Today we’d like to introduce you to Natalie Hunsaker.
Hi Natalie, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers.
I started selling my art when I was about 11 years old. It all started when my grandfather offered to give me a “free” horse. My mom informed me that “free” doesn’t really exist, and that she wouldn’t be able pay the monthly boarding fees. However, she said I could still have the horse if I could earn the money. Well, she didn’t think I would…but I did! I hitched a ride with my friend’s mom who traveled to dog shows frequently. I sold enough portraits of show dogs during each summer to pay for a year’s worth of boarding for my horse.
While I did leave my art for several years so I could get a “practical” degree in college, I realized after graduation that being unable to find a job meant it hadn’t been very “practical” after all. At this point, I returned to art and made $30k in my first year. It’s just been getting better since then!
Today, I am in the middle of two big, ongoing projects. Both of them take a unique perspective on three goals: (1) spark a love of lifelong learning, (2) fuel a desire to work toward interfaith unity, and (3) provide visual images of what I’ve learned. In this way, I hope the walls in our homes can inspire us to remember the amazing vision of who we can become.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
Hahaha. No, this road has NOT been free of obstacles. Has ANYONE answered YES to this question? For me, I had about 10 years’ worth of health issues to battle. In addition to a very weak immune system, my first two crummy pregnancies landed our family with 6 months of hospitalization and 6 surgeries.
We still work with special needs daily and have decided to homeschool because of them. We’ve moved 9 times in 18 years of marriage, and it’s been next to impossible to find a house with a space for me to paint each time. In general, life has thrown me more curve balls than I ever thought possible.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
In a world saturated with images—more and more of them created by Artificial Intelligence—I realize it’s a tough job to create something people want to stop and look at long enough to ponder its meaning, let alone actually buy it.
While I’ve always been told I am a deep thinker and an insightful person, I feel like it’s something anyone can develop. I have caught myself playing small while helping people achieve that depth, though—just sharing my ideas with close friends and family.
With their encouragement, I have spent the last year working SO HARD on the back end of my website and other boring technical stuff, so I can share my message on a bigger scale. I’m super proud of myself for disciplining myself to get it done! I figure if I can keep marching forward from here, the results will take care of themselves if I keep my eye on my overarching vision: lifelong learning, interfaith unity, and visual reminders of how beautiful the future can be!
My first big project, “Isaiah’s Imagery,” specifically works to help people connect with the old, difficult biblical writings of Isaiah on a relevant, modern, emotional level. What can Isaiah help us become? I have so many ideas to share here—I can’t possibly paint them all!
My second project, “My Place in HIStory,” traces the stories of several historical figures who have played critical roles in bringing Christ’s message of love and hope to the world. Each painting attempts to find a unique principle from the lives of these people—principles that can help the rest of us find and fulfill our places in Christ’s story.
In the end, I figure that the art we put on our walls has one, single job: to remind us every day of who we can become and what hope there is for the future. If I can share a great life lesson, personal insight, or a vision of what that beautiful future can be—well, that’s something AI will simply never be able to duplicate. In this way, I expect my images to take on meaning for others as well—becoming inspiring reminders for their walls and vision boards, too.
Can you talk to us about how you think about risk?
My biggest risk has been building a home that had the space needed for me to accomplish my projects, and hiring a trustworthy business coach to help me figure out how to get this thing off the ground.
Both risks required more money than I had to spend, but I have NO REGRETS. Both experiences have been exactly what I needed to grow into a person and an artist I needed to become.
Pricing:
- Prints start at $19.99
- Originals start at $6.50/sq inch
Contact Info:
- Website: https://nataliehunsaker.com
- Instagram: @nataliehunsaker
- Youtube: youtube.com/@nataliehunsaker
Image Credits
Britta Davis and Natalie Hunsaker
