Julie Armbruster of River Arts District on Life, Lessons & Legacy

Julie Armbruster shared their story and experiences with us recently and you can find our conversation below.

Hi Julie, thank you for taking the time to reflect back on your journey with us. I think our readers are in for a real treat. There is so much we can all learn from each other and so thank you again for opening up with us. Let’s get into it: What makes you lose track of time—and find yourself again?
I am constantly in a battle with time! Whenever I fall into art making or crafting the hours melt away. I have to set up phone alarms or I would never stop to eat!

Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
Hi! I am Julie Armbruster. I am a full-time artist and split my day between painting, art business, and soft sculpture crafting. I have a semi-public art studio in the Wedge Studios and have had my space since 2009. I am motivated by investigating process and inventing imagination exercises that have a dedicated series. It is the follow through that invites the magic and makes my characters come to life. Not having an exact plan allows for surprise and makes the act of art making an exciting and engaging reveal.
All of my characters are original and my paintings are made with acrylic and acrylic ink and brush.
Currently, I am working on keeping my studio alive after the devastation of Hurricane Helene last year. I have a local mural, 2 commissions, and a series of moon dragons on my studio list. I am preparing for October’s Drawlloween challenge and am hopeful I can fully participate in the 31-day drawing challenge.
Additionally, I have been branching out into soft sculpture and clothing upcycles. I love to recycle textiles and also love to see my art as one-of-a-kind applique patches.

Appreciate your sharing that. Let’s talk about your life, growing up and some of topics and learnings around that. Who taught you the most about work?
The experience of grad school taught me the most about work and what it requires to set up a day of studio time. Before that, I wasn’t even sure art making was a viable job. No one in my early experience even indulged the idea that “artist” was a career option.
In grad school I was given the freedom to set up my studio day. I could adventure in the city and draw inspiration from the art history and magical nature of Venice, Italy. I could swing by a fresh fig tree and grab a few snacks for the day and then head to my large open space to make anything I wanted. How to begin and what to do are often roadblocks for artists, but the process of doing was what propelled the discovery that I could use the process to find characters and develop work from shapes and shadows that revealed themselves to me.

If you could say one kind thing to your younger self, what would it be?
I would tell my younger self that there are people out there that are fun and weird and encouraging and nothing like the classmates you grew up with. You will find your special people and do not have to feel diminished by other people’s views.

Sure, so let’s go deeper into your values and how you think. What important truth do very few people agree with you on?
Well, I have been a vegetarian since 1997. As soon as I moved out of my childhood home I switched over. Sometimes I try to explain the scientific/ evolutionary fact of vegetarianism, but almost all of my friends and all of my family are meat-eaters.

Sharp teeth= meat eater
Flat teeth= vegetarian

Thank you so much for all of your openness so far. Maybe we can close with a future oriented question. Are you tap dancing to work? Have you been that level of excited at any point in your career? If so, please tell us about those days. 
YES!! I love my job, my space, my studio neighbors, and being a full-time maker. I feel very lucky to have built this life and work hard every day to keep the dream alive.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://JulieArmbrusterART.com
• Instagram: @julie_armbruster_art
• Facebook: Julie Armbruster Art
• Other: https://www.etsy.com/shop/JulieArmbruster