Leah Tinari, Artist & Founder of Avenue Sea Creatures 27:51
It’s a Leah Tinari love fest! She discusses the stages she went through when her gallery closed and how her expectations of the art world changed dramatically over the last two years. She talks sales over Instagram (once she figured out what a DM was) and going it on her own as an author/illustrator and the founder of Avenue Sea Creatures. Once she became a mom and questioned the arbitrary line between painter and illustrator, her world opened up.
Leah Tinari has a BFA in painting from the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD). After graduation, she moved to New York City and since that time has been a scenic painter; a freelance illustrator whose work has appeared in The New Yorker, Vice, Spin, Elle, and Paper magazines; a teacher at Parsons New School; and a restaurant owner. Leah has also created campaigns for Nike and Mini Cooper automobiles. Her fine art has been shown in galleries around the world and is also privately collected. Harlan Coben’s The Magical Fantastical Fridge was the first children’s book she illustrated. Leah is author-illustrator of Limitless, 24 Remarkable American Women of Vision, Grit and Guts, published by Simon & Schuster, with a publication date of November 6, 2018 and available in pre-sale now. Leah has also been breaking into the custom sneaker game and launched her custom sneaker biz “Avenue Sea Creatures” in the summer of 2017 and has been making kicks for the likes of Adriana Lima, Mark Hamill, Adrian Grenier, Caroline Vreeland, and Yves Durif. She lives and paints in the East Village with her husband and son.
