Check Out Vanessa Kuenn’s Story

Today we’d like to introduce you to Vanessa Kuenn.

Hi Vanessa, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstories with our readers.
The idea of Brightside Studios began 7 years ago. While I was pregnant with our first son, Noah, my husband Brad painted a mural on Noah’s bedroom wall. He’d come home from work and paint for hours on end. He felt it was a huge stress reliever and wanted to continue to paint after he had finished the mural, but he worried about getting paint on the carpet or working in a hot garage in the summer.

We dreamt of a place where Phoenicians could go and create art while not worrying about making a mess or even cleaning their own brushes when they were done – there would be food & drinks to nourish them while they created.

The idea grew and now we have all of that and more; live music on the weekends in our lounge, paint and sip classes in our classroom and we host private events too! It’s really become a dream come true and we are so happy to share it with the community.

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
I’d say we’ve had our share of triumphs and struggles as any new business does. We found our dream location prior to Covid hitting in 2020. We had a lot of work to do in the building and had many setbacks trying to find the right people to help us fix up the place and get the permits we needed to continue. Then one day while Brad was working at the building, he got really sick and nearly passed out. He went to see a doctor and had lots of tests done which resulted in Brad being diagnosed with a rare type of blood cancer, multiple myeloma. He had to begin chemo treatments right away along with a stem cell transplant in the midst of a pandemic.

He didn’t want our dream to die so with the help of our family and close friends, we continued working on bringing Brightside Studios to life while he took the time to recuperate. We are so grateful for our support system, as we wouldn’t be here without their help. We all had the same dream of making Brightside Studios a place for the people of Phoenix and we couldn’t be happier that it exists today.

As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
Brightside Studios is so many things to so many people – it is a place to have a great cup of Cartel Coffee, enjoy a specialty cocktail, good food, and more. We have a membership studio where people can come, get their stuff done, and start creating! We clean up for you so you can just focus on your art. We currently offer paint and sip classes in our classroom space as well as pour paint classes and we plan to expand our classes in the future. Our classroom space is a great room to host a private event in and be surrounded by beautiful murals and art on the walls.

You can come to listen to free live music Friday and Saturday nights as well as enjoy a morning mimosa and breakfast burrito while you listen to the brunch musicians on the weekends. We care very much about the community we have built here at Brightside and that continues to grow every day. We are continuously listening to what people want and need from us and you can feel that from the moment you walk in; you know you’ve arrived somewhere special.

We all have different ways of looking at and defining success. How do you define success?
When I was younger, I thought I would reach a feeling of stability in my life overall, when things were just as I wanted them and then I would feel successful. Now I realize, for me, it’s more fulfilling to enjoy the successes in achieving goals I set for myself day to day, no matter how small instead of waiting for this magical moment to come.

Pricing:

• $39.99 for a day pass (Includes a studio space furnished with an easel, table & chair, and all the paint & painting/drawing supplies you’d like to use to create your next masterpiece.)
• $99.99 for a monthly membership (Includes a studio space furnished with an easel, table & chair, and all the paint & painting/drawing supplies you’d like to use to create your next masterpiece.)
• $999.999 for an annual membership (Includes a studio space furnished with an easel, table & chair, and all the paint & painting/drawing supplies you’d like to use to create your next masterpiece. Annual members also receive free storage for uncompleted works as well as some other annual membership perks!)
• $39.99 for a paint & sip ticket. (Includes a free drink from our cafe.)

Contact Info:

• Website: www.brightsidestudios.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/brightsidestudiosphx
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BrightsideStudiosPHX
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/BrightsideAZ
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCV5VfX5IT7aJhUBmZzpag_Q
• Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/brightside-studios-phoenix?osq=Brightside+studios

Image Credits
Jessica Juniper and Vanessa Kuenn