Today we’d like to introduce you to Donte Stokes. He shared his story with us below:
Born in a very small, country, dirt-road town of Milledgeville, GA, but raised in a small cultural suburb of Morristown, NJ. Later relocating to East Stroudsburg, PA. Donte Stokes is a freelance graphic artist, illustrator, and painter. Graduating from North Carolina A&T with a Bachelor in Visual Arts & Media Design, accompanied by a minor in Entrepreneurship. During Donte’s earlier life, he was always into art. Heavily inspired by his father’s realistic graphite drawings & grandmother’s artwork in her house. Often you would catch him in the corner drawing with a pen on receipt paper or old envelopes from his mother’s purse. Throughout his high school career, he really got into the digital side of art and automatically fell in love during his digital design class. He then attended college to develop and refine his craft. Throughout his college career, he has held a ton of graphic design & art positions within organizations on campus. Since his first year in college, Donte has been doing freelance art of all types. His passion is bringing other people’s ideas to life. His senior year he was blessed with the opportunity to study graphic design in Florence, Italy. He recalls the experience a life-changing moment that he will never forget. He is currently aiming to further his career in the art field and build a bigger business. His long-term goal is to own a design firm specializing in musician artwork.
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?
This has actually been a very very bumpy ride. Nonetheless, I couldn’t picture myself doing anything other than art. One of my biggest challenges thus far have been avoiding too much time in my head and keeping a consistent run on social media. So many times I’m overthinking how this piece will come out or I’m super critical in the beginning stages. I get frustrated and say I’ll come back to it. And that’s why I have so much unfinished work, so many works in progress. Or even then, I’ll get a new idea in my head and have to hurry and sketch that & start the painting before I lose it. I’m currently trying to master the technique of just letting things flow as they go. With social media, I’m not too big on opening up and sharing as I should. It’s such a great way to connect and build with your followers. But with me, I get super overwhelmed and sometimes take a lot of breaks. I still manage a decent following but I know for a fact I could grow more if I was more consistent.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I am a Painter, illustrator, & designer. I really enjoy all three mediums for different reasons. I specialize on portraiture and realism. I love to capture emotions and feelings within faces. I’m very big on detail. I like to add every inch and I’m eager to get even better within realism. My name Dts. Unlimited comes from my love of truly being unlimited. I don’t want to ever say I can’t do something. I might have practiced and learned new methods but I truly pride myself on having no boundaries on what I can create. I think what sets me apart is I don’t focus on just painting, drawing, or graphic design. That also can be a downfall because I have yet to discover my signature. Besides the color blue, most things I create do incorporate the color aside from personal logos and specific commissions. Blue is very special to me and it just brings me so much peace and calmness while still giving off power & strength. Im most proud of my resilience & continuing to follow my dreams throughout the many ups & downs.
Is there something surprising that you feel even people who know you might not know about?
Something surprising about me is that I didn’t start off painting. I didn’t even use to consider myself a Painter. I used to paint here and there for school but my main skill has always been drawing. Then in high school, I shifted more toward digital art. I didn’t really get into painting until, I believe my junior year of college. I credit alot of my knowledge to my professors Dr. Hooker & Professor Barnhill of North Carolina A&T. Day in and day out, practice after practice, taking in all of their teaches & advice I began to really love the process/outcome & the overall experience of painting.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://dtsunlimited.myshopify.com
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/dts.unlimited?igshid=ZDdkNTZiNTM=
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/dtstokes?mibextid=ZbWKwL
