Hello! I am new to Mayhem and wanted to introduce myself and talk a little about my art style, the materials I use, and my goals fr this shop.
I am a self-taught artist based in the Syracuse NY area in the US. I have not had any formal art training, as I have always focused on my healthcare career and family. I am now finding more time to create, and finding the courage to list my art for sale. My goal is to make enough to maintain my motivation to continue to develop my skills, buy art supplies, and enroll in some actual painting classes.
I am vehemently anti-AI, and anti-fast fashion. All of the bags I list here have been thrifted, carefully inspected, and thoroughly cleaned before painting. I use high quality Angelus brand leather paints that are frequently used to customize sneakers. The paints are heat set and sealed with an acrylic finisher to protect the art from water and dirt. These paints are designed for wear and resist peeling and cracking with normal use. (you can find YouTube videos testing their durability!) I do not repeat exact designs, or do "production work". Everything is hand painted and unique. I select only bags in like-new to very good condition. I am open to taking commissions for bags if you have one you want customized, however, I will not paint high-end or designer items at this time.
My art style is colorful! I am not really into "clean aesthetic" or minimalism. I use a lot of nature themes, life/death, and animals in my art. I also work with animal bones and will have some skulls with sculpture elements listed in the future.
I have originals for sale currently, but I am working on getting prints of the Skull painting attached to this blog. They will be on archival grade acid free paper, and hand embellished with color shift and metallic paints. They will be signed, but not numbered as they will not be part of a limited run. As I have a regular 9-5, my ability to take commissions is limited, but I am open to discussing small pet portraits, custom bags or clothing, or other small works.
Thanks for checking out my art and my shop. Please follow me on my socials and engage with me there! Happy to be joining Mayhem!