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Mishta Smalley

Life & Work with Mishta Smalley of Houston

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Today we’d like to introduce you to Mishta Smalley.

Hi Mishta , we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I moved to Houston with my husband 20 years ago. With a degree in animation and half a life time of experience in advertising and film set design.
I have traveled and worked in several countries including India UK Poland Indonesia and now in the US

Finding my feet in the US and in Houston Tx was not easy. The life, the culture and the people have been a life’s lesson.

I became a mother at 41 and it has been a wonderful experience. Being an older mom has been a boon. I have lived a wonderful life before my children were born and so I was happy to devote a 100% of my time to raising them.

However, in 2013 when a neighbor came knocking on my door asking if I would teach her kid to draw (shapes like tres and flowers and house) came along I said yes.

Since then D& P with Mishta has never looked back and now I’m a full fledged art studio with over 150 artists coming to paint with me each week and thousands who have painted with me and their beautiful art graces their homes.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Teaching my self the worth of my time and of what I offer. The ability to tell a parent I’m afraid art is not free or I need to be paid for my time.
Negotiating on price and staying strong to what I charge.
I started by giving away art lessons with expensive art materials for no price at all. 75$ for 8 classes. It’s ridiculous. Especially in 2015.

However I see it as a means to get the word around. And ofcourse I lost business shortly after I raised the price to a practical number. However by then the word was out. Some amazing works were already coming out of my home studio.

I have artists who have painted with me from when they were 6 years old and now they are 17 and juniors in high school.
That is remarkable.

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I’m an illustrator in my heart and my expertise. I can draw out characters that live in my head in seconds.
I should be designing movies or games in digital Hollywood. However here is where I am and it’s a pretty good place to be.

I learned to paint while teaching your kids. Light shade form contours are basic principles that relate to both. Painting just makes the process easier.
Drawing is the hard part- you have to put in some serious elbow grease to get results you could get with a few strokes of brush work.

My own art is all about humans. I love the human form and anatomy and gestures and expressions. I love the details in drapery and embroidery. I bring all this out in my artists. I draw out shapes and form for them in color pencils and they will in return follow through with acrylics and brush.

I believe I have the best job ever.

Where do you see things going in the next 5-10 years?
The future of our kids is sucked in by digital devices and doom scrolling. Drugs and alcohol Are not the drugs of the future- social media is,

To spend 2 hours in my studio with paints and putting your cognitive skills to task is absolutely a strength parents see.

Hand eye coordination is now a necessity not just for art but for gaming.

I believe I offer kids an opportunity to slow down. No one has to race to do a rubbish painting.
I teach my artists to talk to their fellow artists and make a friend. I bake them cookies and I have the kettle on for ramen.

I’m the only after school activity who offers food comfort and friendship to my artists.

The result is some outstanding art that comes out of them.

We work as a team.

In a world of isolation and awkward teen social skills- my artists have friends and certificates of high self esteem hanging on their wall that they painted.

I believe my art studio will thrive because of the human connections we are making,

Contact Info:

Painting of a woman in a red and black dress, standing with a dark background and a glowing yellow light behind her.

Girl painting a colorful outdoor scene on a canvas, with people and a building in the background.

Person with glasses and dark hair in a bright room holding a Ferrari LeFerrari poster featuring a red sports car.

Young woman with curly hair sitting on a chair, wearing a light green top and patterned shorts, in a room with a fireplace and decorations.

Woman standing next to a colorful landscape painting of mountains, lake, trees, and a sunset sky.

Woman with glasses holding a black board with yellow circular objects, in a room with shelves and books.

Person with long dark hair looking at a large painting of a woman with long hair and a serene expression.

Girl holding a framed pencil sketch of a person's face, smiling, in a room with photos on the wall.

Person with glasses and a hat holding a landscape painting in a room with artwork on the wall.

Young person with short hair stands beside a colorful painting of a woman with red hair, holding a flower, surrounded by vibrant colors.

Person holding a painting of a tiger's face with orange, black, and white stripes, and green background.

Person standing next to an easel with a colorful painting of a woman with blue skin and jewelry, in an indoor space.

Person holding colorful, stylized portrait of a pink-haired character with green eyes, surrounded by vibrant background elements.

Child holding a colorful puzzle with a festive scene, smiling in a room with wall decorations and a door.

Person painting a large canvas with a colorful abstract design, using a brush, in a room with art supplies and colorful decorations.

Young woman painting a horse on a black canvas in a bright room with large windows.

Painting of a horse's head and neck on a black background, with visible brushstrokes and detailed features.

Person with long dark hair holding a framed photo of a woman with short dark hair smiling, in front of a window with blinds

Woman with dark hair and glasses leaning over a painting of a woman with a headscarf and glasses, playing drums, in a room.

Artist smiling in studio, standing next to a colorful painting of a woman with a pumpkin, wearing a black hat and red dress.

Young girl holding a painting of a woman's face with gold accents, sitting at a table with art supplies.

A woman in traditional attire holding a lit candle, with a cityscape background and candles in the foreground.

Young woman with long dark hair in a red shirt, smiling, sitting next to a painting of a woman holding a phone.

Young woman with curly hair smiling, standing in front of a large painting of a woman relaxing on a beach, wearing a purple dress.

Young girl with dark hair and glasses standing next to a painting of a man playing a cello, smiling.

Young woman sitting on a stool in front of a large painting of a person in traditional attire, smiling.

Young woman with long dark hair wearing a blue and white sleeveless top and black jeans standing next to a colorful painting of two women in traditional attire.

Young woman sitting in front of a large peacock painting with vibrant blue and gold feathers, smiling at the camera.

Young person with large afro hairstyle standing next to a tiger painting in a room with shelves and artwork.

Young woman with long black hair in pink sweater standing next to a colorful dance painting on an easel.

Girl with glasses and long hair standing next to a colorful painting of a woman on a swing in a garden.

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