Q&A With Roar Artists
Skye Kelly-Barrett is an Art Curator, Director and Agent behind the magnifico Roar Illustration Agency - a unique boutique art & illustration agency that represents a curated selection of the most talented artist (both established and emerging!) within the creative industry.
Skye is our go-to on licensing, commissions, valuing your work and working with brands and agencies. She has been with us throughout our journey in publishing and running The Collective and remains a friend and supporter (and agent to some!) of our members.
What drew you to working in the arts industry?
I’ve always been fascinated with art and the way people and experience it. I studied art history and then continued to study visual culture and museum design (MA). After this, I knew I wanted to work within the industry, but was really struggling to find a space that I felt at home in, that helped champion the art and artists that I was interested in at the time.
After working for a gallery, and knowing I wanted to do my own thing, I started Skull & Heart, a company that produced limited edition art prints alongside exhibitions and events (closed early 2019) and after a few years I decided to take all that I had learned so far and carve a space that would help and nurture the artists and their careers - and so, in 2018 I launched my agency, Roar. We began by representing a curated selection of artists (all of whom I had previously worked with and knew well), and a year or so later we now have 18 incredible artists, some fantastic projects and I’m just super excited to see where the journey goes from here!
Describe your work to us…
Sadly, I’m not a creative, and so my work (whilst important) can be pretty boring! I spend a lot of time on my computer, having meetings, art directing, emailing, and generally trying to push great art in front of new eyes in the hope that more people can experience greatness, and also hopefully commission some of the artists for epic jobs!
“Don’t let social media and the ever-looming fear of not being “relevant” or “cool” enough due to likes or follower numbers impact the way you work.”
What's the best bit?
When an artist secures a job. There is no greater feeling than knowing that someone else appreciates them as much as you do, and you get to see their amazing work out in the wild! Also, just seeing how supportive the artists we represent are of the agency and each other, it makes me feel so proud to know and work with such an ace bunch. I’m so lucky!
Where has Roar taken you?
I travel a lot anyway, so I often try and get some work meetings squeezed in as well! So, worldwide, but I do get some down time too.
Collective member Alana McDowell represented by Roar Illustration, working on her Vans Europe collaboration
What's been your biggest achievement so far?
Is it weird to say having Roar hit it’s one year anniversary? Roar has never had any funding or help financially (apart from the ever wonderful support from my partner, friends and mother!), and so it’s always on me to make it work - it’s my money and time!
It’s so hard to know if something will be a success, and even though we’re well into our second year now, Roar still feels like such a baby business with so much growing to do and so much to learn. I have to remember to stop being so hard on myself sometimes and be like, “it’s fine, this is fine”.
I always do the best I can for our artists, and really hope that everyone sticks with us as we grow into something bigger and more beautiful!
Any tips for emerging artists and how to get yourself out there?
I think the best thing I can say to any artist out there, emerging or established, is to keep working and creating pieces that make you happy and feel honest to who you are as an artist. Don’t let social media and the ever-looming fear of not being “relevant” or “cool” enough due to likes or follower numbers impact the way you work. If your work is true to you, people will see it, and feel it and they will want to be a part of it. I get a lot of young artists ask how to be (XYZ) rather than how to be themselves, and I think the real thing to underline is to just keep working and practicing and finding out who you are as an artist.
