Summer Updates from Kat + The Mundane Is the Muse: Yahel Yan on Chairs, Hot Sauce, and 100 Days of Painting

About this episode

Ekaterina Popova shares personal updates and engages in a conversation with artist Yahel Yan about her journey and experiences in the art world.

This episode is two things in one: an honest, personal check-in from Kat as we head into summer, Q&A from our community. followed by a conversation with San Diego-based Mexican painter Yahel Yan, a Create! community member whose 100-day challenge journey ended in a full solo exhibition. Kat opens by sharing what has been on her mind lately, from the turbulence in the art world and the economy to a growing sense that artists deserve more privacy, more mystery, and more protection of the creative and intellectual work they have built over years. She reflects on the pressure to share everything online, the times that oversharing has cost her, and why she is choosing to reclaim some intentional secrecy, not as gatekeeping, but as a form of boundaries and self-respect. She also answers questions submitted by listeners through the Create! broadcast channel on Instagram, covering practical topics like what to do when you do not have a mailing list at an exhibition, how to approach interior designers as potential clients, how to identify your ideal collector when you are just starting out, and where collectors are actually discovering new artists today. Then Kat sits down with Yahel…

People in this episode

Host: Ekaterina Popova

Guest: Yahel Yan

Topics covered

• art world
• artist privacy
• community Q&A
• painting
• 100-day challenge
• exhibitions

Keywords

• art
• painting
• exhibition
• artist community
• privacy
• 100 days of painting
• Yahel Yan

Mentioned in this episode

Places: San Diego, Mexico City

More episodes of The Create! Podcast

• Simplifying Content Creation for Makers with Brand Photographer Nicole Bedard · June 1, 2026 · 26 min
• What Survives the Fire: Larry Ossei-Mensah on Clay, Curating, and Creative Excellence · May 26, 2026 · 47 min
• Petite Pleasures, Big Dreams: Jo Gamel on Daily Painting, Following Every Interest, and Showing Up for Your Most Ambitious Goals · May 21, 2026 · 33 min
• How to Stop Being Forever Emerging and Graduate to Your Next Level with Ekaterina Popova · May 14, 2026 · 23 min
• Artist. Curator. Founder. How Indira Cesarine of The Untitled Space in NYC Built a Creative Career That Does Not Fit in a Box · May 9, 2026 · 32 min
• Art for Everyone: Collecting, Connecting with Buyers, and Building a Career from Anywhere with Liz Lidgett · May 6, 2026 · 25 min