After hosting pop up art classes in her garage, art teacher and blogger Meri Cherry listened to her intuition and opened her first art studio in Southern California. Eight months later, Meri serves her creative community by offering everything from toddler art sessions to family art nights.
Learn how Meri created a thriving business and an art studio of her dreams.
IN THIS EPISODE YOU’LL LEARN:
- How having children changed Meri’s career path
- How her business was able to take off after she was able to give herself permission to go for it
- Meri’s biggest piece of advice for pursuing your dreams
- If you should go all in or take baby steps in opening your own studio
- How Meri differentiates between fine art and a more process-based art
- Why is it important to give children the unstructured time of process art
- What is pacing and Meri incorporates that into her art classes based on age
- Why Meri recommends Instagram to advertise her studio classes
- What are the top two platforms for advertising
LISTEN TO THE SHOW
My best advice for teaching art to kids.
After hosting pop up art classes in her garage, art teacher and blogger Meri Cherry listened to her intuition and opened her first art studio in Southern California. Eight months later, Meri serves her creative community by offering everything from toddler art sessions to family art nights.
Learn how Meri created a thriving business and an art studio of her dreams.
IN THIS EPISODE YOU’LL LEARN:
How having children changed Meri’s career path
How her business was able to take off after she was able to give herself permission to go for it
Meri’s biggest piece of advice for pursuing your dreams
If you should go all in or take baby steps in opening your own studio
How Meri differentiates between fine art and a more process-based art
Why is it important to give children the unstructured time of process art
What is pacing and Meri incorporates that into her art classes based on age
Why Meri recommends Instagram to advertise her studio classes
What are the top two platforms for advertising
LISTEN TO THE SHOW
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SHOW NOTES:
The Complete Artist’s Way: Creativity as a Spiritual Practice by Julia Cameron
The Mind Your Business Podcast with James Wedmore & Phoebe Mroczek
Meri’s Blog
Meri’s Facebook
@mericherry (across social media)
Subscribe to Art Made Easy and receive new episodes directly on your phone via your podcast Ap.
Note: If you have an iPhone, subscribe in iTunes. If you have an Android phone, subscribe in Stitcher.
SHOW NOTES:
The Complete Artist’s Way: Creativity as a Spiritual Practice
The Mind Your Business Podcast with James Wedmore & Phoebe Mroczek
@mericherry (across social media)
My best advice for teaching art to kids.
Yes, the day has come!
After a long time deciding if, I finally said when.
Thank you SO much for your encouragement, show suggestions and help getting Art Made Easy off the ground.
Many of you were so pumped about this show but confessed that you had no idea what a podcast was. I love you guys for your unbridled enthusiasm.
Here’s a quick definition of a podcast & what to expect from Art Made Easy:
A podcast is a free radio show. The host (me!) interviews guests or talks about a favorite subject. You get to listen through your computer, laptop or smart phone. I like to listen to my favorite podcasts in my car during long travel days or on my walks via set of ear buds and my iPhone.
You can subscribe to the show via iTunes and Stitcher radio. The benefit is that your free podcast ap on your iPhone will automatically be updated with all the podcast episodes from any show you subscribe to.
Go ahead and give it a try!
To listen on your laptop or computer, just click the play button in the colored box below.
To listen via iTunes, click on the “play in iTunes” banner and click subscribe.
And now onto the show…
For my first show, I wanted to tell you my story of how I became an art teacher. We all have different paths and this one is mine. I’ll share advice to those who are just starting out as an art teacher and some of my best tips for teaching art to kids.
This episode is for anyone who thinks they may not have the qualifications to be an art teacher. Teaching art to kids doesn’t have to happen inside a classroom. You can teach art at home, at a summer camp and even as a volunteer (like I did).
If you are an art teacher just beginning your journey, I’m sharing my best advice to get you through that tough first year. Download my free handout and keep it in your teacher planner and refer to it when you have a tough day.
LISTEN TO THE SHOW
SHOW NOTES:
Drawing With Children: A Creative Method for Adult Beginners, Too
Art Lab for Kids: 52 Creative Adventures in Drawing, Painting, Printmaking, Paper, and Mixed Media-For Budding Artists of All Ages (Lab Series)
National Art Convention
CreativeLive- free online classes
Art Teachers Facebook Group
Website: Painted Paper in the Art Room (Laura Lohmann)
Website: Art of Education
Book: Classroom Management for Art, Music, and PE Teachers
PS – Please leave a review on iTunes!
Art Made Easy is now live on iTunes! Subscribing to the show and leaving an honest review really helps the show gain visibility and allows me to tailor the show to your needs.
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This was a very awesome Podcast with Merry Cherry. I follow you both. Thanks for all you do!
So glad you liked it!
Love this! Party, you inspired us last summer at the summer workshop and listening to Meri talk about how she was able to bring her dreams to fruition gives me even more courage and inspiration. Hoping to have our own commercial space sometime in the next year!
Yes! That’s fantastic kelly!
Okay my slow internet service won’t allow me to find out Meri’s great art studio!!! I want to do the same!!! How can I get started??? Tell me all I have to do. I’m in the boonies of rural rural America who’ are in desperate need of art as it is not provided at school!!!
Really enjoyed the podcast. It has been helpful in reinforcing for me the value of offering art to children and that it is just as valuable as more traditional extracurricular activities in terms of their development. Inspiring me to rethink the studio idea.
I always say that offer the art in the style that benefits kids the most. I love what Meri does with her studio and what experience she is passionate to offer. Thanks so much for listening!
Such a wonderful and inspiring conversation with practical advice on a pathway to get started!
Thanks so much Mindy!
This was so inspiring! I learned so much from this episode, it’s funny because the whole concept of process art for kids, giving them down time to be creative, promoting flexibility and staying open, seeing where the process takes them…all that is helping me as I’m starting my art ed business. I can really get caught up in perfectionism & details & the pressure to succeed and this just lightened everything up for me! Which of course leads to more creativity! THANK YOU, Patty and Meri Cherry!! What words of wisdom!
Yes! So happy to hear this. You know, running a business whether its art or anything else is only successful if you make it your own and work your philosophy. Good luck and cant wait to hear how it goes. Thanks for listening!
Wonderful!
When kids are in school how does your business survive