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Do it badly!

Here s an old school mini article I never posted. It from a Indigenous/ Native American magazine from October 2006. Ughh. I get so freakin' embarrassed reading any interview I take part in . I am super thankful for the attention but since I can't fake shit talkers, yet I feel like I am a  fake shit talker when reading these. Anyway this piece inspired by the lovely Tanya V was what really helped me find my direction as a pin up artist. I was starting to get back into painting again after almost 10 years of barely making a thing. Perfectionism, self critical sabotage will warp your mind body and soul. I stopped making art a few times because I thought I was never good enough. (the life long battle many of us share) But as I have slowly learned, If you love what you do,  Anything worth doing is worth doing badly.  I constantly hear from my fans wanting to see the "old Santiago" the wild cubistic painterly works again. (Trust me, you are about to be blown away by my upcoming works) but I had to take a detour for a few years and learn to make art because I love it, even if it comes out "badly" or not to certain standards. Letting go of unrealistic expectations has in the end made me 10 times more productive. Olus that :shitness I was afraid of was actually another style in me that was yearning to burst out, yet I surpressed it becuasr it did not fit the mold I saw in my head. It was better...

If it is worth doing, its worth doing shittily. Better shitty then not at all. Enough of my rambling.

Click image for detail.

Portrait of Elda Garcia - Owens

See real life Elda ---> Here

I transformed Elda into a classic Pin-up while honoring her heritage giving her an indigenous tattoo of the native "Taino" indians of Puerto Rico. The symbol is known as the "Sol of Jayuya" a town on the island still possessing many ancient petroglyph carvings, as well as adding urban "graff" stylings I love mashing together.

Curios about getting one made? =)