Mural Dedication @ Stephen Smith Towers Apartments
December 7, 2019 | West Philadelphia Launched August 2019!
Custom Arts Studio interview with Germantown Radio 92.9 FMTake a listen to Artists Roundtable: The Creative Voice of Germantown's interview with Keisha Whatley, Founder and CEO of Custom Arts Studio, LLC.
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Book Cover Art by Custom Arts Studio
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It's an exciting time to be an artist! Let's Connect Philly was an open call for artists in Philadelphia to visit the Barnes for free, find a work of art in the collection that inspired them and create a new work using the original as inspiration. Four artists will be selected for a one year Artist Residency. I chose Picasso's "Head of a Woman" and decided to ponder the question, "What would the woman look like if she were a black woman?" The piece is entitled, "Picasso in Color." May 21st and June 4th, 2018!
BOOK COVER ART: Another One by Custom Arts Studio, LLC!
Congrats E the poet-emcee!!
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Get your copy here! This Book takes you further into the mind behind the rhymes of Orishas In 3 Striped Sneakers. By E the poet-emcee, one of Philly's finest poets & performers!
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Custom Arts Studio & Keisha "I Make Everything Beautiful" Whatley interviewed with The Colored Girls Museum on 6abc Loves the Arts!
Aired Sunday, March 25th, 2018. Click here for full article.
Keisha "I Make Everything Beautiful" Whatley Joins Beau Noir Publishing Company's lllustration Team!
Founded in 2017, Beau Noir Publishing is a full service publishing company established to develop and promote media that represents and inspires African American Youth. https://www.beaunoirbooks.com
The CREATE 2018 ARTIST JAM SESSION!
HUGE THANK YOU TO OUR BUSINESS SPONSORS*!
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"I am going to make everything around me beautiful - that will be my life." This quote, by Elise de Wolfe, resonates with me on a very visceral level. When I think about my work, and the various forms it takes, this quote expresses my life’s mission- to make everything around me beautiful- and hence the birth of the “I Make Everything Beautiful” movement. It has become a mantra, of sorts, spurring me on to express my creativity, spirit and love of all things business & marketing through my gifts… always with the intention to Make Everything Beautiful. Will you join me on this journey? ~ Keisha "I Make Everything Beautiful" Whatley
Meet Keisha.
Well, hello there! I know this page looks all "official" but just know that I personally reply to every message and it is an honor to meet you today. How about we make something beautiful?
HER-STORY: Keisha Whatley is a Philadelphia artist who grew up in West Philadelphia. A graduate of Andrew Hamilton School and the High School for the Creative and Performing Arts, Keisha excelled at the drawing and painting discipline and went on to study at Parsons School of Design (NY), The School of Visual Arts (NY) and The Art Institute of Philadelphia (PA). She started Custom Arts Studio, LLC, a full service visual arts business, in 2018 after a long hiatus from painting or anything artistic. A PAUSE DOES NOT MEAN THE END! After returning to her creative roots in 2013 (she hadn't painted in over 15 years!), she became passionate about creative expression, the need for quality art programming in {all} schools, and encouraging people to pursue their dreams, no matter how outlandish they may seem. A signature piece, 'Baduism/20 Years of Paint,' is a testament to her journey: the painting was started in NYC in 1997 right before she stopped painting. Over 15 years later, when she started painting again, she would pull 'Baduism' out and paint it live at vending events; an hour or two here, a few minutes there... It was 20 years later, in 2017, that the painting was completed. Custom Arts Studio was incorporated in 2018... we have been going for five years but we are just getting started! 
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CLIENT LIST:Our client list includes:
"I have been there. Lost, confused, hating myself and wondering why. I used to say 'I have been to hell and back in a plastic elevator, covered with ether.' and I remember thinking, 'People don't understand what that means; what I mean when I say that. They think it is just poetry.' Being able to stand on the "through" side of pain, depression, & brokenness... to be able to look at it, dissect it and learn from it... is a miracle. It is that miracle that I wish to gift to all of my clients, event attendees and others that cross my path. To be able to create a space for others to get to their "other side" and create the beautiful life they deserve." Expertise & Experience. Keisha has over 15 years of teaching and mentoring experience. From sharing her personal development & transformation experiences to topics such as leadership, teamwork, attitude, and communication, she creates unique presentations & events based on her audience. WHERE DOES THE FIRE COME FROM?
Using her creativity as the main ingredient, Keisha's work aims to create something aesthetically beautiful while challenging viewers to question beliefs, inherent biases and the need for compassion in everyday life. “I am going to make everything around me beautiful; that will be my life.” This quote, by Elise de Wolfe, resonates with Keisha on a very visceral level. When thinking about her work, and the various forms it takes, this quote expresses her life’s mission- to make everything around her beautiful and make a difference. She has expressed this mission through her visual arts work, art workshops for youth as well as arts & empowerment events for other creatives throughout the city. WHERE CAN YOU SEE HER WORK? Her work can be seen at The Black Writers Museum and The Colored Girls Museum, both in the Germantown section of Philadelphia, as well as the 2018 Let's Connect Exhibition (May- June 2018) at The Barnes Foundation Museum's on the Ben Franklin Parkway. |