We had the good fortune of connecting with Nila Jane Autry and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Nila Jane, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
Starting my own Art business was the unplanned plan from the beginning…maybe it started way back in High school when I took my first art class. My Art Teacher, Mr. Durant, wasn’t charismatic or even very encouraging, but he taught me how to draw. He gave me tools. I thought people who drew well were born with a ‘God given talent’ to draw and I wasn’t one of them. But when I found I could draw and paint well, I started on my Art journey. I got my Art Composite teaching degree and went on to become a secondary level art teacher. I also taught some college level courses during my 30 years.

Arizona is where my career began. I met my future husband during my first year at Ft. Thomas High School. I was single that year and came back married my second year. With the birth of our 1st baby in April of 1982, I stopped teaching for 10 years. We moved 14 times during that 10 year period, my husband changed jobs 22 times, and we had 6 kiddos. After the birth of our 6th child I went back to teaching at my Alma Mater, Granger High in West Valley City, Utah. All through my teaching career the plan was to use my art business as retirement income. Raising 6 children, and my young husband…made it almost impossible to put away extra savings for retirement.

Now, here I am, all retired and still trying to figure out how to make money as a full time artist. I remember the first time I sold a piece of art outside of family and friends. It was both exhilarating and heartbreaking. It felt like I was selling one of my children. I did discover that the greatest compliment an artist can receive for work well done is when people are willing to part with their hard-earned money to purchase and enjoy something I created.

Although we’ve continued moving more than the average American, I was always able to teach Art. About 14 years before retiring I started learning how to market my work seriously. I’ve taken Art Marketing courses wherever I could find them.


Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
There’s nothing I love more than being in the middle of a painting. I love the focus, the creativity, solving problems, and pulling it all together. Then I love sharing it on social media, at art events, and in art galleries. My home is set up as an Art Gallery. I have my messy studio, my classroom where I teach art, and every wall, including my laundry room…is covered with either paintings by me, or paintings and artwork I have collected over the years. As a young Artist, I made myself a promise…all the artwork I hang in my home will be by an Artist I have a personal connection with, thus I’m also an art collector.  My colleagues have labeled me a ‘Beauty Hunter’ and ‘Old Fashioned’. Both labels I have embraced.

I’ve spent literally thousands of dollars taking workshops from artists I admire, and many marketing workshops. Currently I am taking a Media Marketing workshop with Jessica Hughes. I do 2 or three webinars a week learning how to become more visible. I’m looking for my people, my audience.

My motivation to make art, and bless the lives of others with my art and my teaching is all consuming. I do have many other obligations. I help run a Non-profit art group called the Tooele County Arts Guild. I served as President for 3 years and am now the Treasurer. As an art group we learn together every week, in the summer we go paint outside, called ‘Plein air’. During the winter months we meet once a week and practice figure drawing from live models. We enter local art shows, host art shows, and participate all over the Wasatch Front in art events together.

I’m also a church goer and enjoy the sociality that exists in my community through worshiping with people I enjoy and serve with. I love going on Road Trips with my husband. We now have 14 grandchildren. Family is also very important to me. And..I’m a musician. I practice my viola every day, and play the piano and the organ. Singing is restricted to choir groups…there is not enough time in a day but I thrive on stress, and focus. I love who I am. I love love love my life. My blessing are numerous. Gratitude is the key to all of my success.  All I need to do to come out of a funk is count my blessings.

My biggest struggle is finding time to complete all the great ideas that come my way. Some ideas of course,  are better than others. Recently I decided to enter an Art show called ‘Shapes’. The idea was to paint on any shape other than square or rectangular, so I bought a crummy violin and sanded it down (without eye protection), and painted sunflowers all over it. The project actually turned out cool, but my eyes, Arghhh. Particulates went into my eyes, and decided to come out all over my face creating sores, swelling, infection, puffy eyes and the need to NOT wear makeup of any kind. Not wearing makeup, has been very uncomfortable for me. I’m also an alternative medicine advocate, and refused to go to a medical doctor for 6 weeks. I broke. I went. He gave me 2 medications that are making a big difference. I’m looking forward to wearing makeup again soon!

Anything worth doing will have struggles. Sometimes the price is high…but in the end I feel it is always worth it. There has been nothing smooth about my art road. It twists and turns, requires more time than I can give, and sometimes makes my family annoyed.

