Vanesa Reeves shared their story and experiences with us recently and you can find our conversation below.
Hi Vanesa, thank you so much for taking time out of your busy day to share your story, experiences and insights with our readers. Let’s jump right in with an interesting one: What makes you lose track of time—and find yourself again?
Over the past year I’ve started writing in my journal almost daily! It’s amazing how well journaling has helped me process my thoughts. I can spend hours just writing down all the thoughts that pass through my mind, and I love the way I’m able to read and reflect everything I’ve written. To be able to process all the emotions I’m going through like this has truly helped me find my way back to myself.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
My name is Vanesa and I’ve been a professional tattoo artist for the past 7 years! I strive to empower my clients to trust their intuition and to advocate for their wants and needs throughout the process. Any person getting a tattoo should feel comfortable, confident, and safe when they’re trusting a tattoo artist to permanently decorate their body. In recent years I’ve incorporated my tarot reading practice into tattooing and it’s been a wonderful way to collaborate with clients, as well as add an extra layer of meaning to the art.
Appreciate your sharing that. Let’s talk about your life, growing up and some of topics and learnings around that. What breaks the bonds between people—and what restores them?
Honestly, I feel like the answer to both sides of this questions is the same. The choices we make, whether or not our actions support our words, is where the foundation for a bond between people begins. When you start to make different choices, and your actions no longer align with what you’ve communicated, bonds are easily broken. We cannot choose how to feel and we don’t have any control over what life may throw at us, so it’s up to us to choose how we act or respond. The depth of the bond and the severity of the break influences whether or not something can be restored. Some bonds might feel like they are meant to be broken and stay that way so you can move on to the next chapter of your life, and other bonds are worth maintaining.
What did suffering teach you that success never could?
Had I been immediately successful as an artist, I don’t think I would have learned to truly appreciate what I do now.
Over the years, especially when I was young, I struggled a lot with learning how to make art worth being seen. Each failure caused distress and I often questioned whether or not I should keep trying. In a lot of ways, I was suffering because I wasn’t allowing myself the time/space I needed to learn. I also wasn’t embracing all parts of myself. .
There is a quote from a letter that Vincent van Gogh wrote to his brother in 1883. In this particular letter, Vincent writes about how hard he has been working but still hasn’t gotten the hang of some art elements, such as light. He goes on to say, “Through working hard, old chap, I hope to make something good one day. I haven’t got it yet, but I’m hunting it and fighting for it, I want something serious, something fresh – something with soul in it! Onward, onward.”
I have the phrase “Onward, onward” tattooed because it always reminded me to push through any suffering so I can witness the success on the other side.
I think our readers would appreciate hearing more about your values and what you think matters in life and career, etc. So our next question is along those lines. Is the public version of you the real you?
Absolutely. At times, the public version of me might be a more polished or put together version but I am still being true to who I am. I no longer find myself editing who I am or changing the way I exist when I am in public because I am the only person that I know how to be. The only way I know how to exist at this point is to be authentic and genuine to the real me.
Thank you so much for all of your openness so far. Maybe we can close with a future oriented question. What do you think people will most misunderstand about your legacy?
That I was never trying to build a legacy in the first place. I suppose part of why I never found myself preoccupied with the concept of a “legacy” is because part of me always knew that the art I create will outlive me. Instead of wanting to leave my mark on the world or intentionally create my own legacy, I’d rather heal negative marks that someone or something else left behind. At the end of the day, I hope that any the long-lasting impact my actions create have helped other people in some way, shape, or form.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.vreevestattoo.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/vreevestattoo/
