Will Day was born to be an artist. But it took him decades to uncover that simple truth.
At thirteen years old, the spark first came to life. Will Day was sitting in Ms. Kay’s art class in Darien, CT, mesmerized by the brilliant watercolors of the beautiful New England landscape he had created.
Something spoke to him. He felt a freedom he had never experienced. He felt alive.
“I knew at that moment I was called to create.”
But life is not always so simple. There are obstacles in our way. Detours on the path we were meant to travel. Challenges to our hopes and dreams.
Will Day was not immune from these challenges. His adolescent ADHD made it difficult to focus. A sudden divorce by his parents left him sad and lonely for most of his teenage years. At some point along the way, his fire for artistic expression burned out.
“Everyone has something to deal with. You find ways to compensate.”
Will Day buried his passion. But he couldn’t ignore his true calling forever.
FINDING HIS PATH
After graduating from college, Will Day was still searching for his place in the world. He joined the Peace Corps and travelled to Tunisia. He loved the intrigue and the adrenaline of interacting in a new culture. He was comfortable being uncomfortable. But ultimately, he knew it was not his calling. He hungered for more.
He felt a pull back to the New York area and headed from the rural farm life of Tunisia to the buttoned-down, urban world of Manhattan. Will worked on Wall Street for Bloomberg Financial Markets, where he met his wife, Aimee. He then shifted into technology during the first Big Internet Boom, working for the revered ad-serving giant, DoubleClick.
But not everything was perfect. The Tech Boom was going but Will was struggling with his vocation. Was he really a “corporate guy”?
It was during this time that Will decided to make a second shift in his career. In 2001, Will enrolled at Pratt Institute in Brooklyn to get his Masters in Architecture.
Then September 11th happened.
Aimee worked at Baseline Financial Markets, located on the 78th Floor of Tower 2 of the World Trade Center. She had returned late from a business trip on that Monday night and slept in the morning of September 11th (so she could finalize the plans for the upcoming wedding.) The plane went directly into the Baseline Conference Room.
That extra 15 minutes of sleep had saved her life.
But the stress and sadness of those events weighed heavily on the couple.
“It wasn’t an easy time for anyone. And emotions were particularly raw for both of us.”
But they both powered through that difficult time together.
Eventually Will graduated and landed a job with Gensler, one of the most prominent architectural firms in the world.
It was all coming back together.
A Light in the Darkness
Will and Aimee needed a change of scenery from the stress of recent events in Manhattan. And Gensler offered the perfect transition to a new life in Los Angeles.
As they adjusted to a new home, they also adjusted to life as new parents. A boy, Spencer, was quickly followed by a girl, Abby. Life was good on the West Coast!
But after a couple years as a newly-formed family, the couple decided Boulder, Colorado offered the freedom and creativity to best raise their children.
They moved to Boulder full of optimism and hope. But the financial crisis of 2008 delivered another blow to The Day Family. Will found himself out of a job and in search of a professional identity.
“It was the darkest time of my life. I was depressed, sad, and scared. It seemed there was no way out.”
With nowhere else to turn, Will Day descended into the bowels of his basement. It felt like a dungeon.
But what did he find there? Beneath the clutter and chaos of the storage, he found paint and some blank white walls. It was time to go to work.
“Painting was my only light out of the darkness.”
Suddenly, he was transformed! The creativity flowed out of Will like lava from an active volcano. He painted one picture. Without missing a beat, he painted a second. Then he painted a third. It was this painting that changed everything. This third painting reignited the flame that had first sparked when he was thirteen years old.
In honor of this creative spark, Will named the painting “Fire”.
Will Day’s “Fire”
After decades of burying his passion, Will Day’s true calling came bursting through in his lowest moment.
“Right then I knew I could do this for a living. It was a major confidence booster!”
But adhering to the cliched mantra of “follow your passion” doesn’t pay the bills. Fulfillment doesn’t always pay the mortgage. Aimee still had to bring in income. She had supported Will before. Now she needed Will to find a way to make this whole thing work.
They were at a crossroads in their lives.
“I asked her to give me a couple years. I knew I could do it but this would only work if we kept the whole family together.”
And so she did. And so he did.
Executing the Plan
Will Day was serious about his new venture. He had to be. The fate of his family was in the balance.
“I couldn’t just sit around and paint randomly. I had to figure out my voice and message on canvas very quickly.”
The time spent in the basement had not only revealed his talent, but also his niche. Will Day was and is an abstract contemporary painter. He uses color, texture and composition to create a unique expression of passion. He is also an entrepreneur.
