Meet Nicolay Raine of Anyanwu chi

I’ve started my creativity in Art as a child in Newark,NJ. Me and my cousins would draw characters out of the X-men comics and try coming up with our our characters and making a comic out of them. Growing up me and my cousins use to collect action figures and play with them as if it was a real show. Each episode of toys had its own title to define how good it would be. I’ve also did stuffed animal plays with my cousins where we would each act out scenes and create our own stage setup. What I enjoyed most about this as a kid everything came natural and looking back it was my most happiest times. In todays time my childhood inspired me so much to the point where I have created my first self published comic and now am working on putting together a horror animation hoping it can get seen by Netflix. I still however draw new characters as well as cool outfits so once I start my lessons as a prothetic makeup artist I can bring my creations to life as with the clothing. I always try to get others to see the times when they were most happy as a kid as they might need that same fuel of happiness as an adult to achieve and follow what their purpose may be. My little sister is a phenomenal artist as with most of my other family members but I owe it to her for having me get reconnected with my inner childhood happiness, and that alone made me want to help others achieve the same thing.

It has not been a smooth road for me. I am constantly learning which makes things a lot more fun and challenging especially as a self taught artist. Some things I struggled with was meeting deadlines and making sure everything is as I envisioned as well as balancing my work life, my personal life and my creative life all at once. At times I feel like there isn’t enough hours in a day to meet every expectation I have with my art. When it comes down to painting I freestyle everything so a struggle with that would be how creative can my imagination take me and how will it turn out as art-block can happen at any given time. I feel like as a artist we are our own worst critics so until we are completely 100% satisfied the job is never done and road is never smooth sailings.

My business Anyanwu Chi means Sun God. I use that name because I was born on a easter Sunday and of course I’m a fire sign in astrology. When talking about what I do, I do a lot from traditional art, digital art, oil painting, acrylic painting, animation, storyboard writing, comic creation, t-shirt design, logo design, artistic background creation. I specialize in comical art. I also specialize in storyboard art. I like art with a meaning or expressive feeling behind it. What I’m most proud of as a company is my progress as a artist and my ability to complete whatever it is I set my mind to. My first art show was at the House of Blues in Dallas and I was beyond thrilled with how much support I was shown. What sets me apart from others is the stories I tell through my art as well as my originality as I draw like no one else nor is my art relatable to other artist. I draw what I like and whats based off of my imagination as with my experience unlike most artist draw who are told what to draw or draw what topics are popular. I draw from my own world of understanding, a world I would like to live in, or a world based solely off my dreams.

I personally define success by if one accomplished everything that they have set their mind to. Success to me is how well I can tell a story and get others to understand it. Understanding the elements of art and being 100% original I feel can land a artist into becoming legendary. Good exposure can help a artist in reaching success if their goal is to reach a certain amount of people. Good criticism or bad criticism from other artist can also fuel one to being successful as they will create new limits for their self to reach and achieve. I ultimately believe when one is 100% authentic in their work there are no limits on how successful one can be. My idea of success is not in a form of money but If I got to tell my story successfully through my art.