Moses Sun(he/ him)

Moses Sun is a Seattle-based multidisciplinary artist who works across painting, digital media, murals, sculpture, photography, and installations. He grew up in North Carolina, attended a specialized arts high school, and spent years working in corporate creative roles at places like Disney before fully committing to his own studio practice in 2020. He describes himself as an 'all time artist' — meaning creativity is a constant state of mind, not just a job title. His work draws on Black and African diasporas, hip-hop, jazz, Afrofuturism, and his Southern upbringing to create abstract, meditative pieces that explore identity, memory, healing, and community. Moses didn't take a straight line to where he is now. He bounced between graphic design gigs, promo production, corporate creative work, and freelance projects before stepping fully into his own practice. Along the way he faced being pushed out of corporate spaces — often because he was too talented and it made others uncomfortable. That experience taught him something real: institutions don't always reward your best work. Knowing when to leave and bet on yourself is a skill too. On the business side, Moses is honest about the hustle. He started earning around $24,000–$32,000 in his first year as a full-time artist and has grown 20–50% year over year since. He talks openly about how galleries work (they're basically high-end consignment shops that take 50%), why you need multiple income streams, and how public art, collectives, advocacy, and commissions all feed into a sustainable creative career. He co-founded the Vivid Matter Collective, which produced Seattle's Black Lives Matter street mural — a protest piece that became a city landmark. For students of color, Moses's story hits different. He talks about navigating corporate spaces as a Black creative — the jealousy, the politics, the moments where his power was quietly taken away. He's candid about how that pattern took years to recognize and how it pushed him toward building his own platform instead. His advice isn't about climbing a ladder. It's about knowing your value, protecting your energy, and finding people who genuinely align with your mission. Whether you're into fine art, digital design, community work, or entrepreneurship, Moses's path shows that a creative career can be layered, intentional, and deeply rooted in culture. He reminds students that rest matters, mentorship is a two-way street, and the journey itself — not just the paycheck — is where the real work happens.