals, at fairs. But I dress the part too. So people come up to me and say did you make your earrings, did you make this? And they come up and then I tell them I’m an artist. Then they say what’s your medium? And I say make-up. So then they will give me a donation for it. And then I know how to price it because I know what people want to give a donation for!

I had a show at Creative Alliance in 2006, and I they sold my originals, and they helped me price them, so I knew how to price the originals. I have a safe that I keep the originals in- but I also sell copies, my husband takes pictures of the originals, 4x6, and we frame them, because I want my artwork to be affordable for everybody. It’s beautiful artwork, the colors are bright, bold and full of energy. I’m an impressionist, I’m not a realist, so you really have to feel this artwork. And I know when a picture is finished because I feel it. It takes a long time, Sometimes it takes 10 or 12 hours, sometimes days or weeks. But when I get finished I have a beautiful picture for the world to see.

You know what’s so nice about it? People donate the things I need! It takes me ten tubes of lipstick to paint a picture. And women from all over donate just bags and bags of it. I have gotten makeup from Pennsylvania. I met a girl in 1997, she contacted me in 1999 and said I haven’t forgotten you, and I am mailing you the makeup. I have women who take tubes of lipstick from their pocketbook they say here you go Gloria. They call up and say, “I’m collecting from my church.” And it’s really touching.

One thing I am trying to figure out is how people get to be an artist for a living, you know, that’s their job? Part of it is that you are really resourceful, but how have you gotten to be an artist as a living? Have you always had other jobs at the same time?

Oh yes, yes. I’m working now! [laughs] I work for Baltimore City Parks and Recreation now. But I teach arts and crafts there, OK? So I come up with these ideas and then I teach them. I’m an exercise teacher, I love to dance, so I teach dance. I love history so I teach history. What’s so special is I work with my husband on these things too. So he’s a musician, he’s a DJ. He plays the records and we put music in with our programs. And I think that’s what makes it so wonderful too, because I can work with my husband, and I can make people smile or laugh.
And the main thing is you have to get out there and you have DO it. And you can’t be afraid. If God gave you a talent, you have to get out there and just share it!

Was there a moment when you decided to just be an artist? Like you might have had another job at the time?

Yes. For 21 years I had worked for the government, Department of Defense. And the whole time I worked there. See the whole time I had the job I was selling my poetry, I was putting on poetry recitals. They used to call me the poetry lady because I caught the bus and I was selling my poetry on the bus. And when I was 18 I always said, by the time I’m 40, I’m going to quit my job and I’m going to sell my poetry, I’m going to be a performer, because I tell short stories too. And then all of a sudden, I said, I want to do this full time. I can do it. So thirteen years ago I quit my job and I’ve been doing it ever since.

What made you feel like you could do it at that point?

My husband, he retired from his job and he was getting his retirement. And he said, “OK Gloria, you know, we can pay the bills, and you do what you want to do.” And that’s when I quit my job and I’ve been making a living at it. It’s been fun and I’ve been having a good time.

It’s almost like another life…

It’s a whole different life than what I was doing for the first 21 years of my life. So I do this full time and it’s just wonderful. And I love it.

What are some things you’ve learned along the way about how you can really market yourself? Because you’re really good at it.

Enthusiasm. You have to be enthusiastic about yourself and what you do for anyone else to. You have to look the part, you have to be the part. You can’t just walk the walk, you have the talk the talk. You have to look it! You’ve got to look like, yes, I can come up to her, I can approach her, yes I want to do business with her, yes I believe that she is a great artist and she can bring beauty not just to my world but to God’s world, too. So I want to support her. And they get that from my look! And you always, if you’re an artist, have to look the part.

And I’m a self taught artist. You know what that means? It means that I never went to art school, that God gave me this talent. And I believe that God gave me this talent to share with the world. So you have to be out there. You have to be alive, enthusiastic, you have to say “World here I am and I got the best product out there, I’m the greatest artist THERE.” And that’s what you have to believe for them to believe it. And I believe it.

The great artists, they’re not dead! There’s a lot of great artists that are still alive. And the artists have to let people know that, because people have been programmed to believe that all the great art was painted 200, 300 years ago! That is not the case. So the artists of today have to go out and shout that, and say, this is not the case, I have beautiful artwork.

And I think what you do that’s really great is that you are really good at marketing yourself to people who maybe can’t afford expensive paintings, but also good at getting involved with museums and galleries. Are the ways that you talk to different people different or always the same?

