Today we’d like to introduce you to Keviette Minor.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Keviette. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
Honestly, I’ve been drawing for quite a long time. Ever since I was two, according to my parents (lol). I didn’t take a ‘traditional’ drawing class until my first year of college but growing up, art was my means of survival, y’know? I was a quiet kid, had trouble making friends. I wasn’t very good at communicating my feelings either, and that was hard for me as a person who feels so deeply, and so much.
So, I began to draw, and my parents were supportive because they could see I had a gift. Down the line, when it came time for me to choose which high school I wanted to go to, my parents made sure I had my fair chance at making it into this special magnet art program at my local high school. And, it’s through that program that I first learned about and began to pursue Digital Art–I discovered my love for Photoshop as a medium.
Now, the area I grew up in was and still is, predominantly white. I point this out to highlight how the art I was making when I was younger reflected this fact. My mom would always ask, y’know, “when are you gonna start drawing people that look like you?” And, in retrospect, the fact that I wasn’t drawing people that looked like me had a lot to do with how I felt about myself. I was bullied when I was younger and didn’t truly begin to see the beauty in myself until I was older. But, that transition from middle school to high school is what opened my eyes to this part of my identity which I had yet to really explore, and that was my Blackness. So, when I got to high school, I made it a point to seek out the Black Student Union to get in touch with all that I felt I had lost out on, growing up.
And if I were to pinpoint the exact moment which inspired the shift in my art-making from reflecting what was around me to reflecting me, it’d be my sophomore year of high school. My passion for the BSU was at an all-time high, and consequently, the work I was making was especially politically driven. I was watching the news every day, getting fired up. I wanted to make art that was a catalyst for change; art that educated, that broke down stereotypes, that had a message. My sophomore year of high school is also when I found mentorship in two strong Black women–the only Black teachers in my whole high school. Not only were they my role models, they were my aunties away from home, and each played huge parts in my high school experience. I still remember them taking me to the talks of artists like Faith Ringgold and Alison Saar.
But, also around this time, my Digital Arts teacher introduced me to the work of Kara Walker, Kehinde Wiley and Kerry James Marshall, all of which I still consider the biggest influencers on my work today. They couldn’t have been introduced to me at a more perfect time. Because while I was coming to terms with my Blackness and trying to define it for myself, I was also in the process of trying to develop my own style. I borrowed the silhouette element from Walker; the storytelling element from Marshall’s work; the vibrant color choices from Wiley. Suddenly, my art style was born, and it was like I couldn’t stop creating. This spike in creativity, paired with opportunities to broaden my skill set presented by my mentors helped me to get to where I am today.
Today, I’m a student at the University of Southern California. I’m a youth mentor for this collaboration project between my school and LA Commons; a junior lead artist for ArtStart back home; a comics artist for my school’s student-run newspaper; a visual story-teller; a Black creative. But, I know I would be nowhere without my family and all the teachers who encouraged me and poured into me along the way. I’d be nowhere without my siblings, who motivate me to do all that I do. My art practice remains a cathartic release, inspired by personal experiences of mine like going to church every Sunday morning or spending the summer at my grandparents’ house out here in South Central.
It will always be an extension of myself because I use my art practice to process the things that happen to me–or even to reimagine memories if you will. But, I’ve also recognized art as the influential and educational tool that it is. Once upon a time, my body of work consisted of nothing but fan art, but today, my work is political. Today, my work is meaningful, because it’s about making people–and, at this point in my life, more specifically Black women, like myself–feel seen. We all know that representation is important, but the work I do now is about sharing the stories of those who have not always felt like they have a voice, and I am happy about that.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
They haven’t, but I do recognize things could have been a lot harder. Most of the struggles I’ve encountered up until this point in my life have been internal. My mind is always going–what makes my art different? What makes my story worth being heard? Am I ‘real’ artist? Am I ‘real’ designer? Because I’m in school for design, I’m constantly having this battle within myself of whether I can even call myself a designer because sometimes I feel like an artist pretending to be a designer when really, it’s like, why can’t I be both and everything in between? My internal struggles are really about me giving myself permission to be more than one thing. I do think it can be attributed to the fact that I grew up in a predominantly white area–I was almost always the only black person in class. It was as if there were these traits which were being assigned to me.
And, in order to feel seen, it seemed I had two options. It was either take on that role–embody those traits which were being assigned to me–or carry on being unseen. So when I was younger and would do anything just to have a friend, it got to a point where I felt like I was the face of the race, and while in that headspace, I placed limits on myself, everything I had/have the potential to be. Now, it’s like, I’m not going to sit here and let people tell me who I am or what I am–I’m going to define that for myself. That’s why my art practice means so much to me. Because I’m using my art as a means to purge all those traits which were assigned to me so that I can get to know me for me.
Additionally, I’m constantly having to check myself when I slip into comparing my chapter 1 to someone else’s chapter 20. If nothing else, I always just try to remember that everyone’s journey looks different; to be happy with wherever I am in my journey, but also to never lose faith or stop working towards my goals.
Please tell us more about your business. What do you guys do? What do you specialize in? What sets you apart from competition?
My business is still in the ‘early development stages’ at this point, but it is called Keviette By Design, and I specialize in all things art and design. I grew up watching my parents operate and own their own business, so that’s where the inspiration to do the same myself came from. I do portrait commissions; logo, poster, and t-shirt designs; illustration, and whatever other creative problem you can come up with for me to solve. Right now, I’d say I’m most known for my stained-glass inspired digital portraits and illustrations. For instance, this past summer was my first time taking official commissions.
And, I collaborated with an LA-based fashion brand to illustrate a coloring-lookbook. I say this to highlight my company’s versatility; I’m proud of the fact that I can have a hand in realizing other people’s visions and bringing them to life. Each project comes with its own set of challenges, and I do my best to rise to every one of them, overcome and learn something new. To date, when I talk about ‘my company,’ I’m really just talking about myself (lol), but like I said before, I’m most interested in helping my clients feel like their voices are being heard. My hope is always that the finished product of whatever service is asked of me embodies their initial vision.
The majority of my clients, at this point, are friends and family, people that hear about me through word of mouth, but I hope to expand my clientele in the future. And, I know this will probably sound cheesy, but I believe what sets me apart from others is the heart that I put into each project. This art stuff means a lot to me, and it’s only right that I share what art has been to me with every person that I work with because then it opens up all the possibilities of what art can be in the greater scheme of things.
So, what’s next? Any big plans?
That’s kind of a hard question because I’m the kind of person that just take things one day at a time to keep from stressing out too much (lol), but first things first, I plan to finish my degree at USC. I’m looking forward to working on the foundation for my business, getting my website together, etc. In the future, I hope to be exhibiting art, sharing more stories, encouraging the quiet kids to use art as their voice until they find their own.
And, though I may not know exactly what I want to do after I graduate–if nothing else, I just hope I’m still creating. I do have an exhibition that I’m working on a new body of work for by the name of ‘Black Girl Blues.’ The exhibition will be open from January 13-23, 2020 at the Roski School of Art and Design’s Helen Lindhurst Gallery. The opening reception is January 16 from 5 to 7 pm. I’m so grateful for this opportunity to show work, but I’m putting it into the universe now, this show will be the first of many!
Contact Info:
- Email: kevietteminor@gmail.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/keviette.by.design/?hl=en
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/keviette.by.design/
- Other: https://www.inprnt.com/profile/artbykev/
Image Credit:
collaboration with @deathofcool__, comic for Daily Trojan at USC
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