Artist Spotlight of the Month: "Aaron Hill"

Welcome to Dot Editions “Artist Spotlight” series, where we’ll be interviewing one artist a month and sharing a little about them with you. The team of artists at Dot Editions have collaborated to bring you a monthly celebration highlighting local artists we’ve had the pleasure of working with through the studio. By these artists sharing a bit about themselves we hope to inspire the artist community to keep pursuing their dreams.

Artist: Aaron Hill

Medium: Oil

Experience: A long time

1-Q: Where are you from?

A: I’m originally from Bristol, TN. I moved around a bit and ended up back in Tennessee until 2018 when I moved here to Asheville.

2-Q: How did you end up in Asheville,NC?

A: My brother has been here for about 15 years and I would come visit him. I ended up loving the city so much I finally was able to make the move over the mountain.

3-Q: How many cities have you lived in and how hard or easy was it to get into the local artist community?

A: I’ve lived in Indianapolis, Columbia SC, and Orlando. I’ve found the local artist community to be so supportive and welcoming here in Asheville. It’s been helpful being in that community. The people I’ve met and hang with are a huge part of my success in making art for a living.

4-Q: What do you like to listen to when creating? Do you have any suggestions/playlists to share with us?

A: I change it up from time to time between music, audiobooks, and podcasts. Here’s my must listens from each of those: “The Linden Trees Are Still In Blossom” album by Jens Lekman; “Acid For The Children” audiobook memoir read and written by Flea; and “S#@! Town” Serial podcast by Brian Reed.

5-Q: Do you have any kind of routines that help get your creative juices going and ready to create? Please share with us.

A: I treat my studio like my job almost, coming in on a schedule 6 days a week. I like a little morning routine of tea and catching up on texts/emails before I jump right in to painting. For some reason, it’s hard for me to start painting. I tend to find all sorts of distractions to put it off. I’ve learned to just jump into it like, jumping from a rock into a cold swimming hole.

6-Q: What’s your best advice on how to not procrastinate and get rid of creative blocks?

A: I’ve found that if I just put pencil to paper or brush to canvas, that’s all the momentum I need. Anytime that’s hard to do, I try to push my norm into something new. A lot of times that means taking a workshop or tutorial from an artist I love, or copy a style I admire. I like to pursue weird ideas in drawing or painting – things that may not seem like they’re going anywhere. It’s also great doing art in the community. Other people are a good motivation for me.

7-Q: What does your creative space currently look like? Show us a photo! Tell us what you're working on, if you’d like to share.

A: This Winter I’ve been working commissions of old (or new) family photos recreated in oil.

8-Q: What is one thing that most people don't know about you?

A: I worked in the sign industry for almost three decades starting when I was 14.

9-Q: What advice can you give to the artists that are just starting their creative careers? What can they do to help get their work out there?

A: I’m still learning a lot about that myself, but I always say the key seems to be showing up to work on you art consistently. Plug into an artist community. Be true to making art for yourself.

10-Q: Did you go to art school or are you self-taught? If you went to school, where? If you didn’t, how did you start and what has helped?

A: I did not go to art school. I grew up making art and would dip in and out of doing it throughout my life. I really dedicated myself to painting and drawing in my 30s and have been painting what I love ever since. I love taking workshops or attending demos with other artist I admire.