Today we’d like to introduce you to Chelle Fazal
Hi Chelle, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
Creating has always been in my blood. In my early days in Virginia, other kids would be building snowmen and I was shaping out a snow bear. My grandmother was a crafter and her garage was filled with all sorts of things from beads to ribbons and me and my cousins would spend hours creating all sorts of things. I really began drawing in middle school art class, and it was then that I knew I loved art. I was never formally trained, so I guess you would call me a folk artist.
Many years ago, I took up painting. I tried various forms but decided that acrylic was best for me. I was in a gallery at one point and did different shows, but my artwork didn’t really take off at the time. Fast forward a few years later, and I was painting again. But at that point, I had to paint for my mental health. I had just stepped down from a job I had for many years and so much of my identity was tied up in that place that I really needed to process who I was and who I was going to be. So I painted. It helps me process and heal and make sense of things. My brother-in-law, who runs a Chick-fil-A, asked me to paint him a cow similar to an abstract from another artist. I decided to give it a try. Why not? I loved abstract. It turned out to be much easier than I thought, and I was hooked. I began painting other animals (my favorite subject matter outside of flowers), and began posting my work online. People began to buy the pieces, so I decided to give this art business thing another try. Social media has really helped with that, but it wasn’t until I applied for the Downtown Charleston City Market and began selling my work there that my business took off.
I have so many artist friends and I realized there really isn’t one path. Every one of my friends has a different niche. I’ve been selling my work over ten years now. My husband is a huge part of the business. I would not be able to do it without him. We find many couples who have the same model as we do, because it’s really difficult to create, do all the back end production and business work, and sell. It’s a lot for one person. My husband is a professional photographer, and has photographed and printed for other artists, so when we started my business, he had already had many years of mastering the process from beginning to end, so for us, prints are our main seller. We print most of our paper and canvas prints in house.
It definitely wasn’t an overnight success for me, but when the timing was right, all the details fell into place.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Some of the biggest struggles we’ve faced are on the production end of things as well as pricing. Marketing can also be a huge challenge for artists and I’m no different. It took a lot of courage to post my work to social media, but over time I got used to it. I also realized that trial and error are just part of the process of growing any business, so I’ve learned that the key is to not give up. Being an artist and/or entrepreneur is not for the faint of heart. There are good days and bad, and there are good years and bad. It’s not a consistent 9 to 5 and a regular paycheck, so you really have to build a resilience. I’ve learned to not overthink things, because my time is so important. It’s so easy to get caught in the weeds of something that really shouldn’t take up time I could be painting or spending time with my family. There are many ways we have outsourced and if I didn’t have my husband on my team, I would have to outsource a lot more of the production and sales side. We’re also still learning what’s best when it comes to having employees. Every step in growth has brought on its own set of challenges.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I’m most known for the animals and florals that I paint. Most of my work is bold and vibrant and the subject matter is sort of in your face. Most of the pieces I paint have only one or two animals at a time, and so I really like to celebrate the unique qualities of that particular animal I’m painting. The piece that has really taken off the most is my lovebirds painting. Cool story about that one is that I had sold it many years ago, and my husband would often say he wished we had kept it. One day he was at the market selling my work, and a lady was looking at a print of the lovebirds, when another lady walked by and said, “Oh, I have that original.” My husband was able to stop her and talk about how he could get the painting back. It just so happened it was right before our 25th anniversary so he was able to gift it back to me for us, the original lovebirds! The lady was able to trade out another original and was very happy to get something new. There was even a couple who got matching tattoos of the image.
My work can also be seen on a traffic box in Mount Pleasant, right in front of Metto Cafe. We lived in Mount Pleasant for many years and I was one of the few artists who were accepted to get their work on the boxes. I love the idea of beautifying cities with art in this unique way and would love to see more of it around town.
In terms of your work and the industry, what are some of the changes you are expecting to see over the next five to ten years?
So much has already happened in the art world. Many brick and mortar galleries have closed down and so much artwork is purchased online. I think Instagram will remain the most trending space for artists, unless some new platform just for art is created. But I do think there is still something romantic about doing shows and fairs because people love seeing artists and meeting them face to face. So, I don’t think that will change much.
As far as creative trends, I think we will see that people are going to really like investing in the bold and abstract pieces you are seeing right now, that have sort of an urban feel to them.
Pricing:
- Prints: $28-$68
- Originals: $75-$2000+
- Canvas reproductions: various
- Metal prints: various
Contact Info:
- Website: https://chellefazal.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/illuminateartisan/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/illuminateartisan/
