With the rise of influencers and social media stars, it’s much easier to make a career out of Instagram with thousands of dollars’ worth of sponsored posts and an excessive amount of filters. However, it also gives young creatives the opportunity to share their work with a larger audience, something that was not as possible before the age of social media. Here are some young female creatives who are making a name for themselves in an extremely digital world.
- Eileen Kelly
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Every young person should listen to what Eileen Kelly has to say. The 23-year-old is the brains behind Killer and a Sweet Thang (KAAST)—an online zine dedicated to giving comprehensive sex-education to Generation Z in a digital landscape. Raised by a single dad and having attended a Catholic school with little to no formal sex education, Kelly was left to figure out her body and sexuality on her own, which is something many teenagers go through but shouldn’t have to. At age 16, she started a Tumblr page, where she’d answer questions and share stories about relationships and sex. She realized how one-sided it all was and decided to create this zine in order to get a larger, more diverse range of advice and experiences. From teenage abortion to sexual assault to kink shaming, KAAST does not shy away from any topic. Their main goal is to guide millennials, like myself, through this complicated time in our lives, which is even more complicated because of our lack of formal sex education. Like their Instagram bio goes, KAAST is the sex ed we wish we’d had ?.
Follow her on Instagram @eileen / @killerandasweetthang and check out her website killerandasweetthang.com.
- Lauren Tepfer
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Tepfer is a 20-year-old photographer from suburban New Jersey (just like me!) currently earning a degree in photography from Parsons. Signed with Adolescent Content, Tepfer has been able to do campaign shoots with major brands such as Nike and Crayola. My first introduction to her photography was through Instagram. I remember mindlessly scrolling through my feed when I finally took a second to pay attention to what I was liking. The dreamy use of colors. The soft, film-like finish. The ability to romanticize the mundane. It was captivating. Heart-wrenching. And I didn’t know why. One of Tepfer’s most frequent subjects is the suburbs that she grew up in. She can take an ordinary house and take us to another world, similar to the way that Sofia Coppola’s The Virgin Suicides portrays middle class suburbia. Tepfer’s use of color and light evokes a sense of nostalgia that we never knew was there. Although some of the colors are artificial, her work is truthful and vulnerable, which is extremely refreshing on an appearance-driven app.
Follow her on Instagram @s.ilver or check out her website laurentepfer.com.
- Devon Lee Carlson
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Did Miley Cyrus launch your career in high school? Oh, no? That was just Devon Lee Carlson then, I guess. The 25-year-old it-girl is the co-founder of Wildflowers Cases, a phone case company that gained mega popularity in 2012 when Cyrus, at the peak of her Hannah Montana fame, posted and tagged a young Carlson and her phone case in a tweet. But in addition to being a young entrepreneur, Carlson is also a Youtuber, model, Instagram personality, and overall cool girl. She is one of the best-dressed people on the Internet because she wears what she wants when she wants to. She doesn’t follow any trends, she sets them. Her Instagram doesn’t have a coherent theme or filter, which is what makes her so authentic. As her Youtube theme goes, it’s Devon’s world- and we’re just living in it.
Follow her on Instagram @devonleecarlson / @wildflowercases and check out her Youtube channel.
- Ella Fields
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Just because she’s the youngest person on this list doesn’t mean we should undermine her superstar talent. Ella Fields is a 16-year-old queer filmmaker and photographer. She uses Instagram and Youtube to share her content, which addresses important topics such as LGBTQ+ relationships and gender stereotypes. At age 13, Fields imagined a world where gender roles were reversed in her short Stereo, which has since garnered over eight million views on Youtube. Along with her other shorts such as Bubblegum and Wonderland, she has been accepted to and received awards at numerous film festivals. Signed with Adolescent Content, Fields has also produced professional work for GettyImages. She has a quirky, effervescent style, which she captures visually with her use of vibrant colors and symmetry. As a young creative, Fields is an excellent example to all of us that you’re never too young to achieve your goals.
Follow her on Instagram @elllafields and check out her Youtube channel.
- Alia Penner
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Who would have thought that the perfect location to watch a movie, from Rear Window to Twilight, is the Hollywood Forever Cemetery? Well, welcome to Cinespia, an organization that holds outdoor screenings at this Los Angeles landmark. Although not mandatory, most attendees arrive dressed on theme with whatever film is being screened to take pictures in the elaborate photo booth sets created by the Artistic Director of Cinespia, Alia Penner. Penner is a pop artist and illustrator who has collaborated with the likes of Katy Perry, Diane von Furstenberg, and Jena Malone. Along with her partner John Wyatt, Penner chooses which film gets screened every week. She combines her love for art and film by reinterpreting classic films through the creation of the iconic photo booths. For The Wizard of Oz, Penner created a field of poppies in front of a cloud-filled, dreamy sky, and for Legally Blonde, every square inch was covered in hot pink everything. Her art literally pops, hence her Instagram username, with the vividness of her colors and animated edits.
Follow her on Instagram @alia_pop and check out her website aliapenner.com.
If you’re in an artistic funk or just want some cool, inspiring content on your feed, check out these young female creatives and support their art.
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