Meet Lauren Skunta | Art director, set stylist, visual artist

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

Hi Lauren, we’d love to hear more about how you thought about starting your own business?
I was creating window displays for Anthropologie when I began thinking about starting my own business. I loved working with my hands but I also loved sketching out the ideas, submitting them to the corporate offices, and doing material tests to figure out what was possible with whatever materials we were using. There aren’t a ton of jobs out there that still value this type of hand made work so I knew if I wanted to continue this path I’d have to start my own business. Luckily working in a one person department (with assistants occasionally) prepared me for things like budgeting, timelines, presenting work, etc. I started Elbowgrease when I was 25 because I had one year left of being able to be on my parents health insurance and I figured this was my “make or break” year.

Please tell us more about your work. We’d love to hear what sets you apart from others, what you are most proud of or excited about. How did you get to where you are today professionally. Was it easy? If not, how did you overcome the challenges? What are the lessons you’ve learned along the way. What do you want the world to know about you or your brand and story?
Throughout my career I’ve been a mulitmedia artist focusing on window displays and site specific art installations however for the past few years I’ve gotten to focus on my first love – painting. I’m primarily a figure painter inspired by the negative space our bodies form through different positioning. I like my work to feel impressionistic with the anatomy rooted in realism. I aim to capture the gesture of a pose by focusing on areas of tension, where there is a shift in weight, and where there is space. Texture, form, and line are common threads in my figure work.

Elbowgrease LLC has survived this long because I’ve adapted my business to challenges throughout the years. The most recent challenge has been covid. In February of 2020 I took a 5 week sabbatical from my art installations to focus on creating a painting portfolio for Elbowgrease in order to hopefully decrease the amount of 3D work and gain more painting client work. I arrived back home March 6th and suddenly all of the projects that I had currently lined up were postponed or cancelled due to the start of the pandemic. No one could have predicted how the pandemic would effect all businesses, especially those who rely on public gatherings to showcase art installations. During that time I pivoted to focus more of my efforts towards prop creation and photo styling – which is something I devoted about 25% of my time to previously.

I reached out to new places and found a team of people I liked freelancing with so much that I decided to join them! I now work at TRG Multimedia as an art director and set stylist 4 days a week, and use my 5th day to work on Elbowgrease projects. Ive been able to focus on painting more often since I take on less large scale work and I’ve even been able to release a new painting series through LES Collection, an online gallery. Finding partners like TRG Multimedia and LES Collection have really made it easy for me to transition from someone that works alone most of the time to a part of a team of really talented individuals.

I’d love people to take away from my story that adaptability is one of the keys to success. When I was creating window displays in New York I never imagined the winding path that would lead me to where I am now. It happened because I learned new skills, I went to networking events, I said yes to jobs that were on the fringe of my vision for the company and those jobs led me down different avenues that I fell in love with. I wouldn’t have the skill set I have now without shifting focus and adapting to changes as they come.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
I currently live in Cleveland and I love how green it is here so I’d most likely take a guest on a hike. Many people dont realize how much gorgeous nature is in North East Ohio and are often shocked by how beautiful it is. After a hike my first food stop for anyone visiting is to take them to Il Rioni – our local pizza shop that serves up authentic pies. They can do no wrong. While they are in town we’d have to visit the Cleveland Museum of art, check out a concert at blossom music center, and hit up the local garage sales for treasure hunting.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I loved my time at The Ohio State University where I received my BFA in drawing and painting. I think going to a HUGE school that has a small drawing and painting program had a major impact on where I am now. I had a well rounded experience where I was able to take a wide range of art classes from amazing faculty but I also received a business minor and used so many of OSU’s resources to solidify that I could have a successful career. I attribute a lot of my creative/business brain duality to that time in my life.

Website: https://www.elbowgreasedesign.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/elbowgreasedesign/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lauren-skunta-917b0717/

Image Credits
Trg Multimedia, Paul Sobota, Maggie Miller, Michael Stanis, Dustin Franz