Starting off like every other kid forced to do art for projects or classes, Ivy Lee eventually found her passion for art in 3rd grade. She fully committed to the craft in 6th grade.

“I had a friend who was much better than me at art when I was a kid,” Lee said  “Embarrassing as it is, my goal was to become more skilled than them. Nowadays I consider myself to be as skilled as them, but our individual styles are unique to ourselves so there was never a race to begin with.” 

However, as time went on, Lee has found her motivation and inspiration through other aspects. 

“My inspiration now is seeing other artists’ work on my feed and watching them use color, line and mood to make a drawing come alive,” Lee said. 

Lee draws a lot of influence from Asian artists and Asian entertainment. 

“I got interested in a lot of media that originated in Japan or Korea, like kpop, manga and manhwa,” Lee said. “I tend to follow more East Asian artists and use their art as a reference” 

Much of Lee’s inspiration can be reflected through her own art, as she grows and learns through studying others. Through learning from others, Lee has been able to develop her own unique art style. 

“I still believe that my style is still evolving,” Lee said. “But at the moment, I’d describe it as warm tones, cool shadows and unique lighting. At first, I started by copying my art friend. I drew what they drew and learned what they learned. Then I started to broaden the ways to develop my style after getting social media and I still use it to get inspiration.” 

As Lee continues to grow and learn, she has also faced challenges along the way. 

“I blurted out that my mom was an artist growing up, which raised everyone’s expectations into thinking that I would become an artist as well,” Lee said. “At first, it was nice to have a singular hobby, but later on, it became repetitive and annoying whenever I drew. I heard comments such as ‘she’s just like her mother’ and ‘her mom does all her art for her.’” 

As an artist, Lee values her hard work and believes that sets her apart from others. 

“In elementary school, I was so desperate to become better at art that I would draw something every single day for 6+ years, whether it be a finished art piece or a small doodle,” Lee said. “ This practice helped my art grow at a fast rate.”

In the future, Ivy wishes to continue pursuing art. 

“I want to have a job in the future that involves art, so I will continue to do art,” Lee said.

Check out more of her work here: https://www.instagram.com/smallsweetvanillabean/