When I was about twelve years old my father took me to the local skate shop to
buy my first skateboard. I chose a Santa Cruz Rob Roskopp 3 deck. The incredible
Jim Phillips illustration soaked in lime green and blue surrounded by bold black
outlines jumped off the wall to me, the second I saw it I knew that was the one I
had to have! This is my initial approach to art & design, that instant, instinctual
feeling you get when you look at something and are drawn to it. You like the
way it looks and the way it makes you feel.
Another life changing experience happened while on a high school field trip to The Whitney Museum of American Art. I saw a Jean-Michel Basquiat exhibit and fell in love. It was right then and there that I knew I had to move to Manhattan. After graduating high school I moved to the city, studied Fine Arts at The Fashion Institute of Technology and immersed myself in urban life. After several years of tough city living I decided to go back to school. I studied Graphic Design at The Pratt Institute in Brooklyn and received my Bachelors Degree in Communications Design. Since then I’ve worked professionally as a Graphic Designer, Art Director, Illustrator and Painter. I've shown my artwork throughout New York City and in East Hampton. If you keep your eyes open you'll also see my mark on the streets of NYC and other spots around the world!
New York City has been an endless source of "Urban Enchantment" for me, inspiring
and developing my work. After 17 years of surviving in NYC I have "Sinned". Not
only is Sinned my name backwards, but it's also the alias I use for the art and design
that I create. I have never been big on attention, at least not direct attention to myself,
but I have always hoped that my art would get attention. By removing my real name
from my work it has given me a creative freedom and has also helped develop my
objective in art. Using the alias Sinned has also given me the opportunity to begin
to brand my work and use that brand across multiple platforms.
Apparel design has always been fascinating to me and was a natural progression
to expand my creativity from painting, drawing and graphic design. Wearing something based on how it looks, how it makes you feel and that represents your style of life is very special. With Sinned I'm representing my style of life, influenced heavily by art, design, cartoons, toys, music and living in New York City. My aim is to create quality products that are unique, exciting and fun to wear. I hope one of my designs jumps out at you!
If you'd like to view some more of my work please visit sinnednyc.com.
Thank you,
Dennis