You gotta know your clientele. I have something for everyone. That means you gotta have something from five or ten dollars, you understand what I’m saying? And a lot of people, you have to realize, gonna want originals. So you have to always have some originals with you at all times. I learned that. Because I was at Artscape- no Bookfair- and it was a lady from the Young and Restless, she came over to me, and I didn’t have any originals with me. She said, “I don’t want to see anything but originals,” and I didn’t have any. So I gave her my card, but still…

You’ve gotta have something for everybody. Some people just want originals and they willing to pay the price. But some people want to be able to just look at a picture to lift their spirits. And you want them to be able to afford that. That’s why my husband does the prints small, they were bigger at first. He said, “No, I want to do something smaller because I want it to be affordable. Like art for donation.” Most people gave me five dollars for the donation. It just made them feel good. So I always have something for five and I always have my originals too. [laughs]

Do you consider your husband your business partner?

Oh yeah, he’s my business partner, my husband, and we just do everything together. Because I knew I couldn’t do it without him. You know, he said, “Gloria, let’s go for your dream.” And anyone who can say that to you, let’s go for your dream, that’s somebody who’s special.

Do you think people can do it alone?

You know, being alone to me just not fun [laughs]. I’m not sure you have to have a husband per say, but I think if you have good friends and someone can support you, , that’s very important. Then if you have the lord in your life. That’s what this is about, it’s about stepping out on faith! And I just believe that if you have…It could be a mother, a sister, it could be a brother, but somebody to tell you, “I believe in you, you can do this.”

Maybe your husband should be here for this interview! I did notice that he was always with you at the craft fairs.

Yes yes.

Giving you a hand.

It’s not as much fun alone at all. It’s really something special to have someone do it with them. Some people have their children, you just have to have somebody in your corner. It can get, I always say it’s fun but challenging. But you got to take the fun part and run with it. You hold onto that good and you run with it.

And you still enjoy doing it?

I love it, that’s what it’s about.

Do you ever start to feel [negative], when you have to manage the business stuff?

The management part of it- you have to deal with paying taxes. And the retail, so I have to pay retail tax every 3 months, and you just have to do it. You have to fill out schedule c for the business. You just have to do it. My thing is, it’s not my favorite thing t do, but if I don’t do it, you can’t do what you love. Like this year, I’m going to pay someone to do it [laughs].

Did you ever take any classes about taxes for artists?

No classes! I am not one for school. I’m older, now, and what I had to do was, figure out, I knew from my other businesses (from selling my poetry) that you have to do these things, because I always had a business, and I always did them because I didn’t want to pay anyone to do it. This year I am breaking down.

Because you’re doing more business?

I have to tell you the truth- I like to be on time with things and my taxes have been late. So this year ima get someone to do it on time. Because that takes away the good feeling a bit! [laughs]

So some of the business stuff drags on you. But you do a lot of business in terms of networking and making contacts, would you say you enjoy that?

I enjoy meeting people, I love meeting people- that’s the best part. Because people just fascinating. You hear about the bad in the world and you hear about the good. There is so much good that people are doing, there is so much talent out there. If you just sitting behind a TV, you won’t know about it because they not going to tell you. And then you see it. You have to go outside, feel the healing power in the trees, the beautiful people saying hello and hi, then your car break down and they give you a jump. And the people I meet in the art world, they are so wonderful.

So, and you got into the Visionary.

I just called them up. They’ve been buying my work for five years on a monthly basis. Oh, I am having a show at the AVAM, they are giving me a show! They are. I don’t know when, sometime next year. I’m really excited about that, because they the number one museum. I am just really proud of that.

And they promote outsider artists, or visionary artists, and that’s what I am. That means that I come up with new things, and I haven’t had any training. All this is from the Lord. I want to say thank you Lord and thank you world.

The visionary, was that the first big..

Creative Alliance was the first show. I got into that.

How did you get that show?

That’s another good story! I met this girl named Ashley. You know I perform for Parks and Rec, for senior homes. It was a senior home, she was there through MICA, she was there teaching art. I was doing a craft project, and I told her what I do. She said, “Gloria you know what, I work at Creative Alliance part time, I have to tell them about you.” So, I guess about two months later she calls me, and she said, “Gloria, Jed is going to be calling you!” He’s the program coordinator. Sure enough, he calls and says, “Gloria we want to give you a show!”

