Meet Kalin Devone

Today we’d like to introduce you to Kalin Devone.

Kalin, before we jump into specific questions about your art, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
I’ve always been into the arts. When I was a child I would draw in all of my mom’s notebooks, I’d only ask for art supplies for my birthday. It was just something I was naturally drawn to. I graduated from UNC Charlotte with a major in Fine Art, concentrating in Painting. I never thought I would end up being a painter, I had only painted a few times before college and never really a portrait. After college, I took a few years off of making art at all to just focus on myself and to figure out who I was. Art school really did a lot to my way of thinking. I felt like I had to go specific routes in the art world in order to be successful. Had it not been for my friends and family really pushing and supporting me there’s a chance I wouldn’t have gotten back into painting for even longer. After my break, I started to focus on anatomy in art. Something about facial structure and being able to capture personalities and emotion intrigued me. My work began to spread on different social media platforms and I was then able to being painting commissioned paintings for others which helped my business grow to what it is now.

Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
I think the road always has rocky points for creatives. In dealing with artist block and even going back to my struggles after art school I definitely felt like I wasn’t following the “proper” path with my art. I was taught that to be a successful artist, you needed to be in some highly accredited museum or become an art professor at a University. I learned early on that was not a path I desired and by no means was it what I was truly meant to do. Finding my style and subject matter was easy, defending it was another. When you do something that people connect with, it is easy for them to assign their own narrative to your content. For a while I felt boxed in to a specific genre and style of work because of that. I’ve worked through that by always reminding myself that I paint the things and people I do simply because it reminds me of my childhood. The things I grew up watching and listening to are still some of the things that bring me the most happiness.

We’d love to hear more about your art.
I specialize in large scale oil portraits. Typically of celebrities from the range of music artists to movie stars. I’m really proud of the brand I’ve been able to build with my art. In the stage of not working, I mentioned I had all of my paintings hidden away. In my closet, actually for years. So for my pieces to get, they recognition that they have has been an amazing journey to watch.

Do you look back particularly fondly on any memories from childhood?
When I think about my childhood, I see my favorite memories as just reel from being in the car. I think that was my happy place. The music we would listen to is represented in the prices I’ve made. My mom and my sister and I would just sing at the top of our lungs and it’s just a feeling of genuine happiness. Just road trips with a range of feel-good music. Those are my favorite memories.

Pricing:

• Custom portraits $400- $2,000
• Painting Prints- $35- $60

Contact Info:

• Website: Kalin-devone.com
• Instagram: Kalin_renee
• Twitter: _justkalin

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