Today we’d like to introduce you to Melana Byars.
Hi Melana, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
I got into the arts when I was about 5 years old. At the time, I was very passionate about singing and writing, two art forms I still practice to this day, but as the years have passed my love for storytelling inspired me to pursue my career as a (screen)writer, animator, and producer. And in the past two years along with creating stories, I’ve also become a ceramicist and painter.
In between my love of music and film, I rediscovered my passion for visual arts. My ceramics journey has been on and off since I was 8 years old when I tried wheel throwing and hand-building for the first time. Since then, I’ve been spending most of my time improving my storytelling and crafting skills as an artist. In 2020 during the midst of COVID-19, I started painting again and in 2022 I decided I wanted to take my ceramics journey more seriously, and spent most of my time in the pottery studio.
Towards the end of 2023, I decided I wanted to work full-time as an artist and made the wildest decision to not only leave my full-time job at the end of the year but to also do a cross-country move from Los Angeles back to my home state (Georgia) to build out my studio and work on my art projects full-time. While I’m still in the early stages of putting my studio together, I couldn’t be happier with the work that I am creating and that I get to spend time with my friends and family that I haven’t seen in a while.
Growing up in such a diverse city like Atlanta opened my eyes to all the different cultures and communities around me. But after spending the past decade traveling and living in other cities and countries away from my hometown, I couldn’t help but notice there was such a gap in the stories being told about my community and the dynamism of POCs like myself. That was not only visible in the art and films that I studied and worked on but also in the world in which I was having my own day-to-day experiences. That lack of representation motivated me to create pieces that championed positivity, and eccentricity while showcasing POCs outside of the stereotypical archetypes that seemed predestined for us.
I believe this is very visible in my written works. I do a lot of exploration of the nuances of race, gender, and identity and how those play a role in one’s environment. In my artwork, I like to explore functionality, duality, and form with my ceramic pieces and visual arts.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
This will be my first year running and operating my business full-time so I am very excited about that, but I am sure there will be some challenges I’ll have to get through. Up until 2023, I’ve been making my art while working full-time for someone else. I didn’t notice how counter-productive that had become until last year when I started to invest more time into ceramics and painting which are both time-consuming mediums.
I’ve spent the past 5 years in Los Angeles working in film and production, the non-profit arts sector, and education. I didn’t realize it at the time but all of these fields were incredibly demanding of my time. I was either working around the clock trying to balance 20+ artists’ schedules and careers, or I would be booking gigs and events for an entire orchestra before working on storyboards and video editing for a testing company on the same day. Most of my work days would end around 8 or 9 pm and then I’d start working on my projects until 12 or 1 am. And doing that almost every day was causing me to feel burnt out.
I ultimately knew I needed to put more time towards my projects as that would be the only way for me to advance as an artist and that is how I came to terms with leaving my previous job and moving to a more affordable city to pursue building my own studio space to work in. So while I loved California and will eventually go back, I felt Georgia was the right place to set up my first studio. The scenery here has inspired so much of my work, that I felt it would be the perfect starting point for my creative space.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
Lucky Koi Entertainment specializes in animation, film production, fine art, and home goods.
We offer the following services:
Film: Screenwriting for TV & Film; Directing; Producing; Animation; Storyboards; Pitch Decks; Editing (Writing & Video); Photography (Portrait; Editorial; Product; Landscape)
Art: Ceramics; Sculptures; Paintings & Drawings (Oil; Watercolor; Pastel; Charcoal); Stationary (Cards; Stickers; Stamps)
We are currently rolling out pieces from our art collection, so you can expect to see more ceramic and print pieces for the first half of this year. Our ceramics collection will feature a variety of bowls, plates, and planters that can elevate one’s kitchen and home. Our prints will be available in various dimensions and are suitable for stationary and wall decor.
At Lucky Koi, we are dedicated to enhancing our customer’s overall livelihood through fun and functional pieces. Each piece we make in the studio is 100% handmade and creatively crafted with the customer in mind.
Do you have any advice for those just starting out?
Trust your gut, be passionate about your work, and don’t be scared to step out of your comfort zone. This will be the first year that I run my business full-time, so I’m still encountering new challenges every day, but because I am passionate about what I am doing, it makes it easier to find creative solutions that can work for my business.
When you are first starting out, that is the best time to experiment with your art, your style, and the presentation of your pieces. Because you are building an audience and customer base, your first year or so will likely be spent figuring out what your audience gravitates toward. This will give you an idea of what they are likely to buy and invest in, along with giving you the space to constantly test out new styles. While the first three years of growing a business may have a lot of inconsistencies, I am truly looking forward to the fun I get to have creating my pieces and interacting with my audience.
If you are just starting as a business or an entrepreneur, I think the first thing to do is write down and identify your “why?” Why do I want to do this work? What does creating this mean to me? Why am I passionate about it? And what will I do when more people invest and want to experience my “why?” This will remind you of your original purpose for starting your business and will help you on the days that you are a little stuck or lack inspiration. By remembering the purpose behind your work, you will always have a driving force pushing you forward.
I’d also like to encourage those starting out to take every opportunity that comes your way, regardless of the imposter syndrome that can set in when you first start. Get all of that out of your head and just focus on the work. Let your passion guide you instead of fear, and allow yourself to fall into each project that comes your way. And with every project you take on, remember to have fun in the process. If you aren’t having fun, you’re going to hate what you do, so always try to find joy in your work.
Some advice I would give myself is for every job or project you take on, allow yourself the opportunity to learn from it and fail. Every time you fail, you learn something valuable in the process that helps you get one step closer to succeeding. So take every failure as a lesson to grow and become a better artist and business owner.
Pricing:
- Ceramic Pieces – Start at $40
- Prints – Start at $10
- Film – Please email about the project type and service for a quote
- Paintings – Based on canvas size
- Original Drawings – Based on paper size and piece
Contact Info:
- Instagram: @luckykoi.art
- Facebook: @luckykoi.art
- Twitter: @luckykoiart
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@LuckyKoiArt
