Leah received a phone call from a good friend from school, now residing as an artist in Seattle, Washington, about coming out to Seattle for his upcoming art show at the Flying Bike Brewery, Washington’s first cooperative brewery. He asked her to bring with her five pieces of her work, one of which they had collaborated on together thousands of miles apart, Wolf Man. Half man, half wolf, the piece came together by Leah doing the wolf half in Indiana and Kyle taking on the human half in Washington.
Though they did not run in the same circles during their time in Peru, they were in art class together and enjoyed competing against each other in art shows while always helping each other at the same time. After high school Kyle moved to Indianapolis but they always stayed in touch. After seeing some of the greeting cards she was posting online, Kyle invited her to an art show he was putting on in Indy so she could sell some of her work there.
Going to Seattle to show some of her pieces was on a different level. Scared, but ecstatic all the same. This was far from her comfort zone in an unfamiliar place. She knew it was the only way to grow as an artist and went for it. The brewery was packed and she met many new and exciting people. It was one of the first times she felt like she was where she belonged. Leah could not get over seeing so many people admiring her work. She was not quite ready at this point to leave the workforce, but it helped to show her that this was her calling in life and where she wanted to be. It was time to buckle down and forge the path to being a professional artist.
Today, seven short years later, she can proudly say she is a full time freelance artist.
Written by Brendan Douglas for Alien Dove