Today we’d like to introduce you to Donni Talluto
Hi Donni, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
Drawing is something I have been doing since I was able to hold a pencil. Growing up in the Stone Mountain and Norcross areas, my grandmother would take my siblings and I to all kinds of art events in the Atlanta area, whether it was the High Museum or an African Arts Festival. As a grew older, I gained more of an interest in mostly Japanese style arts, whether it was their sequential art (manga looked so different but enticing to me, despite the lack of color compared to American comics) or their street fashion.
There was a problem though; in the 90s, I was obsessed with shows like Sailor Moon, and I drew them a LOT. My mother was always supportive of my creative endeavors, but noticed characters with fair skin, light eyes and straight hair, and asked why I didn’t draw characters who looked like me. My answer at the time was because I didn’t draw what I didn’t see on TV. That was the question that inspired me to go outside of the box when it came to how I made art. With the help of my family, my best friends and even my AP art teacher, I strive to make art that garners conversation and promotes a more marginalized community. As a artist who is black, non-binary, and married to a woman, I have the power to create my own spaces with my work!
Art has also become more therapeutic, so I find myself drawing a lot of how I feel mental health-wise, which I also feel is kinda taboo in the black community
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?
Ooh, absolutely NOT! I don’t come from a very wealthy family, so despite being accepted to Savannah College of Art and Design, it was too expensive. A lot of the techniques I have learned and what formed my art style is really just self-taught. Thankfully at that time I learned that art can be a career choice, there were plenty of tutorials you can learn online.
There had been a lot of bumps along the way; joining the military but being discharged for nerve damage to my legs, unchecked mental health issues, and physical pain that years later would turn into a partial hysterectomy at the age of 31. Despite all of this, my love of art never wavered, and, if I’m going to be honest, I never really see these challenges as a negative thing. It’s simply something you live and learn from.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
My illustrations are more of an anime style, but it includes my own personal interests such as alternative fashion. Characters with tattoos and piercings, alternative hairstyles and clothing, something that makes someone scream “Happy Halloween” jokingly, not realizing that to me, Halloween is every day of the year!
At the moment, in addition to the illustrations I am working on, I am also in the process of making a comic! Sequential art was what got me really interested in art in the first place, and I feel this would be the ultimately love letter to the craft. The story focuses around a recent college graduate helping other artists defeat their own inner demons, and in the process learn more about her partner’s disappearance. The last few years, there has been some major shifts in the art space, and I want to tell a story about what’s on my mind in the best way I knew how. I hope to release more information about this magical girl story very soon!
Is there anyone you’d like to thank or give credit to?
I have to give high praise to my mother and grandmother, who always had the arts somewhere in the house, whether it was the alternative rock music my mom played or the African masks and instruments my grandmother decorated around the house. They were critical but encouraging of not just mine, but all of our dreams. My sisters and best friends never gave me any slack either, so I have to thank them for the push and support.
My wife, Sheena, has also been a steady rock in my creative endeavors. She always pushed me to follow my dreams, and never gave up on me, and I am truly thankful to her for that. Maybe one day with my art, I can afford that home of her she’s always dreamed of (literally anywhere directly on the beach, hahaa)
Contact Info:
- Website: https://lususnaturales.carrd.co/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lususnaturales
- Twitter: https://x.com/lususnaturales
- Other: https://cara.app/lususnaturales
