Meet Trailblazer Leigh Viner

Today we’d like to introduce you to Leigh Viner.

So, before we jump into specific questions about what you do, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
*Freelance Artist/Photographer born and raised in Denver Colorado where I still reside.

I have taken photography, drawing and commercial art classes, but am mostly self-taught. I love to bring a lot of emotion into my work recapturing those little moments in my life. I am also greatly influenced by the fashion industry as I’ve always had an interest in fashion design and the aspects that make up an editorial in fashion/photography/makeup. Along with art, I love to travel and take vintage inspired photographs of my surroundings.
I started selling my Art in 2003, started a blog in 2006, now lucky enough to work full time doing what I love each and everyday for over a decade.

I’ve had such fantastic opportunities come my way, like Lady Gaga reaching out to collaborate with my art for her Born This Way album, having my art exhibited internationally in Mayfair, London, and across the United States. Creating work and donating my time with Unicef to help bring water to those in need. Watching my art on the big screen and in Times Square and in film, bigger than life.

Along with being a full-time artist, I am also a Mom to my 16-year-old daughter, besides getting to do what I love, my daughter is the reason I push myself more than anything to be my best every day.

Has it been a smooth road?
The best lessons that I have learned have come from making mistakes and from difficult challenges that have come my way. I look back and embrace and appreciate the lessons learned from them as without them I would not have had the many successful opportunities that have come my way.

Patience, perseverance, practice, practice and some more practice along with learning from and not being afraid to make mistakes is a key to finding your own unique path to success.

This past year has been the biggest struggle for me in my personal life which now that I am slowly coming up for air so to speak, I am finding the positive aspects of this difficult past few months.

A short background, I had lost my precious Mom last December just a few short days before Christmas, then four months later, my heart landed me in the Emergency room and ICU twice with had a diagnosis of SVT (SUPRAVENTRICULAR TACHYCARDIA) and Atril Fibrillation, basically my resting heart rate was suddenly over 250 bpm and irregular, I was alone when the first one happened, so you can imagine the fear and panic on top of it all.

Along with trying to grieve, I had to, unfortunately, deal with a life-changing situation with my health. My heart is thankfully healthy, but possibly with the tough year and anxiety it brought out an arrhythmia that I was most likely born with, that really made many things difficult for me in my mental, personal and work life.

I ended up having heart catheter ablation surgery on June 4th shortly after both instances, which I am still recovering from. The scar tissue in my heart which will take time to heal to block those electrical signals that cause SVT and Atril Fibrillation could take up to a full year. I am staying positive and getting back to creating and personal life as best as I can, with that, I am starting to work better on projects that mean more to me, more at the moment and learning to let ideas or projects go that are not necessarily a part of my journey any longer. Along with that is a good reminder, to make sure to take good care of my health, mind and rest when needed and to continue to practice and make mistakes. 😉

Please tell us more about your work, what you are currently focused on and most proud of. What sets you apart from others?
My work is known for fashion portrait illustrations also original art, from oil paintings to works on paper that range from portraits to floral and abstract pieces. I also share photography from my love of travel, to still life photos, vintage European and self-portrait photography.

I sell mostly fine art Lustre and Giclee prints of my work at my main website www.leighviner.com and hoping in the next few years to be working on larger scale pieces and adding more exhibitions of my work again.

I am most proud of being able to inspire others, I have received so many wonderful emails over the years from art students studying my art to asking for advice, which I am so very happy to give and pass along from all that I have learned from my journey. Also, what holds a special place in my heart is knowing that years later my customers are still enjoying my art in their homes and continue to come back to add more to their collection. Just being able to on my own over the years build my passion for a business that has supported me and my daughter for over a decade makes me so proud! I hope that I can continue that in the future.

Do you feel like there was something about the experiences you had growing up that played an outsized role in setting you up for success later in life?
Absolutely, I was raised to work hard for what I want, to always be honest, kind and patient. My Mom always encouraged me to follow my passions and to really pay attention to my curiosities. Along with making sure to appreciate what I have. We didn’t grow up with much and she was a single Mom of four girls so watching her go from a stay at home Mom to after her divorce with my Dad to a Senior Engineer at Lockheed Martin was so impressive. I was always so proud of her as well.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.leighviner.com
• Email: leighviner@gmail.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/leighviner/

Image Credit:
© Leigh Viner

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