We had the good fortune of connecting with Eve Pinnies and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Eve, let’s start by talking about what inspires you?
Honestly, I’m EXTREMELY inspired by other artists! I can watch an artist with a completely different art style/form than me and I would still be ready to pump out some artwork as well! Something about seeing someone pick up a paintbrush or their tablet pencil makes me want to do the same. So anytime I’m feeling really unmotivated, I just watch another freelance artist on YouTube, and the next thing I know I’m already holding a brush! I also draw a lot of inspiration from nature! my brand is basically inspired by a forest cottage-core life in which I WISH I could fulfill.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
If I’m 100% honest, it’s not easy at all, and I’m still just a small business with a little following! In recent years and the growth of social media, the internet has made it a bit easier to become an artist full-time, but standing out to gain those followers and views is hard! I’m very proud of the community I have built so far, everyone is so supportive and I’ve never had strangers enjoy my art before so it’s also overwhelming, but I love every moment!

I would like to believe I’ve gained these supporters with my theme and personality! on social media, I try and talk and respond to everyone who comments and answers questions involving how to get started doing what I’m doing now! There’s no gatekeeping in this house!

Besides nature and soft themes, I also make it very prevalent that I’m a POC artist that focuses on presenting women of color in a soft, natural state that isn’t always seen in art or media in general. I believe that with my art, I can create a safe place for soft-natured women/femme people of color who just love plants and nature.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Unfortunately, there isn’t much to do based out in Texas City. But I’m also located 30 minutes away from Galveston and 40 or so minutes away from downtown Houston!

Easily one of the first places I would take my best friend would be the Strand down in Galveston! There’s this AMAZING ice cream shop called La Kings that I have to try and convince myself to not stop by every day! They also do Taffy pull demonstrations and toss candy at you! There is also this super cool spiritual shop called the Witchery that sells amazing things from tarot cards to crystals! super awesome to even just look around!

When we travel further north to down/mid-town Houston, my first stop would be a POC-owned art cafe called Honey Art Cafe! Before Covid, I was a regular there and went every Saturday just to enjoy a kettle of tea, a couple of pop culture theme treats, and just paint! For some food, we gotta head down to Bellaire and close our eyes and pick something because honestly if you love any and all Asian food, you won’t be complaining at all!

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
Someone Who REALLY inspires me is an artist who goes by AppleCheeks. She is a small freelance artist that I discovered on YouTube when desperately trying to find art content that I can vibe with. She has a very traditional and realistic-based art background but has broken out of that shell to become her own type of artist and I draw (pun not intended lol) a lot of inspiration from that. Growing up I’ve always had it stuck in my mind that art is realism and everything has to look like it’s a photograph instead of a drawing. But over the years I’ve slowly broken out of that norm and when I saw AppleCheeks, it just honestly felt like I could 100% relate to her. So I can easily credit her for giving me the guts to put my art out there the way I want it to be!

Website: https://www.etsy.com/shop/EvePinnies

Instagram: Eve.Pinnies

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/evepinnies

Other: https://www.instagram.com/eve.pinnies/ https://www.tiktok.com/@eve.pinnies

Nominate Someone: ShoutoutHTX is built on recommendations and shoutouts from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.