Michelle Depaolis-Wampner chatted about her career as a marine artist and painter in Florida.
She discussed being a creative artist in the digital age, and how she uses technology in her daily routine; moreover, she spoke about AI on the future of the art industry.
Inspirations to pursue art
Regarding her inspirations to pursue art, she said, My passion for art started as a toddler. My parents are artists, that in itself created an energy which fueled the constant desire to create. It became second nature to use it as a processing and communication tool through difficult periods of my life.”
“This proved very necessary when in 2014 one of my siblings passed away suddenly. The only thing I could do to move forward was to create, effectively breathing life into everything around me. It has been a cathartic journey that has opened doors, brought new friends and connected me with friends from my past being a long time resident of the Sarasota and Port Charlotte area,” she elaborated.
“To be inspired means to take everything in around you,” she admitted. “To see every color, to hear every sound, to feel every texture, to truly take it all in with every sense of your being. That is what creates the spark of inspiration with in me.”
The digital age
On being an artist in the digital age, now with streaming, technology, and social media being so prevalent, she said, “Technology has been an interesting tool. We can start off by expressing the difference with my generation in particular.”
“I was raised creating different forms of art without tech for the first half of my life. After that seeing little bits of it expanding our abilities as artists has been a very valuable evolution,” she said.
Impact of AI on the future of the arts
On the impact of artificial intelligence on the future of the arts, she responded, “I personally have not interacted with any of the artificial intelligence programs available today, but I do believe they will have their place.”
“We would be naïve to think that we could slow down the evolution of how art is created. The first thing I would ask artificial intelligence is to create an image with a description of one of my dreams and see what it looks like coming from that viewpoint would be what I pictured? That I find very interesting,” she acknowledged.
Using technology in her daily routine as an artist
On her use of technology, she shared, “I use tech for photographing my paintings in progress. It reveals inconsistencies in a way our naked eye does not. It has also been invaluable for making prints and marketing material for my many artistic ventures.”
Advice for hopefuls that wish to pursue art
For young and aspiring artists, she encouraged them to “create whatever they want.”
“Don’t let anyone push down their creative nature, but use their gift with care as well. It is a powerful tool to be able to influence others and that can be applied in so many positive ways. They are the future peace makers and am looking forward to the future they can create,” she said.
Career-defining moments in art
On her career-defining moments, she remarked, “I have one client in specific. I paint live at a restaurant every Friday, Saturday and Sunday night in Sarasota Florida called Café Barbosso. I’ve been working on a series of the human brain interpreted through a marine perspective. I have family members that have neurological conditions including myself, and wanted to help those individuals see how beautiful they are.”
“As an artist, when you have a thought in your head of where you’re going with a series and how you hope the public reacts to it is not always what happens. So we wait in anticipation to see, do they understand, do they feel what we were hoping to see and that is a connection,” she said.
She continued, “I finished my first one and hung it up at the restaurant. Shortly that moment happened, a husband came over and told me how touched his wife was looking at that painting I created. He wanted me to come and talk to her and that they would like to purchase the painting and take it home that day.”
“I set my brush down and walked over to their table her eyes locked with mine and I could feel it, she got it, my intentions were fulfilled that connection was made. I told her about the waters representation of the brain and the what the koi fish swimming through synapses was about. She told me that she had recently been diagnosed with MS and that it worked she did feel beautiful and that she was going to be okay,” she elaborated.
“Most importantly, she connected to the painting with her soul. As an artist I could not ask for more,” she added.
Latest projects and endeavors
On her latest projects, she revealed, “My current big project is opening an art studio, Shell’s Art Studio, in my son’s new location called Gunplabox, which is in the northern part of Port Charlotte… so it was a perfect merger of our two businesses.”
“I am also preparing for two shows coming up that are coming in January and May,” she added.
Success
She furnished her definition of the word success. “Success to me means not giving up,” she stressed. “Success looks different at every moment of each day. Success can appear as little baby steps and some are big jumps to the end of a goal and some are setbacks which reveal themselves as a lesson to take a bigger step in the future.”
“I have a foolproof method for success that I learned from my Nana. She said: ‘every morning before your feet hit the floor make the decision to be a better version of yourself than you were yesterday.’ It has never failed me,” she explained.
To learn more about marine artist and painter Michelle Depaolis-Wampner, check out her official website.
