The Create! Podcast

If you have been going through a funk, whether it is burnout, a creative slump, seasonal blues, or just feeling stuck, this episode is for you. Kat gets real about the challenges she faced this past winter, including some big personal changes, and shares the honest unglamorous things that helped her climb back out: taking care of her body, dropping what was not serving her, shifting her mindset around showing up, and finding people who cheer her on too.
No toxic positivity here, just real talk and practical perspective for anyone ready to get back on track.
Ready to stop navigating this alone? Kat works with working artists and creative entrepreneurs through private coaching at espopova.com. If you are ready to get back on track with someone genuinely in your corner, learn more and book a session at www.espopova.com.

You Don't Have to Choose Between Making Art and Building a Career. James Miille Proves It.
Photographic artist James Miille has shown work in New York, Paris, Miami, and Mexico City, built two companies, and never stopped making the art that started it all. In this episode he pulls back the curtain on how he actually does it.
James creates surreal composite photographs entirely from scratch, every element shot by him, every image sparked by a song. He breaks down his creative process, why documenting your work is now more important than ever, and how he thinks about the business of being an artist without letting it kill the passion.
This one is packed with real, actionable insight for artists at any stage.
Episode Highlights
How a song becomes a surreal photograph and what James is building right now
Why showing your process is your biggest competitive advantage in the age of AI
The through line running through all his work: men having feelings and why that still feels radical
His upcoming coffee table book mapping emotions through surreal portraiture
The video game based on his art universe currently in the concepting phase
How co-founding Superfine Art Fair led to launching Studio Chamiilleon
The mindset shift that makes the business side of art feel less like a chore
His plan to take entire exhibitions on the road in a single suitcase
Connect with James
jamesmiille.com studiochamiilleon.com
Join the Create! Community
Read artist features, discover new voices, and get resources built for working creatives at createmagazine.co

You invest in a mentor, a course, or a new skill, and instead of feeling excited, you feel exposed. You see the artist you admire and wonder if you will ever get there. Your ego wants you to quit before you even start. Sound familiar?
This week Ekaterina gets honest about her own experience of evolving, trying new things in the studio, shifting her art, and the vulnerability, self-doubt, and resistance that showed up right alongside it. She turns that moment into the most important conversation you can have as a creative or entrepreneur: what to do with the gap between where you are today and where you want to go.
This episode will shift how you see your progress, your timeline, and your worth as an artist right now, before you have it all figured out.
In this episode:
Why your brain treats learning a new skill like a threat, and how to push through anyway
The one question that separates artists who grow from artists who stay stuck
What the research says about how fast you can build real confidence in a new skill (it is faster than you think)
How to stop comparing your Chapter 1 to someone else's Chapter 20
Why sharing your work before you feel ready is one of the highest-leverage moves you can make
What taking responsibility for your own success actually looks like on a Tuesday night
If you are an artist or creative entrepreneur who is learning something new, building something from scratch, or feeling behind, this episode is for you. You are not behind. You are not untalented. You are not too late.
Ready to stop figuring it out alone?
Kat has 3 spots open this season for one on one coaching. If you are an artist building a sustainable career, transitioning to full time, or growing a creative platform or mentorship practice, apply now at espopova.com. Applications are open and she is currently scheduling free discovery calls.
Resources:
One on one coaching: espopova.com
Create Magazine: www.createmagazine.co
Instagram: @createmagazine
Substack: createmagazine.substack.com

Emily Jeffords is back on The Create! Podcast and this one is for every artist who is quietly wondering if there is a better way to do this.
Emily is a painter, educator, and founder of the Making Art Work program - and she brings a level of honesty to this conversation that is genuinely rare. We talk about what it looks like to be in an "incubation year," the bravery it takes to begin again after you've already mastered something, and why the sale starts long before anyone opens their wallet - it starts when you fall back in love with your own work.
She shares the real story behind her commission journey, from charging 5% of what she charges now to intentionally opening just three spots for large-scale work and selling them all. We get into how she structures commissions entirely on her own terms, the nervous system collapse that was her 2021 burnout, and why she chose to scale her business down from seven figures - and has never looked back.
This episode is honest, practical, and genuinely grounding. I hope it gives you the permission slip you didn't know you needed.
In this episode:
What an "incubation year" actually looks like in your creative business
The bravery of beginning again after you've already mastered something
How Emily structures commissions so she stays creatively in charge
Selling older work - three tips for falling back in love with your inventory
Why she walked away from a seven-figure business and what she built instead
Burnout as a nervous system issue, not a productivity problem
The 1% a day mantra inside Making Art Work
What profitability really means for artists beyond money
Links mentioned:
Emily's free 4-day Share Your Work Challenge - starts March 24  
Emily's Making Art Work 9-week program 
Submit to Create! Magazine: - createmagazine.co/call-for-art

Most artists wait for the art world to invite them in. Daniel Arsham stopped waiting - and built his own gallery at 21 instead.
In this episode, Kat sits down with Daniel Arsham, one of the most sought-after artists of his generation, to talk about his brand new book Future Relic - a brutally honest handbook written for his 17-year-old self who dreamed of being an artist but had no roadmap to get there.
Daniel's iconic "eroded" aesthetic has made him a singular force in contemporary art, but behind that vision is decades of showing up, collecting failures, and building a career on his own terms - from gutting a Miami house to create a gallery space, to collaborating with Dior, Adidas, Pharrell Williams, and the Cleveland Cavaliers.
In this conversation, we get into:
Why art school teaches you to make the work but not build a career
How Daniel got gallery representation with Perrotin after four years of showing up
The mindset shift that makes walking into intimidating rooms possible
Why nobody remembers your failures - and why you should collect them anyway
How brand collaborations funded his practice without compromising his vision
The power of writing down ultra-specific goals
Why restraint is one of the most underrated tools in an artist's career
Whether you're just starting out or wondering how to take your practice to the next level, this conversation will inspire you and give you real, actionable perspective on what building a sustainable art career actually looks like.
Get the book: Future Relic by Daniel Arsham
Daniel Arsham's exhibition "Just Various Thoughts" opens March 5th at Perrotin New York.
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