Be Present with Victoria Gross
Being present in the moment is the secret to Victoria Gross’ success in her professional, creative, and personal lives. A partner at Richmond Dermatology, she loved painting growing up but gave it up in college to pursue her medical degree, sporadically picking up her brushes as she started a family and grew her career. Then one night a few years ago, her friend, resident artist, Bonnie Jordan, invited her to a CAC opening. “I went to the gallery, saw Chuck Larivey’s work and loved it so much I even bought a small painting,” she says. “When I heard he was giving lessons I wanted to learn from him.”
Under Larivey, Gross began to blossom as an artist. “I wasn’t sure I was ready to balance family, career and painting but I really wanted to learn from Chuck and I felt like it was now or never so that really pushed me to start painting again.” Now she divides her time but not her attention. “I compartmentalize,” she explains. “I am extremely present. When I am at work it is all about work, I want to be there for my patients. When I am at home it is all about my family and when I paint, I am focusing only on that.”
To make it all flow, Gross works only four days per week as a dermatologist and uses the weekends and that one extra weekday to paint and get domestic things done.
She says, “Sometimes I paint for an hour or so in the afternoon on weekdays when the kids don’t have activities. On the weekends I will wake up early and paint while everyone else is asleep.”
However, she gets it done, CAC is thrilled represent Gross at the Art Center and online.