ABOUT
INTEgrating ARTISTS
INTEGRATING ARTISTS is not just for the professional.
We want to bring out the artist in everyone. No matter what AGE, LEVEL, or MEDIUM, we are all inclusive and encourage artisis to "inner mix" to achieve things never imagined before but discovered in the process.
Initially Integrating Artists will be about exposing artists of all ages and levels. Once a significant amount of artists have signed up, a system will be implemented where (1) non-commissioned work ~ artists can tag each other and share their talents and (2) commissioned work – non-artists can come to this site to tag artists for their art project.
HOW CAN WE NOT BE GREATER THAN ME?
Our Mission & Philosophy
The Evolution of INTEGRATING ARTISTS
About 5 years ago Pete Arrias, founder, started getting back into his art. Pete made a commitment to do oil paintings of his whole family. He figured by the time he finished he should be pretty good.
“I was working with my right hand man at the time, Chuy Galindez. He has doodled his whole life and was inspired by my paintings and he decided to try his hand at portraits. He was amazing. I was blown away by his detail work. I then came up with this idea to collaborate on a project together-half and half. I work in oil and he works in pencil. So we decide to do Einstein. I would start the painting and do my half and then I would give it to him to finish.”
But they hit a glitch…on their way home from the valley back to San Clemente they got into a heated discussion which got personal. It escalated to a point where they needed some space to cool off and went their separate ways.
About a year goes by and Pete reached out to see how Chuy is doing. “I called him and he mentions that he finished Einstein, the project we started collaborating with each other the year before. I ended up picking it up from Chuy and decided to show my family the finished piece and they loved it! They showed my cousin who owns a gallery and has showings and she immediately offers me $500 to buy it. My family pushes me into pursuing it. So when David Bowie passed away we decided as a way of honoring him, we would now collaborate on a Bowie piece that we named “ZIGGY STARDUST”. Once again, I was blown away how it came out. So this inspired us to start two more pieces….“MOTHER THERESA” and Ian “LEMMY” Kilmister and then we began work on Louie Armstrong.”
“At that point Chuy started a new plumbing job that required his full attention and put the painting he was working on in storage. At that point I decided that since he was unable to finish that last piece I would start to look for other artists to collaborate with and that became my mission. I made a commitment to myself to work with 1000 artists. I didn’t realize the number I threw out there was so big but I felt confident I could meet that goal. So I decided my theme would be painting famous icons who passed away with the focus on 2016. Little did I know how big a year it was going to be for famous people passing.”
“My personal style is to mix oil with pencil/charcoal as my main theme, I figured by reaching out to other artists and adding any other medium or interactive idea, would only enhance the original art piece. So INTEGRATING ARTISTS was born, the idea to have a website where other artists can sign up and become part of a team and work with each other as well as non-artists who maybe did not have a traditional artistic hand but have an artistic mind can now tag other artists for their project or artpiece. Many mediums, many artists and many kinks to work out.” ~ Pete Arrias, Founder
Early stages and finished piece that inspired the creation of Integrating Artists, Einstein.
OUR FOUNDER
ABOUT PETE ARRIAS
Born February 24th 1966 at Holy Cross hospital in Mission Hills, California.
Pete grew up in the San Fernando Valley and moved to south orange (San Clemente) to raise his three kids and one grandchild. Ryan, Krystn, Austin and Roxi. Pete has Coached and played football since he was 8. “42 years and I love it just as much as when I first started.”
Pete’s other hobby or love in life has been Art. “For as long as I remember I have been creating all kinds of art and giving it to others. It has brought me so much joy and incredible moments of crying and appreciation with others. I made a promise to myself to never sell out and do art just for the money. I wanted art to be a place of relaxation and stress relief. I would not have experienced these amazing moments if I only did it so I could charge people.”
“Art is my love. It always has been. But I don’t like to glorify myself. How can I do art and still be giving doing it and make a living at the same time? G-d has a way of working through us if we are paying attention and patient and want it bad enough. The evolution of “Integrating Artists” is what I am going to do for the rest of my life. So I moved from San Clemente to Los Angeles to make a statement to myself and the world that I am becoming a commercial artist. I started at the beginning of 2016 and am about 2/3 done. I hope to have my first show in a few months.”