My first year devoted to illustration

Every December I take time to reflect on everything that happened in the year past and envision the year to come. It’s my fourth year using YearCompass, a free booklet with prompts to guide my reflection and ideation. Having this ritual makes it simple to look back and see how much I have grown and how my priorities have shifted over time.

The year 2022 was all about illustration! Long time subscribers of this newsletter will know I work in a lot of creative mediums including writing and crafting. During the latter half of 2021 I really fell in love with mixed media illustration and wanted to focus on growing as an illustrator.

Here are the goals I accomplished this year:

• Put together my portfolio

• Set up an online shop

• Reached out to prospective clients (and landed my first client job!)

• Made a series

• Applied to open calls, competitions, and residency programs

• Connected with other illustrators both in person and online

• Tracked my expenses and income for tax filing

• Drew over 100 figures

• Tried coaching other creatives

Art made in 2022, plus a photo of me that my mom took in Central Park

Highlights from the year:

• Exhibiting my work at the SVA summer residency group show

• Landing my first client gig! My illustrations were shared in four issues of Girls’ Night In, one of my favorite newsletters

• Meeting some of my illustration heroes, like Maira Kalman and Maria-Ines Gul

• Drawing with friends at cafes, parks, and figure drawing nights

• Redoing my office/studio to have separate work areas for day job and art

  

  Thanks to my partner for letting me have this “room of my own” :)

As for my personal life—I got engaged to my partner of 7+ years 🎉, traveled to SF, Cancun, LA, and Montreal, and went to in person dance classes again, trying new styles like swing and waacking.

I went to Disneyland for the first time and reveled in New York’s most delicious pastries (the cardamom bun at La Cabra and croissant at L’Appartement 4F). I did yoga and barre regularly and can finally do a proper chaturanga. I also had one of the best birthday celebrations ever, gathering friends and pups for a sunny picnic on one of the last summery days of September.

All that to say, 2022 was fantastic! I’m so grateful for all the opportunities and connections that have come my way. I felt really undeserving of it at times since I feel so new to this world, and I struggled with finding the right balance of work and play and relieving myself of pressure of my art to have a certain outcome. It was hard to find the joy in art this year compared to last, but those moments were all good lessons for me to realize what fuels me to create and how I need to be compassionate toward myself to keep going.

This is my last newsletter for the year, as I’ll be taking time off during the holidays to catch up on reading, eat lots of cookies, and dream up goals and projects for 2023. I’ll see you in January, and hope you have a restful end to 2022!