Saiyre Illustration & Design
Art, Apparel, Accessories

Transcript

Swanna Luo: My name is Swanna Luo. My business is Saiyre Illustration and Design. 

Voiceover: To say that Swanna has a gift for art would be both an understatement and it would forget her incredible imagination. 

SL: So my brand is an art based design business, so I create a lot of work based around mythology, fantasy and a little bit of surrealism and I translate it into 2D based work like prints and originals, as well as 3D based products like apparel and accessories like enamel pins, bookmarks, and etc..

VO: At first, Swanna and Saiyre Illustration and Design had to make some adjustments, as all new businesses do. 

SL: I created like art of Disney princesses and people wanted it, they wanted prints right. And I realized with Disney there's a lot of copyright infringement. And I can’t sell that. I was like Oh my God, I have all this stuff that people want, but I can't sell it. So then I started to explore original concepts like mythology and fantasy, and people seem to come in tune with it. I mean, ever since I was little I really loved art. Like, that was like the one thing that I would do if I was bored in class. I was born here, but I grew up with Chinese as my first language. But in first grade, my teacher, she she would take time out to teach me reading. But she also made sure that I felt included in the classes by offering me more art projects than the other students. And I would spend a lot of the quiet time that was supposed to be for reading, working on art. My parents were always supportive, but they were, you know, as Chinese parents, they they want me to go into the medical field. They want me to be financially stable. They just want me to be happy. But I didn't want to be a nurse. I didn't want to be a doctor. So my mom found this profession called physician assistant. And it basically it trains you to be like a doctor, but with less years of schooling. And we don't need to do residency. So I'll have more time to work on art. So the intention for art is always there, but it's just how am I going to pay my bills outside of art, right? I'm actually full time working as a physician's assistant, or a PA, and on my time off I work on the business and we actually travel to conventions along the East Coast to sell our work.

VO: It's very feasible to sell art online, but Swanna really loves being able to interact with people and create new fans face-to-face. 

SL: Like everyone is so nice at these events. They're genuinely so kind and they understand, you know, you're a small business. There's only so much you can do. And they understand and they get it. And it's just it's so nice to see that. And every time people pass by our booth their eyes light up and, you know, they don't even have to say anything. They just, we just see on their face. And that means the world to me. Like, they are like, oh, my God. Or like, they just take a double take and, you know, and, you know, you're just like, Oh, my goodness, That's like, it means so much that, that it will stop them in their tracks and they want to come look and talk to you about it. It's just that’s the best part. But in two years, I hope to do, you know, one or two a month really launch my store online. Um, be able to kind of sustain ourselves with the business. Um, I mean, ultimately, I would love to have this physical storefront, and that's every artist dream, but that's not going to happen in two years.

VO: The sky's the limit for Swanna and Saiyre Illustration and Design. We can't wait to find out what the future holds or to see where they'll be next. Bring them to your next event with the help of Eventeny.