Meet ONYN, East London Artist Group

ONYN are a creative collective in East London, England. ONYN formed in July of 2012 and since then have been prolific in their painting output. In the last six months they have sold over 2,000 original canvas paintings worldwide. Find samples of their work at www.onyn.com and on their Facebook page. ONYN create original, unique paintings on canvas; they are not adverse to using technology (it has its place), but believe there is currently nothing better to beat talent, paint, and a brush!

1. What are the materials you use to create your artwork (from the photos, it looks like canvas panels and acrylic paint, and I'm curious to know if you make and paint your own frames)?

Yes, currently at ONYN we paint exclusively on linen canvas panels with acrylic paints plus some pencil and inks for good measure. As for our frames, it's another "Yes." We have a basic ethos of creating unique, high quality objects for a reasonable price. We make our own frames out of ethically sourced, natural solid wood and decorate them with the same paints we use in our images.

2. How many people are in your collective, and what inspires you to work together?

As a loose creative group, our numbers change depending on internal and external forces; we're somewhere between four and eight creative souls at present. As for what inspires us to work together, I guess it's that we push each other to try new things, and therefore ONYN is greater than the sum of its parts.

3. How do you come up with the subjects for your paintings, and what would you say are some common themes that come up in your work?

We create images that makes us smile and feel good. A lot of our paintings are on www.onyn.com. We don't purposely repeat themes; however, certain images seem to reappear from time to time. Sometimes we are asked for a specific animal, character, or situation, and we're always happy to meet a challenge.

4. Do you do most of your sales locally in London, or do you travel to shows in other cities--and countries?

Since we started last year we have focused on East London shows, as it's where we are based and the area attracts a lot of international people who appreciate art. ONYN paintings seem to be popular throughout the world with particular interest to date from Italy, Spain, South Korea, Japan, and the USA. We're always looking for opportunities to expand our range and reach! To keep up to date with news and show dates, be sure to "like" us on our Facebook page: www.fb.com/Love.ONYN.

5. How can people who admire your work online contact you to buy a particular piece--and do you ever accept custom orders?

To meet the demand (especially from international customers), we have decided to launch an ONYN eBay store at http://stores.ebay.com/ONYN-Whimsical-Unique-Art-Paintings. People will be able to buy original, unique ONYN art with or without our painted frames, and have them delivered direct to their door. As for commissions, we love to meet a challenge and our creativity doesn't stop at canvas paintings. Ideas and requests can be emailed to: art@onyn.com.

Thanks, ONYN!