Will brought on 5 advisors to help him with his business plan. He put together a business model (to lease and commission art) and created a disciplined approach to keep creating glorious works of art:
Trust the process.
Execute the deal.
Rest and contemplate the next project.
Will Day Art was born.
“My goal is to inspire people to see more than just 2-D. I want to help people see the world differently.”
With the process in place and this goal in mind, Will Day became one of the most prolific painters in his niche. And his paintings continue to help people see the goodness in the world.
“It is never about me. Ego has no place in the art world. I am just a vessel to help others find the keys to their own happiness.”
And through it all, Will Day is driven by a quote from Joseph Campbell, author of “A Hero with a Thousand Faces”:
The privilege of a lifetime is being who you are.
Will Day was finally doing was what he was called to do and his family was once again back in harmony.
He was living the privilege of a lifetime.
“Omaha!”
As Will Day’s business grew, he needed a bigger studio to hold his work. Will had met JP O’Brien, Founder and CEO of Black Lab Sports, through his son’s lacrosse team. JP invited Will to open up a new studio in their spacious offices in downtown Boulder.
JP and Will then came to meet Mac Freeman, Chief Commercial Officer for the Denver Broncos. Mac was launching a major project to create a tribute painting to honor the brilliant career of Peyton Manning.
Who better to capture this legacy than Will Day? It was one of the biggest breaks in his career.
Will Day met Peyton Manning in the “official football locker room” of Broncos Stadium a few weeks later. Will wanted to capture the vulnerability and excellence of the quarterback just before the ball was snapped. The goal was to capture the clarity in the chaos of the “Omaha” audible.
“Peyton really understood what I was trying to create. He helped me so much in the process.”
Peyton took him through the entire sequence prior to the snap of the ball. The preparation in the locker room. The feeling of energy as he emerged from the tunnel. The play clock winding down. The pointing of the fingers and the stare out to the horizon. And, finally, the shouting of “Omaha”!
Peyton also explained that a football game often came to 3 or 4 big plays. His goal was to execute and create the best play in the moment.
“That really got me thinking about life. How do we get to those big plays?”
This resonated with Will Day. He soaked it in. He channeled the moment. And after several months, Will Day created an iconic tribute to the legendary Peyton Manning. “Omaha” hangs in a prominent place in Broncos Stadium today.
The privilege of a lifetime.
Photo by Colby Evans Photography
The Next Chapter
Will Day has now been a professional artist for 10 years. Over the course of his career, he has created nearly 650 paintings. With bold and descriptive names such as “Wonder”, “Dream Big” and “Togetherness”, his paintings invoke the serious emotion that went into their creation. And what does he love most about his job?
“Every day is a new challenge. I take risks and I hope to inspire others.”
But the struggle is still there. He is living the life of his dreams but it doesn’t mean the financial pressure has gone away. He needs to produce every day. He needs to create.
“I still hang on to a piece of those truly dark moments. It drives me to keep searching for those 3 or 4 big plays.”
What is next for Will Day?
“I want to tell stories in my work about people doing great things. Bigger than life. Not just sports.”
If you could choose one person, who would it be?
“Bono of U2.”
Good choice.
And what keeps you focused in your moments of doubt and despair?
“My family is the most important thing in my life. Aimee, Spencer and Abby inspire me every day.”
Amen, brother.
A walk through Will Day’s studio is an exercise in brilliant paint and bold canvases. In the center of the kaleidoscope of colors, is his main work bench with the following quote emblazoned on the side:
Live in grace. Walk in love. –Bob Goff
It is something Will Day aspires to do every day of his life. He is finally making sense of the journey he been called to make. It has not been easy. It has been littered with dark moments and struggles. It has required incredible resiliency.
But through it all, Will Day has persevered and found clarity in the chaos.
What Does It Mean For Us?
Will Day is not alone.
How many of us struggle to find our true calling?
How many of us are burdened with financial obligations?
How many of us feel the intense pressure to produce?
How many of us extinguish the fire of our own passion?
And how many of us have the guts to light it back up and follow our dreams?
The story of Will Day is about more than art or creativity or passion. It is about resiliency. It is about living the life we were destined to live.
And it offers a new measure of success.
Success is knowing who you are and living your life in alignment with that knowledge.
Stay resilient! Dream big! Power through the dark moments! And don’t ever let anyone tell you how to live your life.
None of us are on a linear journey. But if we search hard enough, we will always find clarity in the chaos.