Meet CA-based Artist Jessica Gerhardt

JESSICA GERHARDT is a musician (singer, songwriter, ukulele player), rosary / jewelry maker, visual artist (painting, drawing, embroidery), and writer living in South Pasadena, California. (www.jessicagerhardt.com)

Listen to her brand-new single “Don’t Be So Hard on Yourself” here!

CATHOLIC ARTIST CONNECTION: Where are you from originally, and what brought you to your current city?

JESSICA GERHARDT: I was born and raised in Santa Monica, CA, so I didn't move too far away from home, actually. Before I began pursuing work as a full-time freelancing musician and artist, I had been working for 8 years as a Director of Youth Ministry and Confirmation at a couple different churches in Northeast Los Angeles and La Canada Flintridge, so my move further east was motivated by being closer to work. I did spend 4 years at Reed College in Portland, Oregon and I dream about potentially moving back there one day. When I was discerning what to do after finishing my BA, I felt a strong sense that God was calling me to return to LA to pursue music. So, I came back home.

How do understand your vocation as a Catholic artist? Do you call yourself a Catholic artist?

I do consider myself a Catholic artist because I am both Catholic and an artist. To me, God is the Creator and created us to be instruments of God's creativity. Being an artist is in our nature (whether we pursue the "Arts" professionally or not).

What do you see as your personal mission as a Catholic working in the arts?

I feel a strong sense of calling to build community among artists (of all faiths/beliefs) and to provide opportunities for artists to share their work. Prior to the pandemic I was frequently curating shows at venues and hosting acoustic house concerts in my living room. For the past several years I've been hosting an annual book group with fellow artists of diverse disciplines through "The Artist's Way" by Julia Cameron. That's been a life-giving program.

I also am founding an artists community with my friend and business partner here in LA that we hope to eventually find a physical location for to host a number of events and gatherings in (once it feels safer for folks to gather). I feel called to work with Catholic and non-Catholic artists because if being creative is doing God's work, then I see being in community with creatives and expressing creativity as ways of preaching the gospel without words (or in different tongues).

Where have you found support in the Church for your vocation as an artist?

Initially, I didn't find as much support as I thought I would. I was all bright eyed and bushy tailed when I initially felt a sense that God was calling me to pursue music. I figured I would find opportunities easily in the Church. But when I would talk to young adult group coordinators or youth ministers about wanting to lead worship on the ukulele, I got a lot of skepticism and resistance. And initially it was hard to find Catholic spaces that were open to other forms of art that weren't explicitly worship.

Yet, now I'm a cantor and music director at a parish and people tell me all the time how unique the ukulele was and how it deepened their experience of the worship music. I never thought I'd be in that position. It just kinda happened little by little. Working in youth ministry, which was the first job offer I got after college, helped me connect with a number of different people, and things just unfolded one by one.

I've played the 1531 Folk Festival, Catholic Underground, led worship for a number of retreats, performed at a variety of parish events, and connected with a lot of talented, open-minded, fellow Catholic artists. One of my favorite events to do is my spin on the traditional "XLT" – I call it "Uke-aristic Adoration." As I've continued to share my music, rosaries, and art with more people, I've found more doors opening within Catholic spaces and communities, as well as secular ones, and I'm just grateful to share it with others.

Where have you found support among your fellow artists for your Catholic faith?

I've honestly found support from many artists, Catholics through atheists alike. I find ways to share about my Catholic identity and the meaning I find in Catholic practices, rituals, and symbols, and my artist friends respect that. I don't lord my faith over anyone or make anyone feel pressured to believe anything. I just share about my experiences of faith, as they come up naturally.

When I first started pursuing music, I felt afraid to be open about my faith. That my "secular" music needed to be separate from my worship music. But eventually I felt a sense that God was inviting me to more deeply integrated and so now my faith and art are pretty interwoven in whatever space I'm in. My songwriting often mixes everyday experiences or feelings with religious and spiritual imagery, but I try to do so in a way that still makes my music accessible for folks from other faith traditions.

How can the Church be more welcoming to artists?

