Daily Inspiration: Meet Sydney Mufuka

Today we’d like to introduce you to Sydney Mufuka.

Hi Sydney, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
Of course! So my name is Sydney Mufuka, but in the art world, I go by the blind artistan. “Why?”, you may ask. Well, when I was little I was diagnosed with albinism which is the lack of pigment in one’s hair, skin and eyes. Because of the lack of pigment in my eyes, they were not able to fully develop and later on in my childhood I was informed that I was nearly legally legally blind. As you can imagine this affected me in various ways, but somehow art became my passion. Because of this, from a very young age, my mom would call me the blind artist.

I remember it all started in middle school. I would doodle on and on in my classes to pass the time and eventually, I became obsessed with it. Drawing faces and patterns were my absolute favorite and by the time I was in eighth grade, I convinced my mom to move so that I could go to the Dekalb School of the Arts, a local art school where I could embrace being an artist and learn as much as I could. However, when I got there, things weren’t as I expected them to be. I was quickly judged on my style and many students thought that I could not draw. By the time I reached the end of high school, I believed them.

Nevertheless, I applied for SCAD and got in. Going to this university was the best decision that I’ve ever made and is the reason why I am still motivated in my art career today. I quickly picked up digital art which allowed me to zoom in very close and create clean and captivating illustrations. On top of this, it has allowed me to practice my skills to a point where I feel like I can translate almost anything to traditional media. (Which is something I that I really want to try out more as well!) Today, my work is primarily inspired by Art Nouveau, various textile designers, flowers and fantasy. I love creating beautiful images that are accessible and inspiring to everyone. My goal as an artist is to make the world a little more colorful, inspiring, fun, inclusive and to prove to everyone that you can do anything that you set your mind and heart to.

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
It has definitely not been a smooth road. When I started drawing seriously, I struggled a lot with my skill because of my eyesight, it really took a lot of practice, patience and experimentation for me to elevate my style to where it is today.

Something else I really struggled with was creating art for myself that I genuinely liked. I feel like throughout my art journey, I kept trying to create pieces for everyone else but not myself. Not many people liked my style or my work starting out and because of this, I feel like I kept trying to prove myself to them… Looking back, I consider this to a big bump in my journey because I feel like art should from your heart. It should be something that connects your unique message to the world. Not realizing this for a long time really took away the passion and joy that I initially had for creating.

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I primarily create inclusive fantasy illustrations inspired by art nouveau, Japanese traditional tattoos and the natural world. I love to use vibrant colors and intricate linework to elevate my pieces. Right now, I mostly work digitally on the iPad, but I do want to start painting traditionally again someday!

I also have an online shop where I sell stickers and prints!

I think what sets my work apart is the fact that I’m legally blind, yet I’m a visual artist. Isn’t that ironic? But I also feel like my intricate line work and love for design, flow and balance also set my pieces apart too. I want each piece that I create to take the viewer on journey through the composition and I want there to be so much attention to detail that someone could look at my art on a random day and find something new!

Something else that I feel like sets my work apart is the fact that each of my pieces have their own story behind it. Creating is my form of journaling and self-expression and I think the story really connects me with whoever views my work.

One of my favorite pieces to this day is called “The Mask”, it’s a piece that I created in a really tough time in my life. I was in an abusive relationship during Covid, with a burnt foot so I couldn’t walk…. So I decided to create. The Mask is inspired by the Egyptian God, Anubis and it represents a time where I felt like I had to put on a mask to continue to show up for myself and my loved ones at the time. The eyes are hollow to represent how I felt at that time, compared to the beauty of the mask itself which represents how much I was faking it and other people’s perception of me. This is one of my favorite pieces and one of the pieces that I’m most proud of because I can still look back at it now and be proud. I can still look back at it now and be happy that I pushed through even when I felt like I couldn’t go on anymore. I can still connect to the piece as a whole and I think it truly is a time capsule for that period in my life for me. This piece was one of the first pieces that I put my full heart into and I think this is when I realized how important is to be authentically yourself. I also think it’s one of my most popular pieces and it has connected me to so many beautiful people at shows and through social media.

What do you like best about our city? What do you like least?
Atlanta is beautiful. I love the big buildings, I love how many trees we have and I really love the beautiful people that live here too. I love the coffee shops, the start-up businesses… what is not to love?

I really love the artsy side to it. Like, how many art shows we have every weekend all year long and how many people are so interested in creating or seeing creations. I love how many murals we have! It’s crazy to see such beautiful art be accessible to everyone every day! I also love the diversity here. I went to a predominately white school growing up, so I didn’t see as much representation until I was in high school. Being able to go out and see so many people of color thriving makes my heart so happy.

What I don’t like is the homeless rate. I really don’t like the fact that I can go through the Georgia state area and see so many people without a home, shelter, or food. It really makes me sad and I feel like this is something that we need to change.

I also feel like more of the MARTA stations should have murals and art around it. Some locations do, but each station should feel special no matter where the location is.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.theblindartisan.com
• Instagram: theblindartisan
• Twitter: theblindartisan

Image Credits
Head shot: Jaxon Photography