Today we’d like to introduce you to Genesis Sarmiento.
Hi Genesis, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I’ve always loved to draw as a child. In high school I remember feeling that I had no talent. I was never one of those incredibly artistic kids in the advanced art class. So, I never even tried. I kept to myself and denied myself this creative outlet knowing I was a creative person. Truly, I never intended on drawing for others, let alone captivating parts of my soul on canvas. But, as the world would have it, COVID hit. I one day realized through all the tiring hours of work and scraping every ridge of my brain for a science in college I could never grasp, that I missed something. Not like your hand reaching for a sketch pad, but like a hand reaching for the hand of a loved one. I saw my pastel pencils that I had bought long ago, and I finally created. It changed my life. I will never forget that first moment I saw the old French painting of “The Fallen Angel” and realized it was what I felt. It was one of my darkest moments, but it was also the greatest light. It drove me to create without limitations or thoughts. I have been doing so ever since. Today, I am brave. I’ve taken a form I hadn’t known was possible. Younger me would never believe how far out of my comfort zone I’ve gone today for my art. The simple beauties in everyday life make every brush stroke sweeter. A year after beginning my commissioned portrait pieces business I realized I needed more time for my true art. So now, I paint for myself. The feelings that I struggle to put into words I put on the canvas, combining fabrics of emotion to create a surrealist painting that leaves you curious. Today, my art has been all over California, finding its way to Miami Art Basel in 2023. Only few pieces of my art remain with me, as 2024 was the most productive sales year for my work. I am eager to see what the future holds as I continue to give myself to the canvas.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
It has been a roller-coaster. As someone with a full time job that dreams to run to the mountains and paint between the pine trees, it is a difficult road. At times my extreme burnout does not let me sit at the easel, no matter how much I crave the creative process. At other times I cannot stop myself. Perhaps the ADHD might have something to do with it. My biggest struggle was commissions. For about a year and a half I lived mostly on my day job and commissioned pieces. Though I am grateful and so incredibly humbled by the trust people put into my work, I realized it no longer made me creative. In fact, it felt like a second full time job. The goal in starting my business was to show the world a little beauty through all emotions in life, not to mass produce pet portraits. Today, I am glad I listened to my heart.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
By heart I am a Surrealistic Oil Painter. I often find beauty in the sky and what lies beyond our imagination. Much of my artwork is tethered to a story or emotion that inspired the piece, so I enjoy writing a small poem or anecdote (I am not a poet) behind the canvas of the piece itself. My art is free to interpretation, but I always enjoy connecting with my viewers when they realize my pink skies and butterflies are not painted without reason. Every detail is thought out and added with love. And as time has gone by, I see that my color palette is sometimes the most intriguing part of my work. No one would look at a pink astronaut and assume the piece is about your last moments. How if the world was ending, what might you think of with your final breaths? And to see people break down the broken oxygen line or the reflection of crumbling planet beyond, how did they feel at first? What do they feel now? (“The Final Voyage”, 2024)
Is there a quality that you most attribute to your success?
I believe my color palette and my ability to attach human emotions to canvas is what has made my art different from many. I would call being different a success.
Pricing:
- $35 Prints
- $100-$1500 originals
Contact Info:
- Website: https://studiogenesis.space/
- Instagram: @studio.genesis_art
