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Chelsea Bentley James studied art at the University of Utah and shows her work at Dolby Chadwick in San Francisco. After some early success with still life paintings, Chelsea was advised to “Paint what makes your heart hurt.” Although those early still lifes were necessary to her technical growth and she loved painting them, Chelsea felt they might become somewhat formulaic. So she looked for a motif that was uniquely hers and found the vulnerability and openness of the desert. This conversation echoes a recurring theme here on the Savvy Painter podcast: which is to trust yourself first. As Chelsea will tell you, you can’t fool anyone, and when you paint from your heart and trust your intuition, your authenticity is rewarded. People notice. Chelsea and Antrese also talk about her painting process, allowing a series to grow, avoiding preciousness and even painting with toddlers in the house.