Today we’d like to introduce you to Hailey Bonia.
Hailey, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I live my life by the laws of creativity, passion, and excellence. I am an entirely self-taught, multi-award winning artist; and am at my happiest covered in paint, graphite, and charcoal. Every day, I have the privilege of creating beautiful artwork that has an impact. My goal has always been to capture the soul of the subject or business I am creating for. Since childhood, I have been infatuated with drawing realistic portraits, drawing any subject that would sit for me. On the other side of my business, there is my love of lettering, handwriting, and graphic design, which I piece together to create beautiful murals for businesses around the country. I strive to come closer to mastery every day and am a bit of a perfectionist which is very clear in my work. My professional career as an artist started at around 14 years old when I drew my first “photorealism” artwork for a client. I was hooked immediately.
For those of you that don’t know, photorealism is an art style in which an artist studies a photograph and then attempts to reproduce the image as realistically as possible in another medium. I fell in love with graphite and charcoal, and have stuck to them ever since. After years of perfecting my skills and learning the ropes of the art world, I left art school to pursue my first business venture “Hailey Bonia Custom Art” shortly after my 20th birthday. I am now fully immersed in the business world of art and coming closer to my goals every day. My dream is to be able to go back to college to pursue entrepreneurial business and graphic design/illustration while also running my business full-time.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
I don’t think there is ever such a thing as a “smooth road” when it comes to the art industry. I have encountered and endured loads of struggles along the way, and am ready to face any others that may arise. I struggle with managing my time between what is “art” and what is “the rest of life.” I don’t always have the luxury to create for eight or ten hours a day and am learning to find balance. For me, before full-time art, I was both an artist and an athlete. It was in the athletic world my largest struggle ended up turning into my biggest success in art. When I was 16 years old, I tore my ACL twice, and could not walk for several months at a time in between surgeries. Overwhelmed by being bedridden and angry with losing my athletic outlet, I poured my entire heart and soul into creating beautifully expressive drawings every single day. It was during this time that I really committed to drawing. I pushed my skills to the limit and realized that my passion for art was also my purpose in life. I traded in the basketball sneakers for some graphite and charcoal and haven’t looked back since.
Please tell us about Hailey Bonia Custom Art.
Hailey Bonia Custom Art is a business offering services of portrait drawing (both people and pets), and mural paintings that enhance the presence of a business both in reality and on social media. On the portrait end of my business, I specialize in drawing pet portraits, I can capture the soul of an animal on paper in a way that will be cherished forever. My portraits capture every single detail on the photograph of the subject, and look so realistic that many people often ask me if the drawings are photographs themselves! I pride myself on evoking emotion in my clients through my drawings and guarantee 110% satisfaction. For the mural end of my business, I specialize in creating a beautiful and unique design with a heavy focus on lettering. The goal for my murals is to provide a piece of art that motivates customers to return to the business as well as engage with the business by posting the mural on social media. I specialize in murals for businesses and corporations looking to attract a wider range of clients to their business as well as those looking to boost and grow their social media presence. What sets me apart from other artists is my ability to understand human psychology and apply it to making the perfect mural that consumers will be guaranteed to love and appreciate.
If you had to go back in time and start over, would you have done anything differently?
If I had to start over, I would have created my social media platforms for art earlier in life, and put much more effort into growing them. I also would have gone to community college for a marketing degree before transferring to RISD to start a degree in graphic design and illustration. I would have finished the marketing education before officially starting my business. Overall, I have no regrets, only determination.
Pricing:
- Murals Starting at $1000 (Payment Plans Available)
- Portrait Drawings Starting at $1250 (Payment Plans Available)
Contact Info:
- Address: 125 W Main Street Georgetown, MA
- Website: https://haileybonia.com
- Phone: 9785180520
- Email: haileybonia.art@gmail.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hboniaart/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/haileyboniacustomart/
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