I think there needs to be more collective open-mindedness. There's a lot of worry about art that goes too far outside the lines. But art is mystery and to really create good art, you have to be willing to let it be what it wants to be! I think we need to return to a spirit of embracing symbol and depth, without feeling like we have be on the nose with everything. Good art should be about what it evokes for someone, rather than just having to spell everything out.

I also think more churches and dioceses should consider artist in residency programs. The church could be doing a lot more to be supporting artists, both creatively and financially. People who are not Catholic listen to music and seek out art that points to the transcendent. They have a desire for God, but they don't feel like the Church is providing those experiences for them.

I think if the Church did more to uplift artists, then artists could inspire more artists, and people would want to give back to the Church more and would also keep filling the world with more amazing art to point them to God, to heal and uplift.

How can the artistic world be more welcoming to artists of faith?

I think many artists have experienced a sense of marginalization and often find that churches haven't been safe spaces for them. I get the sense that resistance towards artists of faith is a defense mechanism. But I think as more artists of faith continue to create good art and don't push anything on other artists, it will change the way the artistic world responds to artists of faith. I think the more we look for what we have in common, versus what makes us holier or more correct or what sets us a part, then we will build more bridges instead of walls.

Where in Pasadena do you regularly find spiritual fulfillment?

I lead worship at St. Bede the Venerable in La Canada, the last parish where I worked as a full-time youth minister. I feel connected to a lot of the families in that parish and it feels good to feel like the music I bring there is appreciated. I also get spiritual fulfillment from attending retreats and community events with Christus Ministries, a Jesuit-led young adult ministry organization. Otherwise, I hop around to young adult events at various parishes throughout the LA Archdiocese.

Where in Pasadena do you regularly find artistic fulfillment?

I find a lot of fulfillment within the various Artist's Way book groups, songwriting groups, backyard concert series communities, and musicians open mic nights I'm a part of. Putting myself out there and going to new events or spaces can be hit or miss, but I have found circles that are really welcoming and supportive.

How have you found or built community as a Catholic artist in Pasadena?

I'm pretty extroverted so as I've just gone to different events or groups and shared about being a musician and artist, I've met fellow artists and creatives that I've felt a lot of connection with and I've built community and relationships from there. Also, sometimes just from putting my writing and music out there, people have found it and resonated with it and reached out to me. I love making new friends that way!

What is your daily spiritual practice?

I am currently working through the 19th Annotation (aka: The Spiritual Exercises in Everyday Life) with my Jesuit spiritual director so I have a daily commitment to contemplative prayer with that. I try to conclude most days with an awareness examen. I try to pray the rosary when I remember (though I tend to make them more often than I pray them - but making them is prayerful for me too). I experience God in nature a lot as well, so I try to take walks and go outside at least once a day too.

What is your daily artistic practice?

My creative practices are less structured. I'm always jotting down new ideas, daydreaming, doodling in my journals and planners... I kinda let the wind blow me where it wants when it comes to making art. Sometimes I feel a strong pull to get into a songwriting habit. Other times I write songs when inspiration hits. Some days I'll get in the mood to make a bunch of rosaries and jewelry, or to paint or draw, other times I'm more focused on the promotional end of things (which is often creative too).

Describe a recent day in which you were most completely living out your vocation as an artist.

On January 14th I released my latest single "Don't Be So Hard On Yourself," which is all about telling your inner critic to take a hike and about learning to be gentle with your inner kid. I was supposed to have a single release show that night but we had to postpone it due to the rise in cases of C-who-shall-not-be-named. So, to make it up to my inner artist kid, we went to a park, I did some drawing/painting with watercolor pencils, I read a whimsical fiction novel by Frederick Buechner, and I treated myself to ice cream. That felt like a pretty creatively fulfilling day.

How do you afford housing as an artist?

I currently live with my roommate, whose also one of my best friends (we met through a small faith sharing group a decade ago). We found our apartment on Craigslist and it was a pretty good deal for the location and size. South Pasadena is a great neighborhood – beautiful trees, flowers, craftsman style homes, cute shops. Some other good affordable neighborhoods in LA County (that are relatively close to hip/happening spots): Pasadena, Glendale, Atwater Village, Glassell Park, Highland Park, Eagle Rock, Cypress Park, West LA, Mar Vista, Tujunga, Sunland, Sun Valley, Burbank and North Hollywood. Those are just the ones I've looked at in the past and found decent listings for or that I have friends in who have found good deals.

