We recently connected with Alexis Martinez and have shared our conversation below.

Alexis, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. We’d love to hear the backstory behind a risk you’ve taken – whether big or small, walk us through what it was like and how it ultimately turned out.

Back in August of 2023 I moved from Arizona to Arkansas with my husband. He is a Chef, Hiphop Writer/performer, and Social Worker. We moved to Arkansas for his culinary career. We recently moved back to Arizona after 9 months hopping from town to town. Mountainburg for 2 months, Fort Smith for 5 months, Fayetteville for the last 2 months before moving back. In Fayetteville was where we were showed so much promise. My husband and I were working at the same restaurant, I was working in catering. It’s NorthWest Arkansas, WalMart headquarters, J.B. Hunt corporate offices, high end restaurants, bumping art scene. I was accepted into the NWA Art Gallery located in the NorthWest Arkansas Mall. I talked on the phone with Melissa, head board member for 55 minutes and 05 seconds. I took down 2 pages worth of notes. I had just got hired for 2nd job full time for the Chēba Hut that was opening up a brand new location, all while we are smack dab in the middle of apartment hunting in Fayetteville then BAM! a week later we are let go from the restaurant just as we were feeling like we found a town we wanted to be apart of. It broke our hearts yet we built some strong relationships, friendships in Fort Smith, Arkansas so we drove our Penske to Fort Smith and stayed Mother’s Day weekend with the family that took us in for those 5 months while we worked our butts off to carve a life in Arkansas and share what we do creatively. Building those bonds is fueling us to work hard back here in Arizona and go back! It was risky… it was a Rollercoaster, but hey! We have the story to tell.

Alexis, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I did my first in-depth interview with Voyage Phoenix in 2018 at 29 years old. I am actually looking at one of the printed copies they sent me right now that’s framed and brought with me through my travels.

It is now 2024 and I am 35 years old. I have always drawn/sketched since I was 4 years old.

I had an epiphany of sorts that I was “good” in my 6th grade art class when my art teacher had us pick randomly out of a box old comic books and swift through it, pick a panel and redraw it. I chose an ad or promo page which was a whole page- for the next issue of an Incredible Hulk. The photo was of a man’s screaming face behind some prison bars- in color. When our assignments were complete my art teacher put our drawings head to head and had the class vote on their favorite. Mine went head to head with a boy named AJ that drew close up of The Juggernaut. The class was split but he indeed won!

So that led to me redrawing some of my favorite album artworks by Alan Forbes, Alex Grey, Alex Pardee from the remainder of middle school to my highschool years.

After Highschool I attended Pima for graphic design which led to transfer to The Art Institute of Tucson which I would later drop out of after a year.

2011 is when I began to show my art professionally. I started out though in a small DIY art collective called Bogdare, to get my feet wet. Then I entered RAW Artists Tucson, where I participated in 4 showcases between 2013-2014, also shown in Solar Culture Art Gallery- yet its been a minute since I have started working in New mediums.

Since Covid I have just painted and accumulated art that by early 2023 I got back into art markets. My friend Katt Kassidy began CryFest, an emo dance party that also hosts artist vendors at various downtown bars and venues.

My art style is LowBrow mixed with Pop Surrealism, Psychedelia, and Neo Traditional Tattoo Art.

I work with Watercolor, Metallic Acrylic Paint, Acrylic Paint Markers, Sharpie, and Colored Pencils.

I only sell Original Framed Artwork.
Because quite honestly I don’t have the resources to make prints or have my work printed on mugs, totes, shirts as much as I would love to yet I also juggle with the struggle of : “who would even want that on a coffee mug?!”

I found my niche, I suppose by now. I have never stopped creating even through the years when I had a full time job. I create for myself, I think more than for others. Perhaps that’s why I don’t sell much *laughs* I do want to go back to school to be an Art Therapist. Art is all I know, it has got me through good times, bad times, I worked through my grief when I lost my Nana unexpectedly in March 2020. The framed Voyage Phoenix Interview article I carry with me was hanging on her bedroom wall next to her bedside. Sevas Tra.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

Meeting other artists, networking, and sharing our passion with others!

What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?

Pursuing my next chapter into Art Therapy.

Oh! Also sharing the stage with my beloved as he performs and I live paint on stage. We were booked for an event to do that on Fort Smith, Arkansas but a week before the event after we had been promoting ourselves for a month straight prior We got dropped from the set.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: Http://www.instagram.com/alexismartinez_art
• Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/artistalexismartinez
• Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/danger-james