Creative Changemakers: art gurl
A conversation with Meagan, founder of art gurl
Welcome to our interview series, Creative Changemakers. Every month, we will be speaking to a different business owner who is using creativity as a tool to build community and create change!
This month, we spoke with Meagan Mahaffy, the founder and creator of art gurl, about the creative wellness community that she’s building. We were so inspired by the conversation we had with her and we hope that it will spark some motivation in you as well!
Not only does art gurl offer really fun, creative, and approachable in-person workshops, but you can also join her online community that encourages everyone to make art and creativity a daily practice! Meagan believes that everyone is creative and that you do not need to be “good” at art in order to create. Visit artgurl.org to check out her workshops, join the online community, or join the art gurl academy!
The following is transcribed from an in-person interview between Connie (co-founder of The Creative Directory) and Meagan Mahaffy. This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
“Don't attach a long-term goal. Just make small baby steps towards something and trust that those baby steps will open doors for you that you can't imagine yet.”
In your own words, what is the art gurl about?
“art gurl is a creative community where low-stakes arts and crafts are the tool for deeper connections to self and community. Although we use art and our events always center on making, I always share that art gurl, at its core, is a wellness community. It’s for people who are looking for self-discovery resources, mental health support, and other tools that they can use to add to their morning routines.
We happen to share art as a tool, just the same way that journaling, meditation, tarot and astrology can all be tools you use for a holistic wellness routine in your life. I started art gurl a couple of years ago really because of that.”
What made you take the leap out of your career and build art gurl?
“When I was in college I studied art history and art. I tell this story a lot because I think people can relate to it. I’ve done art my whole life. My mom is super creative, we were always coloring and making crafts growing up. In college when I doing my degree in painting, I never received super positive feedback from my professors. It was never like “oh you suck”, but I wasn’t like a prodigy and it was discouraging at the time. My professor at our graduation ceremony said to the whole graduating class, ‘90% of you will never end up working in the arts’. He was trying to say, ‘But your degree is still valuable because of the education you got. It will apply to other careers.’ I never forgot that, and I also never forgot that a lot of my classmates were praised for their technical art abilities and I never really was. And then in the 10+ years that I was working, I slowly got further and further away from any creative practice of my own.
And I think partially, life gets busy, I was prioritizing my career, there’s lots of stuff going on, and I just didn’t think about it. But I think the other part of it was probably also that I didn’t hold an identity as an artist anymore after I left art school. I was like, ‘That isn’t really my path. I’m not a good artist. I’m not very good at painting’.
Until recently when I realized that your technical art abilities are not necessarily connected to your creativity. I like to compare it to running! Most people on Earth can run. We have the ability to run, but a very small number of us are Olympic runners. And the same thing is true for creativity. We all have creativity. It’s innate to us, and we also use those skills. Whether or not you’re an artist or in a creative field, anytime you’re solving a problem, you’re using creativity to do so. So because of that, you can separate the skill of drawing and painting, the technical skills of an artist, from self-expression. Which is what I am really good at, and I believe that everybody is really good at it because we are all expressing ourselves.
I think that gets lost a lot! So that's one of the main things I try to teach with art gurl is that you, your self-expression, and your creativity matter.”
How would you encourage someone who thinks they can’t do art to try art gurl?
“I love that question because I was that person! I relate to that person so much. I'm like, yes, I worked at prestigious art museums. Nobody could understand why I would ever leave such a promising career! What I would say to that person is what I would also say to myself, which is: don't attach an outcome to it.
Don't attach a long-term goal. Just make small baby steps towards something and trust that those baby steps will open doors for you that you can't imagine yet. That's really what happened in my life and what continues to happen. I'm not saying that you shouldn't have goals. Of course, we should all think about what we want for the future, but you leave a little space for magic, especially in times of uncertainty.
If you are a person who feels unfulfilled and you don't know why, then start with baby steps. Come to an art gurl program and don't attach anything to what you're going to get out of it.”
How does your community make newcomers feel welcome and safe?
“I love that question. So I'll answer in two parts because art gurl has both an online community and an in-person community.
So in terms of the in-person community, there are so many people that consistently come to our girl programs that are open and willing to welcome you in. And because of the way I set up events, which comes from a lot of experience throwing different styles of events in many different capacities over my life, I always start with something to do with your hands. So when you come in, there's never any awkward sitting or standing around. The minute you're distracted with something to do, if you don't really know what to say to people, now you have something in common. You're both coloring! You're both answering these quirky prompts and drawing an octopus going to the moon. It’s silly and fun, so it's a little bit disarming!
And when it comes to workshops, I also always share or I always leave space for people to share. You know at first, I was like, "Oh, people won't share. People are shy.” But people love to share! Even if you are not ready to share, it's so validating to hear people express what they're going through.
I like to set up events so that there are no awkward moments where you have to sit by yourself and where you might be tempted to get your phone out. Instead, there's always something to do so that you can be in it immediately. And then on the online side, it is kind of similar, but not everybody posts their work online, and that's totally fine.”
Can you share a story of someone who was initially unsure about how they’d respond to your class but ended up loving the community?
“I have a lot of really good stories about people that came to art gurl by themselves and then met friends. Like, I have these two really, really amazing members that met at an art gurl event. They both came alone and they met for the first time [at the event]. The event that they came to was part of a series, they both had just signed up for the first one. But while we were there, they met each other and they were like, "Oh, my gosh. We loved this so much. Do you want to go to the next one together?" And so they both signed up for the next session together. Now they're like best friends!
It was all because they met at an art gurl event where they both showed up by themselves, just sort of delayed expectation, and were just there for the day. They had no attachment to anything and happened to meet a like-minded person. Now they're super close, which is so, so wonderful!”
Thank you Meagan! If you’re interested, check out art gurl to start your creative journey and join her community of like-minded people!
Read our monthly newsletter, The Creative Digest, here! Subscribe to get monthly creative community-driven classes, workshops, and events in New York City delivered right to your inbox.
Do you know of a community-driven creative studio, art cafe, third place, or maker space that isn’t on our directory? Are you a business owner of a community-driven space?
Fill out our form to get the business added to The Creative Directory!
Follow us on instagram @_thecreativedirectory for the most up to date news & exclusive content. Tag us whenever you do something creative to be featured on our page!
Happy creating and thank you for joining us on this creative journey!
Visit The Creative Directory to access the directory and learn more about us.
Until next time,
Your Creativity Guides 👨🎨