Today we’d like to introduce you to Kayla Mahaffey.
Every artist has a unique story. Can you briefly walk us through yours?
I’m a 24 year old artist residing in Chicago, IL. I grew up on the South Side of Chicago, which helped shaped my art, while still teaching me life has many obstacles with sometimes disappointing results. The neighborhood both cared and strengthened me to do better, not only an artist, but a person. As a child, I always doodled and painted, but didn’t take it seriously until I started to take art classes in high school. I continued to paint throughout high school and began to elevate my skills in college when I attended American Academy of Art Chicago. I started to experiment with different styles but none seemed to be to my liking. It was when I left school and changed my thinking process when I started to really paint what I love.
Please tell us about your art.
My art is a happy mixture of afro-pop-surrealism. I love everything from color, cartoon, and portraiture and keeping them balanced is what I love the most. I keep a sense of fantasy and whimsy in my pieces while having realistic images that keep the piece grounded. I mostly work in watercolor, but lately my main medium has been acrylic. Acrylic speeds up my process more, and it doesn’t require constant layers. It can be applied opaque with one stroke which works for most paintings, but I do go back to the breeziness that is offered with watercolor. I make art to tell stories of a community that may go unheard sometimes. My art is meant to elevate the voices of those who are afraid to speak up, while also illustrating fun concepts that people can relate to. I get inspired by the people around me and their personal stories and personality helps shape my art in new ways. I grew up reading graphic novels and watching tons of cartoons and my love for both has brought happiness to me and has been part of my art forever. Bringing together realistic images of figures and portraiture and melding them with flat cartoony elements not only makes for pieces that are visually striking, but also interesting. I hope people leave my art taking with them a time of happiness. A time of being a child and thinking freely. I want my viewers to know having imagination can be one of life’s best gifts that should always be cherished and held close to heart.
What do you think is the biggest challenge facing artists today?
Today artists’ main problem is productivity. Everyone is always making new things trying to get noticed. They stay busy to keep up with demands, and social platforms usually don’t help with this. Everyone wants to be the next big thing and making work fast can be problematic. Many rush through their work resulting in an unsatisfactory outcome. Making art in a timely fashion can be a good goal to set, but it makes a lot of artists start to question their work, compare their work with others, and it burns them out very quickly. Many artists’ mental and physical state deteriorates because if this. Art used to be a thing many went to for escape and relaxation, but now it’s holding many artists back. They aren’t taking the time to enjoy it but instead are trying to please others.
How or where can people see your work? How can people support your work?
My work can be seen at art galleries around the Chicago area like Line Dot, Galerie F, and Blick Art Materials. Individuals can also find me on social media platforms Instagram (@kaylamay_art), Facebook (/kaylamahaffeyart), and my website (kaylamay.art). People can actually support my work by just showing up. Every artists’ end goal is usually getting paintings sold, but just people showing up to an art gallery opening, commenting on social media, or sharing my work with more potential supporters makes me happy and thankful. Supporters who talk to me about my art, and give me words of encouragement can be all I need at the time to make me keep going.
Contact Info:
- Website: kaylamay.art
- Email: kaylamahaffeyart@gmail.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kaylamay_art
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kaylamahaffeyart
Getting in touch: VoyageChicago is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
