Materials Engineer working in regulatory paper pushing role here.
A lot of good info has been said here already, so I'll just add some quips:
There is a difference between a passion and a job. If your passion becomes your job, you may grow to hate your passion. Try finding a mechanic who likes working on cars in his off time, or a cook who loves to cook at home. It's certainly possible, but I find they are often the exception to the rule. Got into cooking because you loved to cook, but after cooking all day the last thing you want to do is cook.
My girlfriend is very artistic like yourself, the OP. As such she got into graphic design and has been doing it for 10 years. She left about a year ago to pursue dental hygiene because the cut throat, low pay industry was brutal and made her drop all her own projects and grow to dislike doing it for "fun".
I like cars...a lot. But I also found out that I like racing./driving cars a lot more than wrenching on cars. It took 2/3 part time jobs and a constantly breaking turbo Miata that always needed "one more part". I never ended up getting seat time in that car over 1.5 years. What it took was a stock Civic Si, in which I learned all my race craft and got the opportunities to compete, instruct and drive a bunch of amazing cars. It also took that experience to realize that engineering was the right choice, and racing cars for a living is a pipe dream. I enjoy driving a car way too much to have it ruined by seasonal contracts, sponsor chasing and pay to drive scenarios. It's nearly impossible to make a living racing a car these days, truly an affluent sport.
Is my job exciting? Absolutely not. Is it stressful? Nope. And it pays enough to allow me to enjoy my hobbies/passions and keep them as a passion, not an obligation. You can certainly find jobs that you "love" where you will "never work a day in your life". To me that is something like Singer Design. But that takes the right circumstances, luck, education and risk taking. For every Singer Design there are hundreds of failed projects.
Based on your description my mind instantly went to custom vinyl/graphic design and wraps. Whether you can make that work or are willing to make it work is a different thing all-together.
However, one thing to keep in mind is your outlook on things and self awareness. Don't compare yourself to others and don't go chasing money. You can literally find joy in almost any task, however medial. It comes down to what
Mihály Csíkszentmihályi "flow".
"In
positive psychology,
flow, also known as
the zone, is the mental state of operation in which a person performing an activity is fully immersed in a feeling of energized focus, full involvement, and enjoyment in the process of the activity. In essence, flow is characterized by complete absorption in what one does."
To this point, I have had some amazing (low pay) jobs in the service industry. When I was a barista or bartender in a busy place, I would just get into the zone and power through an 8 hour shift with speed, efficiency and constant banter with coworkers and customers. You can have a cook who is miserable with his life and a cook with the exact same circumstances who loves his life. A great documentary on this topic is "Happy" on Netflix right now.
I agree with most of what has been said here and I have been there. But as a counterpoint: maybe you need to do some self reflection. Maybe you need to go back to your job and hit it with a new vigor. Forget the people, the entitlement, the poor attitude and care. Focus on the craft and doing the best damn job you can. Maybe you forgot why you love it. Maybe with a renewed focus you can save on the side and start a side business that will turn into a full business. Whether detailing or wrapping, on your own terms.
All the best,