From Floristry to the Brit Awards: How Rose Liberty Built a Career in Event Art

How many years have you been working in your field? I've been working in my field for the last 7 years, launching my business officially a year ago. I have also worked as an artist taking commissions alongside other roles for the past 15 years.

What do you wish someone had told you when you were starting out? That it doesn't have to be perfect first time, sometimes it just needs to be DONE. Sometimes you need to just allow yourself to make something bad or write something boring so you have a starting point, and remember that you can ALWAYS change your mind later.

What does breaking into your field actually look like — what are employers really looking for? My specific field is more about finding clients than employers, but I would say they are always looking for people who are communicative, flexible, and reliable. You could be the most skilled person out there, but if you have an attitude, take ages to reply to messages or are wishy washy with your pricing/timelines, they will be far less likely to book you, return to you, or recommend you. Also don't get hung up on having certain qualifications - more often than not experience, skill and network play a bigger role.

Any advice for young people who want to do what you do? I would say just get out there and TALK to people. Tell everyone you meet about what you do or what you're passionate about! You genuinely never know what it could lead to. The amount of times I've gotten talking to someone in a queue, or on public transport, mentioned what I do - Turns out they have a colleague or friend who was looking for an illustrator! Or they've followed me, and weeks/months later reached out about a project of their own. It can happen anywhere!

What do you actually do day-to-day — what does a typical week look like? Day to day there is a LOT of admin - probably more than you'd expect. Constant rotation of outreach, enquiries, invoicing, planning, networking. Social media, creating content and engagement takes up a lot of time. Then there's fitting in time to actually create art - I'm a one woman army! Weekly I'll usually have 2-5 commissions to work on, then monthly there will be larger events that I have to prep for.

How did you get into your field? Was it a straight path or did it take a few unexpected turns? About 7 years ago I was working in retail (and posting my drawings online for fun), when I was contacted by a well established florist who needed an illustration for an installation. 1 illustration turned into 2, which turned into 2 more… after several months, they had an opening on their events team, and I began working for them full time - later becoming their Events Manager. I realised there was a whole world out there for artists within the events industry that I'd never known before.

I eventually went freelance and built up my network of contacts. I also broadened my net, working within the events industry doing set styling for pop ups, guest portraits, installations etc. Then last year decided it was time to launch my own studio. Now I firmly have one foot still in the floral event world, but definitely function as an artist within my own right too.

What's the best and hardest thing about working in a creative industry? Self promotion! I am by no means a flashy person or a natural at social media, and cringe myself out daily when I have to show up online. However, it is such a crucial tool in this day and age, you have to just be brave and put yourself out there! The way I see it, I can either be shy and not try, and 100% not do what I love, or I can put myself out there, feel a bit uncomfortable, and have a chance of actually being successful. And I'd always rather give myself that chance.