That was 2006, that was my first show. It was called Junteenth. Juneteenth is when the slaves in Texas didn’t find out until 1865 they were free. Abraham Lincoln freed them in 1863, and they didn’t find out because someone didn’t tell them. So I did that in artwork, the story of Juneteenth. It was really good. I still have some of those works. Yea, some are on my website.

What are some other markers of your success?

Two things- Waverly Farmers Market. I was up there, people around there were wonderful. It was great. I did it once a week. From that, I sold three or four originals, I know I sold hundreds of prints, I sold a lot of my other creations. So it was wonderful. I’m still benefiting from being up there. I met these people who buy my work. And I do the Charles Village Festival too.

How did you get this show?

Oh yes, let me tell you how my artwork got to be at Maxie’s Pizza Bar and Grill. I guess it was maybe about four weeks ago, I was next door and I came in here to wait for my husband and I got me a soda, and someone came up and said, “I sell coffee, would you like to taste my coffee?” So I said sure and I listened to his spiel. And I said, “Well, can you listen to what I do?” He said sure. So I pulled my book out. He said, let me introduce you to chef Mike. So he [Mike] said, “It’s really nice, give me a card, when the owner comes in I’ll tell him about you.”

I thought that would be two or three days later- it was two minutes! So I meet Luigi, he says fine, he says, you paint big? I said mhm! [laughs]. He said you have frames? I said yes. So let me tell you what happened. He says when can you put the pictures up? I said next week.

Now, my girlfriend has just given me- she moving to VA- she has just given me these great big frames, I didn’t know what to do with them, but I took them. And I had big canvas home already. So you know what I did next? I started painting on big canvas!! And my husband framed them. And there are seven or eight here, they are wonderful. I am very proud because it’s the first time I painted big, they inspired me to paint big. I’m selling my artwork here, it’s for sale. So Maxie’s inspired me to paint big! I’m letting the whole world know.

So I think it’s a really good point, it’s all about taking advantage of the opportunity.

It really is. They didn’t have anything on their walls!

I create something every day, just a bracelet or necklace at least, but I don’t paint every day. I did a couple of new things recently, one is shadow art, like silhouettes. I just started that in July, that’s my new project. Then I just painted big. We are here at Maxies Bar and Pizza Grille and I got my artwork here. Everyone come down and look at it, 31st and Charles, Gloria Garret, mother of makeup art.

Gloria's artwork is currently on display at Maxie's Pizza Bar and Grille, 3003 North Charles St; and it is part of the American Visionary Art Museum's current exhibition, What Makes Us Smile?, which will be on view until September 2011.

Finally, check out this video of Gloria talking about enthusiasm:

SKILLED: Part One {Biggs and Featherbelle}

This is an edited transcript from an interview by Hannah Brancato with Kasey and Kelly Evick, June 29, 2010.

I met Kasey and Kelly Evick during donation-only yoga classes taught by Chris Leicht. The sisters offer their aromatic studio - home of their natural body works company Biggs and Featherbelle - for yoga instruction every Tuesday night.

As the first interview for SKILLED: Art, Labor, and Business in Baltimore, the Evick’s story reflects the commitment that it takes to start a new business. Hearing the pair finish one another’s sentences reminded me of the important of having a partner: to share the journey, provide support, and manage the myriad of responsibilities in making, marketing, and selling products.

HB: So if you want to begin with how you got started?

Kasey: Well, we started, what seven? How many years ago?

Kelly: It’s been seven years

Kasey: Seven and a half years ago, we were just making Christmas gifts. We were sitting around the couch at our mom’s house, we both happened to be living there at the time--

Kelly: --we were broke.

Kasey: --we were broke, we were like what are we going to make for people this year? And we were reading a Martha Stewart magazine, and said, “Look at those soaps!” They were so cute, we saved the article, and we decided to make soaps. We both love the whole packaging side of it, making the names. We made body butter bars and lip balm too, and we gave it to probably ten different people, friends and all the girls in our family.

We started thinking about it more, and we did a lot of research and started thinking, “OK, we can learn more about soap making, about making products.” This also comes from us being interested in the natural health side of it. We really wanted to make soaps that were purposeful and weren’t just about scent- to help people. Kel did most of the research. Sort of developed a line and it sold. It was a real slow and organic process.

HB: Did you have other jobs when you started this?

