After months of stepping back from the art scene, I finally have the chance to dive into something new. I wanted to explore more avenues within art and where it could take me now that I'm based in Dubai!
I obtained my trading license so I can do freelance work and continue building/expanding my art career. It'll be exciting to see what I can make happen for myself!
I obtained my trading license so I can do freelance work and continue building/expanding my art career. It'll be exciting to see what I can make happen for myself!
Lately, I've been wanting to paint on shoes, clothes and walls versus a canvas. Reasons being, I don't have the studio space for canvases and I want to try something new. This will be good for me as I'm stepping out of my comfort zone and painting beyond a flat surface.
Here are my new pair of Air Force 1s. It took me a bit of time to figure out what exactly I wanted to paint on these bad boys and then it hit me! I was scrolling through IG and came across another artist by the name of Sophie. Sophie is based in the US and she makes custom sneakers. There were a pair of sneakers she had made that had dragons on them and I thought they looked really cool except I wished they had a bit more dimension to them as they appeared a bit too flat for my liking. So without further-ado, I took that concept and revamped it!
- Sophie's Dragon vs. My Dragon -
My intentions were to take the body of the dragon and have it wrap around the swoosh. This definitely gave the dragon more life and fluidity in the body, therefore allowing it to standout. It took me about two tries to finalize my design before beginning the process. With this pair being my first to work on, it was a great learning experience to understand the material, paints and application process. I definitely felt and saw the difference between regular acrylic paints and leather paints. Prior to this attempt, I did try using acrylic paints on another pair of AF1s to see how they'd turn out and while the paint held on, it did crack and there were a few areas where it didn't adhere so it began to peel and shed. With the new paints made specifically for leather canvas shoes, this will give me the results and longevity I need to further push my art and quality of work.
The one thing I love about art is the trial and error process. It is the ability to fail and learn from those failures only to improve. There is so much room for failure therefore, room for opportunity and I enjoy every moment of it.
- Miilo