Today we’d like to introduce you to Michael Karydas.
Every artist has a unique story. Can you briefly walk us through yours?
My passion for art started at a very young age when I would regularly visit my grandmother’s house. She gifted to me a strange looking dragonfly-like plush I named Buggy, he soon became my favorite toy and we would go on wild adventures together. I had an obsession with watching her sew, so much so that I would purposely rip off the patches on the blanket she made me just so we would have to revisit her house again to repair it. I really enjoyed spending time with her.
I always wanted to recapture that nice feeling and share it with the world, but there were no sewing classes in Pearland. It wasn’t until years later when I was taking Graphic Design courses that I met Elizabeth Burton (Polly), a master seamstress from the UK who taught me how to sew online. And even though Christina Potts doesn’t do sewing, she’s been a big influence, teaching me graphic design and always getting me new gigs.
Please tell us about your art.
I make originally designed toys out of a wide variety of fabrics, each one has their own name, personality and backstory in the form of a rhyme. Everything I make is heavily inspired by Buggy, an incredibly unique and colorful toy my grandmother bought for me as a child. To this day, I have never seen a toy like Buggy, and I want people to have an original plush for their own adventures they won’t find anywhere else.
I hope I’m able to give people something in their life they become attached to, that will always be there at their desk and get them through difficult times. Adults especially tend to lose a lot of color in their life, but it doesn’t have to be that way when you have something silly to bring a little happiness.
Sometimes a toy I make goes through a similar situation you can relate to when you read the tag, much like people, you don’t always know what people are going through until you look deeper.
What do you think is the biggest challenge facing artists today?
The depressing fact that handmade stuff is being forced out by factories and fan art. Everything has to be dirt cheap from Amazon or from a famous franchise. A lot of people don’t know how to work with their hands anymore and don’t have confidence in their own designs.
I miss people trying to make their own stuff, no matter how bad it is, it’s yours, you came up with that. Offer something new to the world.
How or where can people see your work? How can people support your work?
I’m very active on my Facebook art page, this is where I post all the images of every new project. You can message or comment there to get a hold of me, I also have an email: mdkarydas@gmail.com
Facebook Link: https://facebook.com/michaelkarydasartist
There’re a few great ways to support my work, even if you don’t have money. Like my Facebook page, like and comment on my posts, share it with your friends and family. If you do have money, the best way is to buy my work whenever I finish a new toy. I make toys for a variety of budgets and every sale helps me improve my craft and of course, spread my work around the world!
Contact Info:
- Phone: 713-628-1691
- Email: mdkarydas@gmail.com
- Facebook: https://facebook.com/michaelkarydasartist
Image Credit:
Michael Karydas
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