Meet joe villatoro | JVTORO | ARTIST

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

Hi joe, why did you decide to pursue a creative path?
Well, first of all having the option to choose a career as an artist is pretty awesome in itself. I love what I do, it’s therapeutic for me, and seeing my clients’ reactions when they get their commissioned art piece or purchased personal artwork from me makes it all worthwhile for me. Plus, getting paid for what you love to do, you can’t beat that!

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
Being diverse, I like to create art in many different mediums. I was trained as a Graphic designer, and I use those skills and thought processes to help me methodically create some of my works. I’m constantly learning, I play guitar and keyboard, and do photography. I try to incorporate those into my art as well.

I’m best known for my fan artwork around DFW. My work has a dynamic feel to it, going from black and white pen and ink to colorful abstracts. I like to mix things up instead of sticking to one kind of style or medium. I do a great extent of portrait type of works as well, lately I’ve been working with animal subjects, something drastic to humans. In addition, I’ve been experimenting with surrealism. I’m trying to come up with a more conceptual type of work. Some of my newer work will be inspired by mental illness if not already.

I’m excited to take my art into new directions, trying new things, more photography and collaborating with other artists and vendors. It’s going to get weird and interesting I think, I’m going to experiment extensively, think Salvadore Dali. There will be some interesting art pieces, maybe on shirts, or fabrics, the possibilities are endless.

What helped me was getting commissions, mainly for fan art. The fan art is what
what drew in my clients initially, but later asked for other types of artworks or refer me to others.
These commissions really challenged my skills and helped me grow as an artist.
It hasn’t been easy, I’m mainly introverted. I still struggle trying to get out there and network and promote myself. I don’t like talking about myself, but I’m working on it, for example trying to finish this interview, lol. Likely, there are social networks, and they help with getting commissions. The main thing for me is to keep going, it’s ok to take breaks. I feel like all the efforts you put in over the years big or small do add up and pay off.

Keep going, keep trying, keep failing, keep growing, keep living.
Try to be the light for someone’s darkness.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
I love seeing live music, a few of my favorite venues are Southside Ballroom, House of Blues, and Amplify. I enjoy going to art festivals like the Dallas Arts Festival or Fort Worth’s Arts Goggle.. You can find good Barbeque at Lockhart Smokehouse in Plano. The Fabrication Yard is pretty cool place to meet other artist as well, or practice your spray can skills.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
To my wife Xzandria who is also an entrepreneur and creative, she really motivates me to keep going and be positive especially when I have my art blocks. To my family who have always believed in my talents, even why I didn’t.

Website: jvtoroart.com

Instagram: @jvtoroart

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

Other: https://yuser.co/jvtoroart