As an international artist, Margarita Howis’ background in architecture and design exposed the creative fields in her life. In recent years, however, she chose to focus on her main passion – paintings. Having lived in 7 different countries has attributed to her experiences in shaping and influencing her artistry. Being exposed to observing cultural differences and perspectives on identity has also led her to explore themes of self-discovery and self-expression in her artwork and artistic aesthetic. Vibrant colors, bold lines, and organic shapes also reflect her personal style. Margarita plates her art with 23k gold, after application of various mediums from acrylic to fluid paint.
Margarita is drawn to Bartholomew’s unique style and culture around his brand. They both ventured into pursuing new and exciting ways to share creativity by pushing the boundaries of traditional art and design forms. During their initial discussions, they found commonality in vision, creating something inspiring and boundary-pushing, which led to the Crypto Icons theme. Crypto Icons is a series of both physical paintings and animated NFTs, depicting artists and musicians such as Snoop Dogg, Jewelry Designer Mike Nekta, Kim Kardashian, Paris Hilton, and DJ Steve Aoki, all heavily involved and positively influencing the crypto space.
Making a meaningful impact, was the message that was hoped to be conveyed through the artwork and where using creativity would promote a good cause. Bartholomew’s brand is known for his golden bee symbol, so it felt natural to create a bee themed project and use art to convey the importance and role of bees in the ecosystem. Bridging pollenating bees with the high-tech digital realm, created a tangible connection between virtual and physical. Each painting depicted creatives from different fields, who wore tailored garments from Bartholomew’s newest collection, illuminated with flowers and pollenating bees. This symbolized the hardworking and collaborative nature of the crypto world in retrospect to pollinating bees.
Margarita stated that, “The opportunity to bring paintings to a new world and the collaboration with Bartholomew, has been an exciting and rewarding experience ever since we initiated our collaborative efforts. Our approach truly gave a platform for the creative process, as we worked closely to integrate art with designs that felt true to both of our visions. I am excited to see how our collaboration will be not only be received, but how it continues to live on.”
Edited by: Nathifa King
