Dena Ackerman is a fine artist, illustrator, art instructor and writer now based in Israel, but originally from Los Angeles. She is a frequent presence on LinkedIn, and has a passionate following because of her relatable, personal posts, as well as her vulnerability around the challenges of making a living as an artist. I came across her through a contact on our inspiring Israeli women in tech series Fran Jakubowicz and have had the pleasure of having her capture some family members in her exquisite portraits.

Our conversation starts with Dena’s childhood and a house filled with learning, laughter and community and the first signs of her talent as an artist that were nurtured early on through art lessons. We hear about her first sale of a piece of art work and how she decided to pursue it as a career.  Dena shares the ups and downs of choosing art as a career, how she worked with mentors and a business coach in order to determine how to charge appropriately for her work and the power of an online community, most notably now, Linked In to provide support and fellowship.

We cycle then into other issues facing artists today – such as the advance of AI and replication of original images, and whether the NFT boom will present a challenge to art as we know it.  Finally, Dena shares her love of books and we hear about the artists and the biographies of artists who have inspired her.  You can learn more about Dena’s work on the links below:

Website/portfolio: DenaAckerman.com

Art courses: https://artbydena.thinkific.com/

LinkedIn if anyone wants to connect: https://www.linkedin.com/in/denaackerman/