Kelly: We had other jobs, we had to! Because it was impossible…She had a full time job as a web designer, and I was walking dogs. And then, she couldn’t handle her full time job anymore because there is that transition, where you eventually have to put more time into the business.

HB: But you aren’t necessarily making the money yet…(laughs)

Kelly: Yeah, I don’t think you ever make the money, I don’t know…

Kasey: I am still wondering when that will happen (laughs)

Kelly: Yeah, so we had to keep part time jobs. Then we waitressed, same restaurant actually, so that we were able to do the business at night and on weekends and waitress during the day. A LOT of time. Because you have to put full time into the business but you also have to pay for living, you have to make money for your living expenses.

HB: Right- and pay for the start up of the business. Did you do start up loans?

Kasey: Since I had saved up a little money from my job we used that, and then my credit card, pretty much maxed that out, used all the savings that I had. We have gotten some small loans, SBA backed loans, 10 and 15 thousand, nothing crazy-we’ve never gotten a huge sum. And then we had to borrow from our parents so we owed them money (laughs). Just little bits here and there. And then got a business credit card, maxed that out...

Kelly: Everyone we’ve ever talked to that has owned a small business says the same thing: you have to go into complete debt in order to ever make it. And it takes YEARS to even turn a profit, so I think that is where a lot of businesses fail, unfortunately, and right now its very rare for a small business to be able to get financing. NOOObody is. How many banks have we gone to?

Kasey: We’ve tried six different places and they say, “No, we aren’t doing those kind of loans anymore.” It’s just nothing.

HB: You said you got an SBA loan. So have you worked with any other business bureaus?

Kasey: We took a class through Women Entrepreneurs of Baltimore, we took that class on writing a business plan--

HB: When you were starting off?

Kelly: No about three years into the business--

Kasey: --we were about three years into our business. It’s helped us write a 30-page business plan, helped us realize things and get a little more official. But it didn’t lead to much help now. I still feel like we’re on our own. There is never that clarity about what to do. When we go to look for loans, I don’t know where to look, besides searching online- you could just spend all day and you’re on one hokey site. It’s tricky. We never found that person to answer those financial questions we have, and business stuff....

Kelly: Because we didn’t come to it from a business background, we came from an art and design background, wanting to develop a product, develop and design it. It wasn’t that we came at it strategically business minded. That has been an interesting challenge along the way. Learning all the business and the finances and bookkeeping and accounting.

HB: So, I know you have started to divide up your responsibilities. How has that worked out?

Kasey: Eventually we need to get her out of the kitchen, into the office- eventually our roles need to shift again, you become more of a manager as the years go on, you’re just managing the business. We both have to start removing ourselves from daily tasks.

Kelly: We’re managing different things. We both manage but we also do the grunt work. She’s basically the operations and business end of the whole business. Fielding all the emailing, the orders, the liaison with all the stores, she’s the business part. And we do the graphic work together--

Kasey: Yeah I do all the website updates, all the design work, we decide on stuff together but I do the nitty gritty design stuff.

Kelly: You kind of keep the business organized. And I make sure that we have products. So I have someone who works with me part time as a sub contractor. He works most of the time but since he’s a subcontractor he can come and go- like right now he’s touring with Phish for two weeks.

HB: And that flexibility probably works for you too…

Kelly: It does, because sometimes we have more work and sometimes we have less. But I’m in there making products too, so that’s what’s hard because I know Kasey needs help with the business end but I’m still in there making products.

HB: So there might be a shift where you aren’t making the money yet but if you’re both managing then you might make more money…

Kasey: Yeah, it’s always a fine line. You’re always just getting by.

Kelly: Absolutely, it is a fine line.

Kasey: You can’t always quite take that jump, you slowly transition into it.

HB: So I’m sure there have been some markers where you feel like now you have this together, another thing is settled, you’ve had success in one area…

Kasey: Getting into Whole Foods was one. Because that keeps our business afloat. Moving into this warehouse space.

Kelly: Getting Melissa to do bookkeeping, that was a huge one.

Kasey: Yeah we have a friend who helps, she works three days a week, and she’s handled all the bookkeeping now. I used to do all that and always had a stack of papers that I couldn’t get to. So that was huge.

Kelly: And then sales reps.

Kasey: And sales reps, which we just started with.

Kelly: They work independently like independent brokers and we just pay them commission on sales. They’re in territories, so we have a Mid Atlantic sales rep, we have a Midwest region sales rep (she has like six people under her), Texas, and New England. They basically try to get us new sales. So instead of us trying to get out there and knock on doors--

HB: And how did you find these people, is there an organization?

