Today we’d like to introduce you to Joyous Ferguson.
Joyous, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I’ve always had a passion for art. When I was younger I was into fashion, drawing clothes and little designs then I fell into painting. That became my therapy. Whether I was up or down, I could paint and would automatically feel uplifted and free again. That’s still how I feel to this day. There’s no category or box I have to stay in when I’m painting. I got into Graphic Design around high school and that was my major for undergrad (Hampton University ‘17). I knew I needed something that would bring me security financial wise but also still be an aspect of my craft. My mom and I started B.Joyous Fashions Inc. my freshman year in high school but when I got into graphics, I added BJoyous Graphics under that umbrella. I include my personal art under that title as well because I am my brand. When people see my work they know I did it regardless of my signature or stamp being on it. I like to be as diverse and out of the box as possible when it comes to my art and with clients’ artwork as well. They will always come back for the creativity that God blesses me with. I honestly don’t know where I’d be if I couldn’t just randomly sit down on the floor and paint my heart out.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
It’s been a bumpy road lol. More so personally. Every entrepreneur has their doubts and issues which comes with the territory. First starting out with my art I was kind of passive. I focused more on digital art or just learning more about the design world and making sure I was the best graphic designer I could be. I never just wanted to settle for the things I learned in the classroom. I always researched, did tutorials, etc., so that I could be ahead of the curve.
So I guess I can say my struggle was with my confidence in my art. Now don’t get me wrong I knew I was blessed with the talent but I was unsure of how I would break out or how it would pay the bills. Now I don’t care lol I paint for me. If people relate, great! If not, then there’s other paintings I have and future masterpieces that God has waiting for me to create that you may relate to. It only takes one fire painting or design to set your career in stone so I’m just creating and designing towards that goal. Not towards painting what the people want. Nothing wrong with that but that’s just not how my creative flow works. I tend to lose inspiration when I don’t feel my heart is fully in it.
But all in all, being an entrepreneur is hard because you’re struggling between not settling for less and working at some other man’s job helping him achieve his dreams vs. working toward your own. There’s always a balance you have to fight to maintain between making money to invest in yourself and having the time to create content.
BJoyous Graphics – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
B.Joyous Graphics is a graphic design company. I’m the main freelance designer however in the future I hope to have a space where I can hire young and upcoming designers who need job experience in order to get out in the world. One of my issues leaving undergrad was every job I applied to wanted me to have all this experience but they wouldn’t give me the opportunity to get that lol. How can I have experience other than my internships if you won’t hire me? So I want to be that haven for designers to get their experience, get better at their craft and just overall be a badass designer. The art aspect of BJG is mainly just me. I do my pieces and then I also commission pieces as well, I’m starting to get into murals now too.
I’m most proud of my progress as a designer but also in me getting more visible. Before I was just doing work for my church and friends, not really doing art shows and networking. But now I’ve gotten to know so many wonderful and talented artists that have really lifted my spirits to know that everyone in the art community goes through the same struggles which make the victories even greater.
What moment in your career do you look back most fondly on?
The proudest moment in my career was when I finished my painting “Keep Your Head To The Sky”. That was really my career-defining moment. I had just got out of a really bad relationship and was crushed and it kept me from painting. I realized God gave me this gift for a reason. I was procrastinating on finishing this piece and finally, I sat down and just went ham. When I finished I was like “damn I’m actually good. Lemme stop bsing lol” and I started sharing my art more and being more open about it and the response was amazing. I felt so much love and I stopped hiding my work. I’ll probably never sell her though lol. I need her around to give me that boost of confidence when I’m down.
Contact Info:
- Website: bjoyousfashions.com
- Email: joyousferguson@gmail.com. bjoyousgraphics@gmail.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/beesloveme/ https://www.instagram.com/bjoyousgraphics/
- Facebook: https://m.facebook.com/pg/bjoyousgraphics/posts/?ref=bookmarks&mt_nav=0
- Other: https://joyousferguson.myportfolio.com
Image Credit:
BJG.
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