We were so lucky to have a chat with the incredibly bubbly, energetic and inspiring Ailbhe Keane from Izzy’s Wheels at our B!G Showcase in May. Izzy’s Wheels was founded by the Galway sisters Ailbhe and Izzy Keane. The idea was inspired by Izzy who was born with Spina Bifida and is paralysed from her waist down. Izzy has always seen her wheelchair as a symbol of freedom but never felt it expressed her personality. Ailbhe created a range of colourful wheel covers for her sister’s chair as her final year project in The National College of Art and Design (NCAD) in 2016 and since then the idea has gone from strength to strength.
What is creativity?
For me creativity is being able to express your ideas, that might be what you wear or something you do in your job or just that way of using that part of your brain that makes you feel excited.
Why do you think creativity is important?
Creativity is important because it’s a really interesting part of your brain that makes everything more exciting and the more creativity can bring into your day the better day you’re going to have.
Is everyone creative?
I think everyone is creative but that just needs to be nurtured especially from a young age that needs to be celebrated and whatever it is about you that makes you feel like you’re being creative I think you should try and do it every day.
How important is creativity in your job?
My whole business is run on creativity, every part of it I try to be as creative as possible so be that how our Instagram, our website, our emails, everything has to be creative and it’s what really differentiates your business from another business and makes your brand memorable.
What advice would you give to the students of The B!G Idea after the programme?
The more creative you can be, the better. I’ve built my whole business and my job is based on being creative and when I was in school I didn’t know if that was going to be something I could do, if I could have a job that would allow me to be creative every day. I’m running a business but I never thought I’d be running a business. I went to art college and I loved art college and I followed my passion which was art design and something that made me feel creative all the time and it’s allowed me to have my dream job.
If I’d had The B!G Idea when I was in school…
If I had The B!G Idea programme when I was in school I guess I wouldn’t have been as confused about what career path I might have gone down because it can be very overwhelming what do you do after school. I ended up where I wanted to be but I think I would have got there a lot quicker if I had really nurtured those skills when I was at school.
What have you learned from failure?
The biggest lessons you learn are from failure, you don’t learn as much from succeeding. You fail all the time especially running a business but it is what gives you the skills and teaches you how to be resilient which is when you’re in any job what’s most important.
What is your best tip for creativity?
My best tip for creativity is always have side projects going. Art was always my passion but I always loved doing things on the side. I loved making pop up books, I loved doodling, I loved drawing and I still do those things. It’s what gets you feeling inspired and it doesn’t even have to be anything that you show anybody but it’s those little things that just get your brain moving in a certain way so having side projects, you never know where that idea is going to go and it might end up being something really amazing or it might be something that you’ve just learned something from but it’s really important to always have side projects.
