Episode 24: Merging Motherhood and Making with Lottie Caiella
Lottie is a self-taught graphic designer who turned to illustration and is currently pursuing an MFA while also raising two children and expecting a third. Her journey started with a love for graphic design and continued with a chance encounter with a stranger who taught illustration at the local university. The pandemic provided the push to apply for the MFA program and much to Lottie's surprise, she got in! Currently, life is full of different hats while Lottie merges motherhood and making.
Visiting All The Parts of Yourself
When Lottie became a mother, she experienced struggling with anxiety and loneliness early on and felt disconnected from herself. Within time, whe was able to all the parts of herself, which included tapping once again into her creativity. For Lottie, visiting her creative "self" allows her to feel more grounded and even a better mother. She loves modeling to her children the entirity of being and artist and having a job that is connected to one's passion.
Mom Guilt
Just like many mothers, Lottie struggled with feelings of guilt when deciding to go back to school. She found that the source of her guilt was being fueled by her comparing herself to her mother and how she was raised. Lottie has found reframing their thoughts and finding support from other moms in similar situations has helped her overcome these feelings and she hopes she can be a source of support for their friends who may also struggle with balancing motherhood and personal goals.
Valuing Art
Lottie believes that how one values creativity and art has a lot to do with one's upbringing and the beliefs of people in their community. Society tends to commodify everything, but the creative process is not always straightforward and can't be turned into a machine. Therefore, it can be hard for society to value something that can't always be streamlined. Lottie hopes that her children value art in and she also has hopes to empower them to pursue their passions and change their minds, regardless of their age.
Key Takeaways:
Motherhood is a personal journey to figure out what the right balance between work and mothering is for you.
Visiting all the parts of yourself can help you feel grounded in your role as a mother.
Comparison can fuel mom guilt. Being aware of comparison, reframing and remembering your why, and having friends in your circle who are also artists and mothers can be helpful to relieve that guilt.
Remembering that what we do adds value and is worthy can be encouraging in the moments of self-doubt. Everything in our world has a creator behind it. Your art and what you do is worthwhile.
It is never too late to change your course.
Remember that you have options and the power to pivot even in your art business and career.
Lottie is a graphic designer who is currently pursuing her Masters of Fine Arts in Illustration from Syracuse University. While she freelances in both design and illustration, Lottie’s work thrives in the intersection of the two fields, seeking the stories that are to be told there.
Lottie is the mother of two (soon to be three) girls and lives with her husband and children in upstate New York. When she is not balancing freelance with motherhood with graduate school, there is little time left ;) Occasionally when free time does come however, Lottie loves to drink coffee, bake in her kitchen, and dream about where she and her family will roadtrip to next.
Visit Lottie's website at www.lottiecaiella.com and follow her on instagram.
