We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Karyn Mannix a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Alright, Karyn thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Earning a full time living from one’s creative career can be incredibly difficult. Have you been able to do so and if so, can you share some of the key parts of your journey and any important advice or lessons that might help creatives who haven’t been able to yet?
Being self-employed in the Arts is a full-time job within itself. For me, it takes a lot of juggling and wearing of many different hats, but it is my preferred way of life.
I have been in many aspects of the creative world since college. First, as a fashion and costume designer, studying at the Fashion Institute of Technology. By the age of twenty-one, I had my clothing line in feature films, Vogue Magazine, the cover of Women’s Wear Daily (WWD), Cyndi Lauper’s HBO Tour, Michael Mann’s “Crime Stories” TV Series, carried by stylist Patricia Field, and was displayed alongside Donna Karan at Bloomingdales, NYC.
Like most young creatives I had to hold down numerous freelance jobs to make ends meet. I did fashion illustration for WWD and French Connection; window installation for Bergdorf Goodman, Diane Von Furstenberg & Barneys NY; and worked in set and prop design for numerous theater troupes.
I decided to expand my knowledge of the Fine Arts by earning a second degree in Post Modern Art Theory & Criticism which led to stints as curator, critic, columnist, gallerist, and educator eventually opening my own art school, The Mannix Studio of Art.
I previously owned four brick-and-mortar galleries, before coming to realize that running a gallery drained me of my own creativity. Sitting in a gallery throughout the day, was not for me. My energy level is too high.
I have simplified into a career as a private art dealer, representing artists from around the globe at art fairs and pop-up spaces, which has given me more time for myself to create.
The vast number of experiences that I have had has taught and proven to me to never stop creating. Life it too short to be boring and dull. I have also added playing the electric bass with an all-female band because…why not?
Starting in Summer 2024, I will be hosting The MANNIX SHOW: Shooting the Sh*t with Cultural Folk, an art talk show in front of a live studio audience at LTV Studio in East Hampton, NY. This slightly off-the-cuff Talk Show will be covering an array of insightful and humorous art topics with interesting guests including fine artists, the Guerrilla Girls, gallerists, curators, performers, and other cultural folk.
Making a living as a full time creative is not for the faint of heart but I highly recommend it.
Keep creating.
Karyn, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
As a text-based artist, I use the written word as a direct form of what lies between self-reflection and expression.
Using thought-provoking comments helps create an interactive experience with the audience. My work is an examination of the different sides of my personality and the thinking that lies behind it.
In my recent STACK series, I am using books since they are familiar objects and will pull most viewers in for closer observation. Adding my thoughts in text is a way of questioning the attitudes, inner dialog, and unwritten rules which we have found ourselves with the current environment and our behavior within it.
My comments on the books are done with a snarky sense of humor and an added dose of reality. They are meant to create a dialog between the viewer and the art.
What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?
Waking up every day and not facing a 9 to 5 office job.
Freedom of expression.
What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?
Depending on others to help get the job done, is never a good idea. Even though others may have good intentions, they may fall short of your expectations.
There are too many incidences here to even write about. I’m sure many who are reading this, can relate.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.themannixproject.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/the_mannix_project/
Image Credits
Portrait image credit Craig Socia
Book Art images courtesy of artist