ABOUT ARTSTROKES
I am Alinda Saintval.
I've been doing art from a young age but didn't quite take it in as a serious practice until my freshman year of high school. I was originally drawn in by work that my cousin Andre had done. I was about 5 or 6 years old and was in complete awe in how he could recreate faces. He also got me my first sketchbook and pencils to get me started. It was two years later that I tried my hand at acrylic paint and fell in love with the process of working with color. Then I went on to try different surfaces such as shoes and backpacks and most recently, steel water thermoses. I've been able to turn my art into small business at first by painting on backpacks mainly for students and now on graduation caps.
HOW I WORK
I mainly work with acrylic and oil paint but am always aiming to try new media. My most recent leap was into ink which I find I really like working with.
My room is essentially my studio with a bed in it. My closet is my storage space. I've been fortunate enough to have this much space to work with especially compared to my old apartment where I would have to remove my bed and prop it up against the wall just for some work space.
I research all my references after I've figured out the general idea of what I want to create then I rack up my phone with screenshots and downloads that I can use. I've also turned to taking my own photos using my own face or hands if I can't find a model.
MATERIALS
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Acrylic Paint
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Windsor & Newton, Master's Paint, Liquitex Basics
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Oil Paint
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Windsor & Newton, Golden
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Paint Mediums
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Retarder (acrylic), Liquin (oil)
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Paintbrushes
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any paintbrush that works. Round 2 and Filbert brushes are my favorite
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Paint thinner
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Gamsol (much safer solution)
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Canvas
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Gallery wrapped from Michaels
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Paper
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Stonehenge (for larger pieces)
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Strathmore
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SO, WHAT'S THE POINT?
I don't create for the sole purpose of impressing people or creating anything I think others would like. I create what makes me feel good. A common theme you'll find across my page is that of African American men and mainly women. That is because black skin is beautiful and I love emphasizing on that. I generally get inspired spontaneously with ideas not at all correlating with any theme and I think that's when I get the best ideas.
In my business ventures, I started painting on backpacks for people. I was very attracted to the idea of art that you can carry around that either expresses the carrier or the original ideas of mine. I had one particular case that solidified my purpose for creating and bringing ideas to life. Of course any artist knows that this isn't a life you choose, it has to be in your veins. I didn't know why, really, I just knew I had to. There's a client I had in a different state who explained a situation to me of her daughter attending a predominantly white elementary school and being teased for her natural hair, and naturally, an insecurity blossoms and usually starts at such a young age. She told me this story and wanted me to paint on a backpack for her so that she had the constant reminder of her power. I completed it and had it shipped to her. She loved it! Several months later, her mother emailed me with an update. She told me she stopped coming home crying and wanted to wear her hair out more.
That.
If I can inspire anyone with what I do and not what I do for them, I can die happy. When I was doing the backpacks, I came up with the name Duende for the line (that I'll have to save for now). The definition of the word is the ability of art to deeply move a person. My aim is to move others the same way that my ideas and influences move me.
So honestly you don't have to care, I'll still be doing this.
- A.S.