Life & Work with Angie Thieszen of Millersburg, IN

Today we’d like to introduce you to Angie Thieszen.

Angie, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
My grandfather, my aunt and my mother were all art teachers as well as a map maker, potter, and illustrator respectfully. My father was/still is a hobby wood-worker and photographer. All that creative energy came right through the umbilical cord and I say I basically came out of the womb an artist. From crayons, to pencils, to paints, to Etch-A-Sketch…I was using all the tools of an artist at all ages of my life. I participated in all the art classes, extra-curricular art clubs my school offered and art competitions here and there throughout my growing up years and began my college experience as an Art Education major at Bluffton College in Bluffton, Ohio. During college I discovered my passion was more in creating than teaching so I ended up minoring in Art at Bluffton instead and pursued other interests professionally after college. The creative part of me was always itching to be released, however, so I was always including art in various forms as a hobby artist while I raised my family. In 2018 I found myself mesmerized by the results of using a “new-to-me-medium” of art…good ole’ traditional wood stain. It married so many parts of my artistic upbringing and my natural gifts and talents in drawing. For the past 8 years I have diligently worked to make wood stain art my professional career by continually challenging my own artist abilities and diving headfirst into the world of bringing the artwork I love into the public view for others to enjoy.

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?
I’m not sure any art career can be “smooth”. The ups and downs of the journey are what shape your work as well as your character as an artist. You have to have a lot of grit to be an artist. Grit is “courage and resolve; strength of character”. If it’s broken down even further, which I always find myself doing with definitions, the definition of courage is “strength in the face of pain or grief”. Resolve is “firm determination to do something”. The definition of strength is “the capacity of an object to withstand great force or pressure” Character is “the mental and moral qualities distinctive to an individual”. So, being a “gritty” person ultimately can be defined as being a person who can withstand a great force or pressure in the face of pain or grief while holding to their mental and moral qualities to firmly do something no matter what.” THIS is being an artist. Putting out financial resources, time, passion, a lifetime of learning and perfecting abilities and a piece of your heart all the while never guaranteed that any of that will be recognized or replenished financially. That’s the crux of the struggle I think. Everyone may “love” my art and compliment it all they can, but if I don’t find the right investors to actually purchase the pieces then I will still end up having to shut down my art as a business loss. When other careers are rewarded with guaranteed income and raises based on how good of a job they do at what they do, artists are never given the same guarantees and that is difficult to shoulder.

Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I love honing in on the details of various subject matters in order to draw in people’s attention to the things they often miss in life. What sets my work apart from others is the fact I only use black wood stain as my medium. I start by hand-drawing or sketching those realistic details onto each piece of wood. I then use wood stain to literally stain each drawing into the wood using q-tips and/or cloths on my fingertips. Because I only use black wood stain, I have to control the amount of stain and pressure I am using to create the various shades and tones within the piece. The high contrast look of the black stain on the sepia tone of the natural wood creates a soft yet stunning statement piece. Finally each piece is clear-coated for protection and durability.

Another unique aspect of my work is that I have chosen to only create original works with no prints offered. First of all, the beauty of the natural wood gets lost on a canvas or paper reproduction and that raw beauty is nothing I want to see lost. Secondly, having originals only increases the value of my work for each individual investor/customer. This means no two works will ever be the same!

Any advice for finding a mentor or networking in general?
The best piece of advice I can give is to put yourself in the path of any and all artists you can. Attend art shows, go to galleries, visit museums, take a class, get involved in online artist forums and mentoring programs. There is a wealth of knowledge in those who have been doing this longer than you so go into those places with an open mindset that is humble and ready to listen, learn, apply and evaluate. It’s not about duplicating exactly what they have done to become your own success, but more about exposing yourself to the realities of those who have been doing this longer than you as well as alongside you and then applying what inspires you and motivates you to continue creating what God has gifted you to create.

Pricing:

• My pieces range from $60-$22,000

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.angiethieszenwoodstainart.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/angiethieszenwoodstainart/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/angiethieszenwoodstainart