Wendy Hickey is the founder and executive director of ArtPop Street Gallery, although to many in the art community, she is referred to as the Fairy Art Mother.
ArtPop is a 501c3 dedicated to promoting the work of local artists through available media space, such as billboards and news stands. ArtPop (Art + Public Outdoor Project = ArtPop) currently accepts artist entries from 11 counties to participate in their program. One of the more recognizable billboards is located in Plaza Midwood near Legion Brewery.
When not working with artists, volunteers, promoting ArtPop, and meeting with the ArtPop Board of Directors, Wendy works at RBX Media in advertising sales.
Here is what her typical day looks like:
6:45 a.m. … Time to get the show on the road! I wake up the same time during the week, and I try to not sleep past 8:00 a.m. on the weekends. I usually wake up on my own, but I do set an alarm, just in case. Although I’m usually ready to go, there are days where I hit the snooze button.
I like to get a walk or a bike ride in before the workday starts, so I try to do that as soon as I wake up. If I go for a bike ride, I usually do an hour (about 10 miles) on my Specialized Jett bike.
7:30/7:45 a.m. … When getting ready for my day, I only take about 30 minutes to do my beauty routine… just the basics. I don’t pick out my outfit the night before, it’s more on impulse and depends on what I have going on that day, meetings, events, etc. Same with my hair… some days I’ll leave it down, and other days I’ll throw it up in a ponytail.
8:00 a.m. … Time for work! I work from home, so I make my coffee and then get ready to go. I check my work emails first, and then I check out social media. I get my news by reading online, too.
10:00 a.m. … Now it’s time for breakfast. I have an Isagenix vanilla shake for breakfast.
My day usually consists of answering and sending emails, making and receiving phone calls, and many times in person meetings sprinkled throughout the day.
12:00 p.m. … Time for lunch. I’ll either have another shake for lunch, or I will go somewhere (usually between 12:00 and 3 p.m.). If I go out, I love going to Dish in Plaza Midwood for lunch. After lunch, it’s back to work and to check on things with ArtPop.
5:00 p.m. … My day job usually ends around this time and ArtPop keeps going. Right now we are working on our open calls (coming in the following weeks) for our 2018 ArtPop season. Our program is open to individual artists from any discipline ages 18 and up. We accept submissions from artists from 11 counties (Mecklenburg, Cabarrus, Lincoln, Cleveland, Iredell, Gaston, Rowan, Rutherford, Stanly, Union and York Counties). All submitted work is juried and voted on. The artists selected for the program receive a value of $30,000-$70,000 (each) in advertising each year. To say we get busy is an understatement, but I love it all.
For dinner, I usually go out for dinner. It’s rare that I cook. I usually pick up a salad somewhere, or eat dinner at Dish (can you tell I love this place) and I’ll drink red wine or vodka after a long day.
Truthfully, my evenings are about art. I can usually be found at an art event or working on something with or for ArtPop. I go out at least once a week, but usually more. I love going to Gallery Twenty-Two in Plaza Midwood, great wine and unique art. I also love going to the Evoke lounge, Longitude 80, in the Le Meriden Hotel. We host Art + Aperitif, an evening to celebrate the amazing local artists in our community, the first and third Wednesday every month at Evoke’s Longitude 80. The next one is coming up on August 16.
During the weekends, I love hanging out at Lake Norman with my boyfriend. On the weekends we’ll go hiking, mountain biking, or we can be found relaxing at Lake Norman State Park.
9:30 p.m. … Time to get ready for bed. I don’t really have any bedtime rituals or routines, but I do try to decompress from the day.
10: 00 p.m. … Lights out! I love my sleep and need it with my schedule. I essentially have two full time jobs and I love both of them.