How do you financially support yourself as an artist?

To support myself, I work as a worship leader both at St. Bede's, as well as through an ecumenical Christian worship musician group called Well Collective. I got connected to WC through a fellow musician friend. They have relationships with a number of churches, so each week I get a different assignment. It's been awesome to connect with and meet people from many diverse faith communities. Church music covers a substantial amount of my overhead actually.

I also substitute teach sometimes, which is nice because I can work when I want to, but I don't have the demands of commitment to a full-time job. From working as a youth minister, I ended up meeting some catechists who worked at high schools, so they connected me with their sub rosters.

I sell rosaries, rosary-making kits, and jewelry through my Etsy shop, Work of Human Hands. I sell merch on my music page. I do songwriting, painting, and drawing commissions. I have a Patreon. I write for publications like NCR. I do some youth ministry speaking and worship leading from time to time.

I wear a lot of hats at the moment. A lot of my work comes through word of mouth or personal connections. As a single person with no kids yet, I feel like this is still somewhat sustainable, but I may need to pivot when I want to start a family. I'll probably need to focus on a few of these things more, let a few others go. But, I discern it all one day at a time with God.

What other practical resources would you recommend to a Catholic artist living in your city?

There are too many cool coffee shops around LA to list here. Within my nearby radius, I really like Kaldi, Jones Coffee, and Lost Parrot Cafe. Urth Caffe is a local chain and they have delicious drinks and food. I also LOVE Porto's, and they're very affordable (though usually suuuuper busy). Modan Ramen is probably my favorite ramen spot. In-N-Out is great cheap fast food that's a signature burger chain in California.

The Weekly Musicians Open Mic at Highland Park Bowl is excellent. Brenda Carsey is a magnanimous host and has cultivated a very welcoming community there. The Chocolate Chip Sessions is a super down-to-earth monthly backyard concert series hosted by Jakob Berger in Sun Valley. That's a great place to connect with fellow musicians and all-around cool people. AMP Rehearsal Studio in North Hollywood is a great spot for band practice! Level Ground is an awesome artists collective for BIPOC & LGBTQ+ artists! Vroman's in Pasadena and The Last Bookstore in DTLA are really neat spots. Also Lost Books in Montrose.

As far as other LA places to visit: The Huntington Gardens, Descanso Gardens, the Norton Simon Museum, Griffith Observatory, LACMA, MOCA, Lake Shrine, and Grand Central Market are a few of my favorites. Also there are a ton of great hiking trails.

Backline has a lot of health and wellness resources for musicians. They connected me with free therapy. I have my health insurance through Medi-Cal.

What are your top 3 pieces of advice for Catholic artists post-graduation?

Take it one day at a time. I came out of school and struggled a LOT with impatience that I wasn't further ahead in my creative pursuits. I still struggle with that but I have a better practice of focusing on the present. I look back at moments of consolation or times when I remember God coming through, to give me comfort in the present and hope for the days ahead. I try to remember that the expectations to be further ahead aren't coming from God, and when I remember that I'm exactly where God has me, I feel less pressure.

Spend time with people you like. There can be pressure to try to get into certain crowds or scenes in your creative field. But I have found the most fulfilling relationships and best opportunities have come from genuine relationships with people I truly enjoy and connect with. Brene Brown says it best when she talks about not hustling for your worthiness. You are worthy because God made you. Walk in your belovedness, and to those who can't appreciate it, too bad for them.

Be willing to do things you didn't see as part of "the plan." I felt a very clear sense of calling to come back to LA to pursue music. I describe becoming a youth minister as something I just sort of "fell into". But it was also God's hand working there, and I would not have met most of the people in music and the arts that I know today if it weren't for having followed the more subtle leading of the Spirit to work in youth ministry. It also revealed more of my vocation to me. My love for event planning, for building community, has translated into the work I now do with artists.