Today we’d like to introduce you to Caroline Reber.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
I have been creating for as long as I can remember. Growing up, I could most often be found doing one of two things: exploring outside in nature or drawing and painting whatever nature inspired. I loved to illustrate my books, and to depict peaceful scenes in nature using whatever creative mediums we had in the house; graphite, charcoal, or acrylic paints.
I think I’ve always known I’d want to pursue my own business in the arts, I just couldn’t decide what that would look like. I’d go from wanting to own my boutique with clothes created by me to dreaming about being a freelance illustrator to hoping to one day open a studio/gallery/cafe hybrid. But my ideas consistently had two things in common; one, they were always creative, and two, they were always my own business, run by me.
During my freshman year at university, I was undecided on whether I should pursue a degree in psychology or a degree in the fine arts. In my first semester, I took an Intro to Psychology course (which quickly helped me to realize that studying psychology was not for me) and in my second semester I took Intro to Painting, which cemented my love for the arts and my desire to pursue an arts degree. It wasn’t until the first semester of my senior year that I discovered my love for watercolor. Ironically, when I first started to paint with watercolor, I hated my now favorite medium! But the more I painted with watercolors, the more I grew to love their fluidity and transparency and their unique ability to capture the beauty of nature. I graduated from Houghton University in 2022 with a degree in Fine Arts, and a concentration in painting and ceramics.
The summer after graduation, I got married to my wonderful husband and moved from the Northeast (where I’ve grown up most of my life) down to sunny southern Georgia. Since graduating and moving to Georgia, I have slowly been growing my small art business while working part-time. During this process, my love for the arts has intensified, and I have become more determined and devoted than ever to turning my art into a full-time career!
My love for painting, ceramics, and art in general stems not only from my love to create, but from my love of nature, and the peace nature provides me. I am deeply introverted, and an HSP (highly sensitive person) and I value feelings of peace and harmony, especially in a world that so often feels loud and chaotic. When I paint or create a piece of pottery, I strive to capture the feelings of peace that nature provides me, in the hope that my work will create for my viewers a space of quiet rest amid this fast-paced world.
In 2024, I am excited to implement ceramics into my business, and back into my life! My husband and I recently purchased a wheel, and I have been working hard at creating a new line of functional yet beautiful pottery. With my ceramics, as with the rest of my art, my goal to encourage peace and harmony remains the same. In line with this goal, I’ve decided to include short, uplifting quotes and mottos at the bottoms of all my ceramic pieces. All are handwritten, unique, and will hopefully bring smiles to the faces of those who discover them.
Alright, 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?
I am still early in my art career, but I have to constantly remind myself that building a business (especially a business in the arts) is going to take time. I am built in such a way that once I decide on something, I am ready to make it happen immediately.
I think a lot of people can relate to this feeling, and it can be difficult and disheartening to remain patient when growth takes longer than anticipated. I have certainly been known to fall into the lie of believing that living off of my art is impossible (you can ask my husband, lol!) but I am blessed to be surrounded by so many supportive people in my life who encourage me to keep going even when my dream of turning my art into a full-time career seems delusional.
My family and friends build me up, motivate me, and help me remember why I wanted to pursue this dream in the first place! I think for anyone hoping to start their own small art business, surrounding oneself with supportive individuals is vital. It is too easy when working alone, to give into the lies of comparison, self-doubt, delusion, etc.
I appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I’m an artist specializing in watercolor paintings, and soon beautiful yet functional ceramics as well! Since discovering my love of watercolor three years ago it has become my primary medium. Nature has always been a powerful source of inspiration for me, and the way watercolor can capture the characteristics of nature is, in my opinion, unmatched. Watercolor can create soft, fluid, gentle moments within a painting, and I feel this showcases the grace and beauty of nature uniquely and beautifully.
Along with its delicate beauty, nature holds strength and power. Watercolor, though appearing soft and gentle, holds strength as well. This is one of the reasons I disliked working with the medium when I was first introduced! It’s hard to learn how to control watercolors, and once it is laid on paper, it can be incredibly difficult to get off. Since watercolor is transparent as well, you can’t just paint over a mistake! Every brush stroke needs to be laid down with intention. I love thinking about the correlation between medium and subject, and I think many can be drawn between watercolors and nature.
Besides seeing a common theme of nature in my watercolors, something people will quickly notice about my paintings is their size; they are small. While it’s true that I love and am comfortable painting on a smaller scale, there is more to the decision to paint small. I believe that small paintings hold a sense of intimacy that larger pieces often don’t. Small paintings feel more personal to me. They invite a viewer in; to take a step closer.
I think larger paintings naturally draw more attention because of their size and the impression they make in a room, which I love as well! Large pieces can evoke such emotions and have the power to influence the whole environment of a room. But I also believe there is something special about smaller paintings, and the environment they can create between the viewer and the piece. Since feelings of peace and harmony are strong motivators behind my art, I gravitate towards painting smaller to encourage that space of quiet connection between the viewer and the painting.
Regarding my ceramics: I strive to create fun, delicate, functional pieces that brighten the mundane of everyday life. I am passionate about living life in a way that promotes harmony, self-encouragement, and positivity.
One day while on the phone with my mom, I was sharing with her my plans for ceramics and the motivation behind my pieces. After listening, she had the wonderful suggestion of writing short, encouraging notes on the bottoms of all my pieces. I thought this was such a fun idea and have since been implementing it on ceramics I create. I have always loved finding little surprises (whether that be a hidden phrase on the tag of a favorite sweater, or a cute note stuck between the pages of a book) and I’m excited at the thought of bringing a smile to someone’s face when they turn over their new piece of pottery for the first time.
A positive mindset is important to me, and I want others to believe in themselves, and their values. I want others to not merely make it through life, but to pursue their passions and believe that they can create the life of which they’ve always dreamed! I hope that my small art business helps encourage those it reaches that they are valued and loved and that it brings moments of peace and happiness into the busyness of their days.
Who else deserves credit for your story?
I am incredibly blessed by the people in my life who encourage me to follow my dream to create! My husband, JT, from our first days of dating in 2019 to the present day, has been one of my biggest cheerleaders. He constantly encourages me and whenever I’m feeling disheartened, he advises me to keep going and keep creating, reminding me time and time again with his now signature motto: “patience and persistence.” He promotes my work, motivates me, helps me to schedule and stay on track with my business, and so many other things. I could go on forever! I certainly wouldn’t be where I am today without him.
My family has also played a tremendous role in my decision to pursue my art business. From a young age, my parents cultivated an amazing environment for me as a child to pursue my passions. I was homeschooled by my mother from second grade through high school, and she always encouraged me and my siblings to pursue our passions. She was always intentional in providing resources and opportunities that helped us grow and develop our passions. One year when I was about thirteen, my mom hand-built me my very own easel and art corner in our home! I am so incredibly thankful to my parents for all the ways they support and encourage me in pursuing my art!
I’d also love to mention my painting professor Ted Murphy (AKA Murph) from Houghton University. Murph, while always honest in his critiques and advice, helped to bolster my self-confidence as an artist tremendously. He helped give me the confidence I needed to start actively taking steps in pursuing a career with my art and showed me how it was possible.
And of course, thank you to the amazing community of artists and creatives who have encouraged me during this journey, particularly Sofia Muzio Serrano, Ariana Sullivan, and Kent Applegate! I would not be where I am today without their generosity, support, encouragement, and advice! I am so very blessed by all of them in my life.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.carolinereberart.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/carolinereber_art/