Kelly: Word of mouth.

Kasey: We found them-- One guy here we know from doing demos in stores, he was doing demos for a company he was repping, and we would see him and talk to him. Networking, I guess. We eventually decided that if we had a rep we wanted him to do it, and he knew someone in the Midwest and she knew someone in Texas.

Kelly: They are all in the natural products industry. All of our reps have close relationships with buyers from Whole Foods. That’s our main market, and that’s what we were looking for: people who already had an in with the buyers of Whole Foods because they have a really complex set up. Although they run as one big corporation they try to run on a regional and local level as much as possible, so you are actually dealing with each store, not just the big corporation.

HB: Talk more about the process of getting into Whole Foods.

Kelly: How it typically happens with Whole Foods is that they have ten regions and unless you are some huge big dog, how it usually works is that you have to get accepted in each individual region by the regional buyer and you have to pass certain standards. Once you get accepted into that region, you have to go to every single store and get your products on the shelf. That’s where we needed sales reps because it’s just impossible to do that. Because they try to let each store make all their own decisions- so that’s where it’s hard as a vendor, because your not shipping to one direct place and it gets distributed to all the stores.

HB: So you first got into the Whole Foods in Baltimore?

Kelly: No actually, Annapolis. We were really fortunate: most companies have to knock on every Whole Foods store in one region and do it many times. But (Whole Foods) had just started a local producers initiative. And in body care there really wasn’t anything, and so the manager of the body care dept in Annapolis was in other health food stores sourcing out and saw our stuff and contacted us. We were really lucky.

So we met with her in Annapolis, she took all our stuff to regional and got it accepted, then it was kind of a snowball effect- then all the other stores heard that we were local.

HB: So what are some of your sales tactics- or do you even do direct sales/craft fairs anymore?

Kasey: Yeah we do a ton. That’s how we’ve grown a lot, we’ve met a lot of people and stores. You get good feedback, really understand your products and have customers relate to it. We just did Pile Of Craft last weekend. We travel a lot for fairs.

Kelly: We are starting to slow that down a bit now.

Kasey: Yeah because of the time they take up.

HB: And do you tend to sell a lot of product or more networking?

Kelly: We sell a lot of product, but it depends on the show; there’s good and bad ones. But we’ve done enough now we try to stick to the good ones. You can sell a lot.

HB: And your product is more unique than, say, jewelry.

Kelly: Jewelry is a tough market.

Kasey: I think the most important thing with selling is having a story attached to it. People love that. We don’t always think we have a story but people say we have one- that we’re two sisters. With every product, it would just sell 20 times more to have a story with the product.

HB: So for people who make and sell their own stuff and are trying to have that balance between doing something creative and the business side of things, what do you feel like you’ve learned?

Kelly: It’s hard to keep that balance. Anyone I know who’s created a full time business out of doing something creative, you come to learn that the actual creative part dwindles more and more and more. You spend less and less time doing the part you love and more time running it as a business.

HB: And you end up hiring other people for the creative part.

Kelly: Oh yeah totally. And I know a lot of crafty people would say the same thing- you are making the same design and the same product over and over and you are tired of it but you can’t be, because that’s what you’ve been working to develop and build and sell. I know we see crafters who constantly try to change their product but you kind of have to stick with it, even though you’re tired of it.

HB: Like when you get tired of it that’s when people start paying attention?

Kasey and Kelly: EXACTLY

HB: What’s your dream for the next seven years will bring?

Kelly: Oh um financial stability maybe? Because one thing is that…oh gosh, we didn’t realize how long and how much it takes to develop a business. We are still doing it, and even though we’re doing really great in Baltimore and such, it’s not enough to really make a living. We don’t even have a salary yet after seven and a half years. We want hopefully within seven more years for the business to have its own financing and for us to not be freaking out every day. It’s stressful when you have so much invested in a company both emotionally and financially, and our whole lives invested in it. We are so deep into it that you just gotta keep going, there is just no turning back. We wouldn’t turn back though, ever…

Kasey: No!

Kelly: But at the same time you aren’t seeing the real rewards. And that’s what’s interesting- people who I just meet, they think I’m rich. I’m BROKE. It’s nothing to do with getting rich, absolutely nothing. Unless you are going to be a real estate tycoon…I mean it is to make a living, but you’ve gotta have such a passion for it and love it so much. Don’t you agree?

