Liberty alumna Caroline Fiol uses her art and photography business for the gospel

Through the strokes of a paintbrush, digital doodles on a tablet and the shutter of her camera, Caroline Fiol, a Liberty alumna, has built her own design and photography businesses, Caroline Arts & Co., on Instagram. 

Fiol graduated from Liberty this past May with a Bachelor of Arts in graphic design and a minor in studio arts and photography. She started doing freelance photography during high school and began fine-tuning her graphic design talents while studying at Liberty. In the fall and spring of her last year, Fiol began launching her illustrated products to the public through Liberty’s Studio and Digital Arts Marketplace. 

“My first (Marketplace) was in the fall semester of 2022 and then I did one in the spring semester,” Fiol said, when describing the early stages of her design and illustrative art business. 

After collaborating with other graphic design students in class and diving into the art markets at Liberty, Fiol felt it was the right time to further her artistic passions and embark on her career goals.   

“Having my marketing experience at Liberty gave me the confidence to pursue those experiences,” Fiol said, while discussing how she became a vendor at another art market this past summer and facilitated her own market right in her own backyard. 

Fiol’s initial inspiration for why she began her design business stemmed from a graphic design project she had done in one of her classes. According to Fiol, the project required students to illustrate their own publication. Fiol decided to emphasize the topic of “Who is Jesus” from the Gospel of John in her artwork. She designed artwork that included “visual representations of Jesus,” including designs of what “the bread of life” and “good shepherd” would look like in her own vibrant, mixed-media style. 

After her class’s project, Fiol realized one of her passions for designing artwork centered around Scripture and was amazed at how fulfilled she felt to transition her designs to a product she could sell. 

“All of that imagery is based off of Scriptures, and it just is a piece created of like, when you know Jesus and you’re His and He is yours, you are kept,” Fiol said, describing the details of a calligraphy print based around the word, ‘Kept’ after she did a study of the book of John. 

Fiol’s artwork displays a variety of beautiful and elegant pictures including flowing calligraphy letters and flourishing flowery patterns that all represent a greater message of hope and faith. She hopes the beauty and elegance of her designs may be what prompts members of the public to question why she illustrates what she does and spark a conversation about the Lord. 

“Ministering or sharing the Gospel through art … in the context of my business, it definitely would be like a small seed,” Fiol said. 

While studying at Liberty, Fiol had to set “micro-goals” for herself to stay up to date on everything as she juggled her studies, a part-time job, RA duties and her business. Although her schedule was hectic at times, Fiol consistently tried to record each of her accomplishments and celebrate the small victories as she proceeded with her artistic projects. 

“For the time that I was at Liberty, my business looked more like maybe collaborating with other designers and artists and talking about what would a business for us look like,” Fiol explained.

Fiol accompanied photographers she knew on photoshoots and kept up with the SADA markets to keep building her talents while also fostering a sense of community with her friends on campus. 

As for the present, Fiol hopes to continue building community with the artists around her and to consistently add more to her photography business. Lately, she has been selling at art markets, and she recently designed canvas bags which proved to be a successful product. 

“There is nothing like creating a product and holding it in your hands and seeing someone purchase it,” Fiol said. 

In everything that Fiol designs and creates, she always redirects her focus to the Lord and even considers the faith-based art that she designs to be a form of worship and praise. 

“God has created me to be an artist but he has also revealed himself to me through His word,” Fiol said. 

Davis is a feature reporter for the Liberty Champion