We had the good fortune of connecting with Alessandra Salituri and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Alessandra, we’d love to hear about how you approach risk and risk-taking
Risk has played a huge role in my career and life. When I wanted to start my company Citizen Atelier I was working full time at a PR firm and was building my business in the evenings. At the time, there were very few online art galleries and I thought to myself before I launched: “I either have an amazing idea or this is not going to work at all.” My intuition told me that I had to go full speed ahead and everything flourished as a result. Two months after launching my business, I had pieces of art featured in Jessica Alba’s home. Everything grew from there. I took a leap of faith about a year after starting my business to focus on it full time.

I think the biggest challenge with risk is fear of the unknown. As Tony Robbins said, one of the 6 basic human needs is certainty. It’s extremely difficult to live in the uncomfortable space between the known and unknown. But I believe it’s something that can be learned and I’ve trained myself to become comfortable in that zone. I think what guides me through is becoming really intentional on what I want to create and build in my life, and then having faith that it will be brought in at the right time. The last year especially I’ve pushed the limits of my fear and trusted in this philosophy even more, and every time the universe comes through. I truly think to live the life of our dreams requires risk, including sometimes giving up the ‘good’ for the potential of ‘great.’ The challenge is we only know if it was worthwhile to take that risk in hindsight. In my own life and career, I’ve learned that I must become comfortable living in that ‘empty’ space before things manifest, to eventually receive everything I dreamed of. It requires a lot of self-trust and faith, and a willingness to confront fear but on the other side is a deep sense of fulfillment and accomplishment.

What should our readers know about your business?
Citizen Atelier is an online art gallery that sells original works of art and limited-edition prints from some of the world’s most established and emerging artists and photographers. Our mission is to make art accessible and to support the careers of creatives who are inspiring the world through the creation of beautiful, unique imagery.

Art inspires us to dream and adds depth to our space. We’re passionate about curating a collection of art that brings joy and positive energy to people’s homes.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I absolutely love Silverlake. If my best friend was visiting for a week, I’d bring her to Cafe Stella at Sunset Junction for lunch, and coffee at Intelligentsia (my all-time favorite hangout). I’d go for an afternoon massage at The Now on Sunset. Some of my other favorite restaurants in the area are Ohana Poke for a quick pick-up, Ostrich Farm and Little Dom’s. For hotels, the Silver Lake Pool and Inn and Noon on Sunset Hill are my top places to stay. Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
Shoutout to my cousin Gabriel McCay who is the technical director of Citizen Atelier (and owns his own digital marketing firm Blue Lotus Creative) who has been my biggest supporter along the way.

Website: www.citizenatelier.com

Instagram: www.instagram.com/citizenatelier

Image Credits
Photos by: Ashley Capp, Kieran Darcy, Liana Carbone and Corey Kaminski.

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