🎨 From ''your art is to commercial'', ''too artsy'', ''too much of so many things''... to becoming ''hardcore communication''?
Reflecting on positioning as a creative/artist
👋 Dear creative. How are you doing today?
Art as catharsis, art as an activator, art as a voyage
A few weeks ago, a contact I met at an event replied to me with a link related to a question I had asked about a podcast. She mentioned that she had gone through my newsletters — she scanned them — and I found myself wondering what she thought of them, since she works in the art and architecture space. She told me, quite honestly and bluntly, that it was pure and hardcore communication — and that she’s more of an art person.
I thanked her, and we ended the conversation. But as I was replying, it hit me—I’ve spent years being told that my work was too artsy, too different, too outside the norm. In France, the design industry has often made it clear that I don’t quite fit into their style. But I didn’t leave art behind to build something of my own—I integrated art as a language into every project I created.
My illustrations and artistic thinking applied to challenging and complex projects have always been my strength. So, when someone tells me today that my work reflects pure and hardcore communication, I see it as quite an achievement, especially coming from someone who once believed she wasn’t good at communication, let alone leading in it. Funny, isn’t it? I think back to those years in the architecture sector, where I was the underdog, often seen as not fitting the role of a creative leader, yet deeply passionate about crafting visual stories and solutions. What stands out to me now is how this very strength, which some people now recognize, is still seen by others as either not enough or too much.
As I write, I laugh at many situations and am grateful for being a Multiple in One. Nobody will accept all parts of you, and it is not required. I feel deeply grateful for the journey so far, and how, despite all odds—because oh, my journey has been a rollercoaster of rejection, disregard, and more—I’ve also shown brave resilience to voice a vision very few believe in. ‘‘How can you dare to expand into what you have never done before?’’, ‘‘How do you dare to grow within bigger ponds and believe you have a say?’’, ‘‘How can you dare to pave a path nobody before you has ventured into?’’
My body of work—and I like that term, body of work—moves and grows with me. I hope it speaks louder than I do, and that it challenges me to always remember the beginning: the underdog trait, the weird one, the “too much” of everything—the too artsy, too commercial, too many things at once.
I was never a specialist, and even if I had wanted to be, it would have felt like a fraud. Today, positioning myself is no longer the main challenge, it's focusing on the plan. Very few people will understand what you’re doing—what we’re all doing—creating, building our worlds. Some will say it’s too much, that they need more clarity. Others will celebrate the diversity of ways of being, and even encourage more bravery in owning that. What I know today is that the creative I used to be served me, and who I’ve become now feels like a miracle, knowing how many obstacles tried to push me off course, to derail both my focus and my desire to create.
In days filled with uncertainty, blurred lines, and discouragement in our creative field, I hear so many creatives struggling with who they are expected to be—to be visible, to be seen, or even just to be appreciated. Where you are today is your strength for tomorrow. Celebrate the creative and the person you have become, despite all odds.
Your art is what it is, and it is not finished! You can dust it off and start all over, double down, and move forward without looking right or left. You can reminisce on the past and wonder who you are, but always remember that today is what you have. Look at your work with immense gratitude, despite what others may say about you, despite the length of your career, and despite what you think you are capable of today.
Art doesn’t give rise to anything in us that isn’t already there. It simply stirs our curious consciousness and sparks a fire that illuminates who we have always wanted to be.
Kamand Kojouri
💡 It's a Prompt
Light up your creative fire this week • 💎 Prompt of the week
List 11 ways your work has been perceived over the last decade
You can use adjectives, sentences, expressions…
✅ Reflection: How do you feel about this transformation, and does it echo how you truly feel about your conscious perception of your work?
✅ Action: Take a before-and-after picture of two pieces of work, whatever the field, within 10 years. You can share that before and after in the comments section. Happy reveal!
📌 Here is a selection for my before-and-after (for illustrations). Feel free to share your reveal as well in words. Images, if you can.
Creativity is in every little curious experimentation.
Take good care!
Keva.
