Boss Ladies | Britt Bass — The Refined Woman

Photos c/o Kathryn McCrary & Morgan Blake

Atlanta native Britt Bass Turner is an abstract artist known for her playful and colorful paintings. She fell in love with color and design at a young age (by way of her interior designer mother) through immersing herself in fabric samples and color swatches. Britt makes paintings and installations full time in her Roswell, Georgia studio. She also calls the quiet, Southern town her home, which she shares with her husband, Render, and their Boykin Spaniel, Birdie.

Growing up I really wanted to be

An architect

My go-to order at a coffee shop is

Currently an Americano with Almond milk

I don’t know how I ever lived without

My husband -- my coffee is made and my vitamins are set out on the counter before I wake up! I'm not a morning person, so I have him to thank for getting me out of the house every day

One thing people don’t know about me is

I'm pretty good at ping pong

My real life hero is

My Mimi (my grandmother). She is strong, beautiful, wise, faithful, and has overcome so much in her lifetime. She taught me loyalty, how to speak up and stand my ground, and to go after what I want! She is my favorite person!

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What I love about my work is

It is light and full of fun. It's engaging, yet not too complex to distract from the simple pleasure of viewing art. I love knowing that my work makes people happy!

The hardest thing about my work is

Making work when I don't feel inspired, when I'm sick, when I don't feel like it. It's not a plug-and-play kind of job -- it takes heart and soul. So your heart and soul have to be right in order to make the good stuff. My advice is, get your mind, body, and soul right before you make the work! It's great accountability for me -- I know I need to check in with myself when I just don’t’ seem to like what I’m making.

How I got started with my current career

I sort of fell into it in a beautifully naive, organic way. After graduating from art school I worked a few part time jobs to make ends meet while painting nights and weekends. Slowly my painting took over my other jobs, and after 2 years it became my full time job. It's now been 6 years and I feel like still learning and growing!

The dumbest thing I did when I was starting out was

Spending too much time on the nitty gritty instead of on my work. It should always be about the artwork, it speaks for itself!

My typical day looks like:

Wake up between 7-7:30, coffee, read, go to barre class, eat breakfast, get to studio around 10, answer emails, put out fires, check in with Morgan and Sejal (employees), grab lunch or go out with a friend! Paint until 5 or so, go on a walk with my dog, Birdie, and get ready for the night!

I used to think success meant

Pencil skirts and stilletos in a high rise office.

My current definition of success is

Time wealth!

An example of when I had to push through my insecurities

When I hired my first employee and current sales manager. I was so nervous about choosing the right person, managing someone. I'm so glad I got over myself, it was the BEST DECISION OF MY LIFE!