It’s time to get a bit fangirl for a minute… but when you have seen Marsha’s work, and have had the pleasure of meeting her, you will understand why. Marsha is an uber talented Melbourne based art director, who is utterly humble and kind in nature. I was first introduced to Marsha’s work, back in 2017 at a launch event for a brand who had worked with her for their creative direction and campaign imagery. I remember just staring at these images beaming with pops of wild colour, harmonious textures and fluid movement, and thought ‘these are pure genius.’ (One of those images is below.)

Her work has graced the pages of Vogue Living and Cereal Magazine, to name just a few off the impressive list. So to be able to profile Marsha for our IWD campaign is truly an honour…and worthy of fangirling. Below, Marsha shares her story about the journey to where she is today. Enjoy!

How, when and why did you decide to launch your own business? What was the lightbulb moment? Can you describe the situation, that life-changing moment? About six years ago I reached a point where I knew I had to make a change. I was in a job that wasn’t making me happy nor challenging me anymore. I was waiting for a lightbulb moment but soon realised that I just had to take a leap into the unknown to figure out what that lightbulb consisted of. I’m not going to lie, leaving a comfort zone, financial security and a planned out career path is frightening. I had absolutely nothing in place when I quit my job. I took the leap without having any idea of what my next step would be. I just did it and somehow knew that I would be better for it. Fear became exhilarating.

What do you think equipped you for it and what gave you the conviction to actually do it? You can have all the support and inspiration in the world to encourage you to make that leap. You can listen to podcasts, read books, travel the world etc. All of this is absolutely helpful and essential. But the most significant is your attitude. I was equipped with the attitude to work hard, to keep going, to stop making excuses and get off my ass to make shit happen. Don’t get me wrong, I still have moments of doubt, I just try to avoid giving those thoughts too much air time.

What were the major obstacles or challenges, especially unforeseen ones? No matter how established you are there is always the concern that you may not get the work that you need to sustain your business. You can work on a career changing project one week but then not have any work the following week. It’s about being proactive and not always expecting business to come to you.

What were the unexpected rewards or highlights? I am fortunate to love what I do therefore I feel like that in itself is a reward for the work I’ve put in to get where I am. But, the ultimate is seeing a concept I’ve worked hard on come to life. I can’t explain it, I get all the feels. Its complete joy.

Having your own business can at times lead to self-doubt. Do you relate to this and how does it manifest for you ? How do you combat it? I can totally relate. Self-doubt can be crippling but I think all creatives suffer from this in one way or another. Perhaps it’s more prevalent now with our generation being exposed to social media? I combat doubt in different ways but what works best for me now is actually having a life that is outside my work. I love what I do for a living and can easily focus on work every minute of the day but I’ve realised my relationships and connections with people are what give me energy and confidence to get through periods of self-doubt.

On the flip side, what are your hopes and visions for putting your work out there – how do you hope the world benefits from your work? If I can evoke some form of curiosity in my work then I think I’ve done my job.