Oil Paintings of flowers in their natural habitat have become my trademark. Because I spend my summers painting outside, I have been attracted to flowers in nature, rather than vases of flowers although I love those too. Anything beautiful!  I paint in series. Landscapes, architecture and portraits call to me. I just want to paint everything…painting something glorifies it and makes it more significant. I love the ability to point out the beauties of the earth through artwork. Emotions are such a big deal to me. I love sad, happy, excited, dark, and empty. I want to illustrate it all.

So often I wonder if I should loosen up and just splash paint all over canvases and paint faster…then I remember how much I love the detail, the focus and the ability I have to make a flower petal turn gracefully, and look so transparent and lifelike. It is who I am. Like beautiful music, my artwork evokes emotion and tells a story. I’m patient.

I have learned to be myself. To embrace the emotions, talents and challenges the Lord has blessed me with. I’ve learned that others need my energy, my passion and my enthusiasm. I’ve been blessed to bless others and to help them in their life journey.


If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
My best friend and I recently took a week long road trip. We began in Grantsville Utah, our home, headed up to Preston Idaho to allow Levi, our adorable down syndrome son and his dog Toshi to hang out with his sister and their family for the week so we could really enjoy the trip. We then headed to the Phoenix Arizona area. We had several goals:

We wanted fresh grapefruit. (because grapefruit in the stores isn’t really grapefruit…you wouldn’t know until you have fresh Arizona grapefruit.) We brought back a truckload.

My brother lives in Peoria, and we needed to see him as he is suffering with ALS, and has recently received a Tracheotomy. His family needed support and encouragement. We wish we could have done more.

The Scottsdale Artwalk, held every Thursday evening was amazing. I could have spent every evening there. We had some great conversation and met some amazing artists, and wished we were rich so we could buy lots of stuff.

As a couple, we needed time together, and were blessed to stay in Mesa, with the couple who brought us together in Thatcher Arizona so many years ago. The memories and conversations were priceless.

We just wanted to spend a lot of money on gasoline…ha ha. We were really impressed with the Freeway systems in the Phoenix area. Using our GPS guidance and traveling in heavy traffic was so much more organized and pleasant than we expected.

Plus, we love to eat out whenever we have a good excuse. We took our Mesa friends out to dinner at the Arriba Mexican Grill. Fabulous!!! Our favorite burger place no matter where we are in America is Five Guys Burgers and Fries. We ate there twice, and we stopped in Cedar City to eat at the Puerto Vallarta Restaurant. Best hot sauce ever!!!

We drove home on Highway 89, and stopped at all the little roadside shops and bought gifts for everyone. Then we headed West on Highway 20 in the middle of the night and had our best conversations, probably of our whole marriage.  FYI, Highway 20 is now renamed. It’s called Memory Lane. We arrived home at 3:00 am, which is pretty tough on the over 60 crowd.

We would do it all again, and probably will soon! There are so many places, people, and things to do in the Phoenix we didn’t have time for.


Who else deserves some credit and recognition?

Without a doubt my biggest shout-out belongs to my husband, Charles Jay Autry. We will celebrate our 40th wedding anniversary in June of this year. When we met, he didn’t really like my artwork very much, but he liked me, so he patiently encouraged me to try new things, spend time honing my craft, and becoming, sometimes painfully, my best resource for an in-depth critique. I carefully and sometimes tearfully, taught him to only critique my work when I asked him to. He is always kind, but very honest. He also did well in High school in his business classes and clubs he joined. We went through the multi-level marketing scene together and learned so much about building a business although we weren’t focused at all at the time on my Art business. It was always on the back burner. When we finally gave up on the multi-level marketing ideas, I was able to apply the business principles learned. I still deem him my greatest supporter. He enjoys time with me evenings as I paint and draw, and helps me with my pop-up tents as I do really well at Art Festivals.

Being an artist is an emotional roller-coaster. I also have many very valuable and important art friends whom I could not succeed without. My husband encourages me to interact, paint and draw with, and learn with them.

 “One person can make a difference…” JFK

Website: nilajaneautry.com

Instagram: @nila_jane_autry

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nilajaneautry

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC7ZtUh7GLDb5VcG1DUiE7KQ

Other: nilajaneautry@gmail.com https://www.facebook.com/EternalOilsbyJane

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