Bernadine Gunderson shared their story and experiences with us recently and you can find our conversation below.
Hi Bernadine, thank you so much for joining us today. We’re thrilled to learn more about your journey, values and what you are currently working on. Let’s start with an ice breaker: What are you being called to do now, that you may have been afraid of before?
In the past, I was afraid to fully take a chance on myself and my art. I spent a lot of time pouring my creative energy into other people and more times than not I was left feeling burnt out and empty. So this year after I got fired from a corporate job, I decided that it was time to really take my dreams and aspiration seriously. I think for a long time I didn’t because I was afraid to be fully seen, a lot of my work explores various areas of my personal life that hasn’t always been easy to talk about. And although I’m still not sure what I’m doing, I’m starting to work on projects that I thought of years ago and I’ll be doing my first art exhibit on November 6th here in Nashville. I’m excited to be finally sharing my more personal creative pursuits with the world.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
My name is Bernadine Gunderson, I am a multi hyphenate Creative Director based in Nashville, TN. I have been working on sets since I was 14 starting out as a model and then slowly started working more behind the scenes. First with hair and make up, then styling, directing and set design. I feel very grateful to have been able to experience so many different facets of bringing a production to life. One of my favorite things to do is to take an idea and then bring it into the physical world. It’s truly one of the most satisfying feelings. Some of the projects I’ve worked on I got the opportunity to create really cool custom clothing pieces or done really fun campy set design. It’s crazy to me because my parents are very blue-collar and being a creative was viewed more as a hobby growing up, so it’s funny when I talk to them about my work cause I’m just like “Oh yeah I was on set building Sandcastles the other day.” I’m still working on set doing various jobs but my main focus right now is my writing, art and photography.
Thanks for sharing that. Would love to go back in time and hear about how your past might have impacted who you are today. What relationship most shaped how you see yourself?
Honestly, the one that I have with myself. And that’s only been kind of a recent realization. Growing up, I was made to feel very small and was kind of used to acting in ways that would make other people happy. I thought that’s what I had to do in order to be loved, that mindset left me feeling very unloved because I wasn’t being very kind to myself. I was looking externally for validation that one can only truly give to themselves. I was letting other people write my narrative about who I was as a person and when I took a step back and really saw myself for who I am I didn’t resonate with those stories anymore. I think one of the greatest gifts that we can give ourselves is kindness. I know that sounds silly because to some people that might just be automatic, but for a lot of people it’s not. I feel like ever since I’ve been working on how I view myself, how I talk to myself, how I treat myself it’s given me a larger capacity to be kind to others. Not that I wasn’t before but now it’s coming from a place of wholeness and not from a place of desperation of wanting to be loved.
What did suffering teach you that success never could?
Suffering taught me to learn how to be happy with nothing because even if I had everything if I had never suffered, I would just take it for granted. I have had an interesting life to say the least but it’s one that’s made me very resilient, scrappy and can pretty much learn how to do anything on the fly if I have to. Now as I’m getting older and hitting certain milestones that I wish I had hit earlier in life I realize that if I got those opportunities then I wouldn’t have appreciated it. There are still plenty of opportunities that I took for granted and I feel like now I’m looking back on them and fully appreciating them for what they are now. And that’s in all facets of life not just work. I think that if you can be content with nothing, you’ll end up with everything.
Next, maybe we can discuss some of your foundational philosophies and views? What are the biggest lies your industry tells itself?
I work in fashion and music predominantly and I think the biggest lie is how glamorous they make it all seem. Don’t get me wrong, there are some really cool perks to this industry, but it’s an industry that thrives on an oversaturated job market, there’s always going to be someone willing to do it for cheaper or nothing because everyone is so hungry for an in or an opportunity. I think another lies that a lot of people think as an artist or creative that you have to struggle to be successful. It’s something that I had to let go of because I realized the harder that I chased and pushed for things that would inevitably not work out, just weren’t really for me in the first place. It made me realize that when I just take a step back and be more intentional about my own life and desires the right opportunities always seem to find me.
Okay, so before we go, let’s tackle one more area. Could you give everything your best, even if no one ever praised you for it?
In the past, probably not. What I’ve been coming back to this year is my younger self the one who created not because anyone was going to pay them for it or because anyone was actually even going to see it, but it was because it was the only thing that I ever knew how to do. In the past, I was too afraid to put myself out there and this year I’ve been really focusing on creating the things that matter to me. I have a story to tell and I hope by sharing it I can empower other people to overcome difficult things. And help people realize that regardless of where you come from if you really believe in yourself, you can achieve incredible things even if everyone around you thinks you’re crazy. That just means you’re probably doing something right.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.berandinecreative.com
- Instagram: @bernadine_elizabeth
Image Credits
1st Image Photographed by Kara Nikol
2nd Image Photographed by Studio M Art
3rd Image Photographed by Bernadine Gunderson
4th Image Photographed by Natia Cinco
5th Image Photographed by Natia Cinco
6th Image Photographed by Aaron Miller
7th Image Photographed by Sara-Anne Waggoner
8th Image Photographed by Kevin Solaka
9th Image Photographed by Sara-Anne Waggoner
