Check Out Bryanna Manning’s Story

Today we’d like to introduce you to Bryanna Manning. 

Hi Bryanna, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself
Always creating and imagining as a child, I began to develop my skills in high school through the help of my art teacher Miss Geisen. Hanging out after school in “art club” and working on our drawings and paintings were some of my favorite school memories. From there, I went on to study both studio art and communication at Hope College. At the time of my graduation, painting and selling art as a vocation seemed a highly unlikely career choice, and so I turned my focus to the communication part of my degree. My first job was working for Gilda’s LaughFest in their inaugural year, and from there I began working at Gilda’s Club Grand Rapids. I obtained my graduate degree in Communication, had our first child, and began teaching adjunct communication courses. All the while, I was always painting and creating – for our home, our friends, and for family. It wasn’t until I saw my now good friend Hope Olson selling and sharing her work online, that my world was opened to the possibility that I could do the same. Since that time, I have been inspired by countless more artists who sell their work online. Our family has now grown to five children and selling work online has provided me opportunities that I would not have otherwise. I am incredibly grateful to those who have trusted me, supported my work, and have welcomed my paintings and prints into their homes. 

I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle-free, but so far would you say the journey has been a fairly smooth road?
I have come to the realization that no matter what bar of success I reach as an artist, that sharing my work will always require a level of courage and vulnerability. I will always wonder how work will be received and if it will mean as much to someone else as it does to me. Creating art can be deeply personal and that is the beauty and the hard of it. 

On a personal note, since our family adopted three of our children last year, we have walked through some deeply hard times. Saying yes to our children, on that day and every day after has strengthened my resolve to say yes to so much more. My confidence in what is most important and what is worth my time has grown. I know that investing in my art for many years to come is worth it. I have a quiet assurance that this is what I am supposed to be doing and I am so very excited to see where my art will go from here. 

Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I create oil and acrylic paintings that are inspired by the waves and coast of Lake Michigan. We live a short walk from the lake and spend many days there all year round. I am endlessly inspired by the water and the landscape that surrounds it. The color, texture, and organic nature of my work comes from what I see and feel at the shore. When I create a new work, I will ask – what feeling of being at the water do I want to capture? What is the emotion I want this work to evoke? Because when I visit the water, I feel something new each time. My work calls for a sense of immediacy, as though you are standing on the shore experiencing that very moment. I want the viewer to remember when they were right there too, at the shore, at peace, running in the waves, watching the sunset. Each painting is a reminder of the gift of this great lake and the responsibility to love it well. 

Do you have recommendations for books, apps, blogs, etc.?
I often listen to French jazz music (Madeleine Peyroux is my go-to radio station) when I paint. I also listen to a lot of Nathaniel Rateliffe, Jon Batiste, and The Head and The Heart. 

I read a lot of fiction, typically in the rom-com genre. I have tried to be more serious, but have found that at this point in my life, I really just need an escape when I read. And I do love a good escape. 

In terms of podcasts, I enjoy The Next Right Thing with Emily P. Freeman (on decision making), Do It For the Process with Emily Jeffords (on art/art career-making), and Raising Boys and Girls (because can you ever get too much advice on raising five kids). 

Contact Info:

• Email: [email protected]
• Website: www.bryannamanning.com
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/bryannamanningart
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BryannaManningArt/

Image Credits
Bryanna Manning