Kasey: Mhm. Its weird how much you start focusing on the money part of it, and we didn't start the business focusing on the money, I mean some people do start businesses like that. But we were never like, “We want to make lots of money, what can we do?” And you get to a point in
business where you’re like, “OK how can we make money now with this?” And you feel bad that that is your focus. But once you’ve established a product you know that the business won’t run and you won’t be able to make the product if it doesn’t sell. But still then trying to keep the balance of focusing on the product too.

Kelly: And then the balance of your own personal life and your business life is difficult. We are finally starting to get to that point. For the first five years of our business we worked seven days a week all day and all night. Either had to waitress and then work at night or do it all weekend. You become so immersed in it, there is no line, we ARE our business, it never leaves you. I could be away on vacation, well we don’t really go on vacation… (laughs) but I will never leave it. First day I would be calling and ordering. Because it’s like a child, that is always the analogy I use. It is something you are always responsible for no matter where you are and what you are doing. But I wouldn’t have it any other way.

HB: Could you imagine doing anything else?

Kasey: Not at this point.

Kelly: I could never work for someone else ever again.

Kasey: I think if I did anything else it would be to--

Kelly: --start up a new business!

Kasey: --yeah start another business, something else we want to do.

HB: What are the benefits of working for yourself?

Kelly: The flexibility . It’s good and bad, because you have to be so much more structured and organized yourself. And the pride.

Kasey: Yeah, the pride, you feel like you get such a reward for what your doing.

Kelly: You’re working for yourself.

Kasey: And you feel satisfied, we would have such a hard time working for someone else unless it was something I really cared about and wanted to help and feel a part of.

Kelly: You don’t mind working.

Kasey: You feel- I always feel lucky because you hear people say, “I just want to do something I love, something I’m passionate about.” That’s what I’m doing.

Kelly: There is not a single day that I wake up and think- I just don’t want to go to work today.

HB: So, what’s your advice to people who are starting off and trying to market their stuff and make their stuff and trying to juggle all those things?

Kelly: Really define your look, define it and stick to it. Define it and refine it. Go with that and you’ve got to stand out.

Kasey: Really create an identity, don’t be all over the place. You just want to tighten everything and fine-tune it.

Kelly: We set guidelines early on and certain criteria of what we wanted and we’ve stuck to it and its really helped up because you want people to identify you quickly. Competition is tough for everything.

You don’t have to go and look for something that’s never been done, because that is almost impossible for anyone at this point- but stick to one look.

To read more about Biggs and Featherbelle, visit their website http://www.biggsandfeather.com/.

For more info about the “Lather Lab” yoga class email chrisleicht@gmail.com.

SKILLED: Art, Labor, and Business in Baltimore

"Baltimore is a place where artists can build their own economies: rather than coming to or staying in Baltimore to fill a job, creative people in this city make them," says artist Hannah Brancato, whose current project SKILLED: Art, Labor, and Business in Baltimore, documents how artists build business and contribute to their local economy through a creatively driven practice.

As an MFA candidate in MICA's Community Art program, Hannah recently served as a full-time Artist-in-Residence at House Of Ruth Maryland, where she taught women to create and sell jewelry in support of the shelter's art program. The empowering effect of using labor to both help oneself and to give back in some way led Hannah to think about how and why people make crafts in general, and how, purposefully or not, making and selling things helps to improve a person's surroundings. This experience, combined with her hypothesis that "people need a feeling of empowerment and control over their work in order to feel valuable" led to SKILLED.

Presented as a collection of conversations with artisans who have made their craft into their work, SKILLED will mark the beginnings of Hannah's research into the impact that small, creative business has on personal and collective happiness. The project will also provide advice, tools, and resources about how to start and maintain a small business in Baltimore.

AND (drum roll) I am so excited to announce that on September 13th, SKILLED will make its debut right here on Baltimore by Hand, with an interview profiling Kasey and Kelly Evick of Biggs and Featherbelle - a company that makes, markets, packages, and distributes health conscious body care products (pictured above).

"In documenting these businesses and individuals, SKILLED will help form a network of artists who are working from the ground up to shape Baltimore's future," says Hannah, whose lineup of forthcoming interviews includes some of Baltimore's best artisans.

So please mark your calendar and don't miss this ongoing series of engaging conversations about craft, creativity, and collective happiness. See you in September!

Image courtesy of Hannah Brancato.