Check Out Alyssa Chavez’s Story

Today we’d like to introduce you to Alyssa Chavez.

Hi Alyssa, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
Yeah, of course! Let’s see, I don’t know where to start. Well, I grew up overseas in Bolivia for more than half of my life. Bolivia is considered a developing country, so growing up we didn’t have a lot of money compared to others. So naturally, I wanted to live somewhere that had more opportunities, and I found myself wanting to pursue “the American Dream”. Luckly, my mom is American and we ended up moving back in forth between the States and Bolivia for several years. After graduating high school in Bolivia, I permanently moved to the U.S. to attend college in 2014 and have lived in the U.S. ever since.

At a very young age, I discovered I had a strong passion for the creative industry. I fell in love with acting in my 4th grade and discovered another passion for graphic design in the 7th grade. In my mind, I knew those were two completely different careers, but I wanted to pursue both equally. I’ve participated in a bunch of plays and musicals both in high school and college. I also started taking on clients as a graphic designer at an early age. When I first moved to the U.S., I was actually accepted to college with a theatre scholarship. I was always caught between choosing graphic design or acting as my major.

Fast-forward a couple of years, and I found myself living paycheck to paycheck, taking a gap year, and not knowing what to do next or how I would pay my bills. At that time, my sister was in talks about joining the Army, and that’s when I started considering whether I could potentially do something creative for the military as well. I decided that the Navy would be pretty cool because I could travel the world and I could possibly do something similar to graphic design.

I ended up serving five years with the U.S. Navy, and my job? The least creative job in the world…Operation Specialist…a.k.a. radars, as in tracking ships, aircraft, and submarines…yeah. The job I wanted so badly was called Mass Communication Specialist (MC), which is basically the Navy’s version of journalism and media. It would have been the closest thing to graphic design which involved photography, layout design, printmaking, and so much more. I tried everything to get that job, but unfortunately, it would have been too complicated to change to that rate (job), and my year group didn’t allow me to switch.

The best solution I received from someone was “You can re-enlist, and there might be a slight chance that you can get the MC job!” Girl, by year two of my five-year contract, I already knew I hated the military and already wanted to get out. There was no way anyone was going to convince me to re-enlist! Much less if I did and then found out I still couldn’t get MC, oh my gosh, I would have been miserably stuck for another two years. I didn’t like being constrained by so many rules and regulations, the uniforms where uncomfortable, not to mention having to tie my hair up 24/7, and the list goes on! I always thought to myself “I might as well get out of the military, do the same thing I’ve always wanted to do—graphic design—but with more freedom!” Just talking about this again, makes my blood boil!

On to my happier stage in life! After successfully completing my military contract, I decided I wanted to move to Atlanta. Why Atlanta? To support my acting career, I figured Atlanta was up and coming with the film industry and living there would have been way more affordable than moving to LA or New York. I ended up getting accepted to Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD), at the Atlanta Campus, and am now majoring in graphic design with a minor in business management and entrepreneurship. I was a double major of acting and graphic design for a hot minute but later decided that double majoring would have prolonged years onto my plate. I’ve already felt a bit behind and, honestly, just wanted to finish my degree already!

I’ve lived in Atlanta for only three years so far, and I love its art culture. At the beginning of my schooling with SCAD, we took foundation drawing and art classes, and that’s where I discovered that I was also really good with physical art, such as painting, pastels, drawing, and any other type of hands-on crafts. That’s also when I started to get involved with local art shows. I put my artwork out there and started selling some of my artwork!

The first art show I ever attended was with Pancakes and Booze. It was a little nerve-racking at first, but once you do your second and third show, you really start to get the hang of it. I love talking to people and learning about what they do, which made these art shows perfect for me. Plus, some people end up buying my artwork—it’s a win-win!

My plan going forward is to continue making artwork to share with everyone while also working in graphic design and, at the same time, really pursuing my acting career. When people hear this combination, I almost always hear “Oh, acting and graphic design? That’s an interesting combination. I’ve never heard of anyone doing that before.”

What can I say? My brain is wired to want to pursue multiple things at once. Whether I combine them or not, who knows? All I know is that I am a very creative individual, and I need to do something with that spark.

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Of course not! Ever since I was little, I’ve been told left and right that pursuing a creative field is a dead end. “You don’t want to become a starving artist.” Yes, there is some truth to what they’re saying, but what they don’t realize is that there are so many ways to make money in the creative industry that aren’t talked about enough.

The fact that I’m setting myself up to have multiple sources of income shows that I’m not putting all my eggs in one basket. If one thing goes south, I have a backup plan to turn to and skills that I can apply to something completely different if necessary. There are also a whole lot more ideas in my head that I haven’t spoken to anyone about yet.

I think one of the hardest struggles anybody in the creative industry experiences is the judgmental looks people give us when we share even a tiny ounce of our dreams and goals to them. They just laugh and say, “Yeah, okay, we’ll see,” or “Yeah right, you? Pfff”.

As creatives, we constantly must push through the noise and hope that we’re heading in the right direction—the direction that leads us to that prized mountaintop. That’s also another reason why it matters who you surround yourself with. Are you surrounding yourself with negative or positive encouragement?

Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I’m a graphic designer who has recently discovered her fine art side, while also having a strong passion for storytelling through acting. As a freelance graphic designer, I primarily focus on creating logos, posters, branding, and other projects that help companies grow, such as websites, social media graphics, and marketing materials. One of the things I’m most proud of is how much I continue to surprise myself creatively. I love watching a project evolve from its earliest ideas into something far beyond what I originally envisioned. There have been so many times when I’ve reached the end of a project, looked back at where it started, and thought, “Wow, I did that?” Those moments remind me of how much I’ve grown as a designer and what I’m capable of creating.

When it comes to fine art, I like to create pieces with intricate details, realistic features, and strong expressions through different mediums such as paint, pastels, and other hands-on materials. One of my strongest art pieces is a foot-long, hand-drawn pencil skull with its entire surface covered in thousands of different textures and patterns. The longer you look at it, the more you discover.

As an actor, I love being involved in all types of acting projects, ranging from plays and musicals to verticals, commercials, short films, and feature films. So far, my recent acting experience has primarily consisted of short films for small college projects, including playing the lead in a short film, as well as background work for major films and TV shows. I would love to get back into plays and musicals while continuing to pursue films and other acting opportunities.

Let’s talk about our city – what do you love? What do you not love?
Like I mentioned before, I love the art culture that Atlanta has. I love meeting people from all walks of life and learning that they also have multiple interests in different fields. I also love Atlanta for the film and acting industry, which was a major deciding factor in why I moved here and wanted to get involved. There are so many other things I love, such has beautiful walking paths or trails all over the city, the variety of food Atlanta offers, and so many other places that I still need to discover!

There are a couple of things about Atlanta that I don’t necessarily like. I don’t really enjoy the potholes here, but I’ve slowly become experienced at swerving to avoid them! I also wish there were less crime and homelessness throughout the city. A lot of people say that the traffic and confusing exits are the worst things about Atlanta, but I actually don’t mind them much. I drove a lot as an Uber and Lyft driver when I first moved here, so I’m super used to it by now.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.alyssachavezcreative.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/iamalyssachavez/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AlyArtPhoto.Studio.Design/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alyssachavez153/
• Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/@iamalyssachavez
• Other: https://www.instagram.com/alyart.psd/

Image Credits
Karis Fortner, Merlin Hill, Jordan Lunsford, and Hugo Lim