Crypto Yuna talks about art, graphics, NFTs and organising a major under 16s online art exhibition

CryptoYuna discovered ‘crypto art’ by accident. An established artist working in oils, she stumbled over a tweet with the same term and quickly fell down the rabbit hole. Already a convert to cryptocurrencies, she understood very quickly the concept of NFTs and crypto sites.

Previously, she had painted in acrylics but wanted to create more realistic images and so she changed to oils. By now, a stay at home mum of three, the only option was to learn by herself which she did using Youtube as her tutor. She is no stranger to overcoming obstacles and soon was proving so adept in her new medium that she was regularly selling her art online and through her sister’s shop in Florida.

CryptoYuna is based in rural Missouri and is four hours from St Louis. Her previous subjects have ranged from rural animals, ruminants and houses to the female body. She gets hooked on one type of subject, painting it exhaustively, and then flips onto another. She will tackle any challenge in art, at least once.

“I tried sketching with coloured pencils. I made one drawing but I hated the process so much I gave the pencils to the kids.”

Actually, the image she drew is pretty spectacular and is a testament to both her skill and determination. The fact that she will only ever have one coloured pencil art work is also down to the same stubborn nature which delivered the art in the first place.

Moving to digital art was another learning curve but one from which she did not shy away. Armed with a new iPad and stylus she began to craft her own style, her own vision.

“I learnt from what was around me and then I began to fashion my own images. I really like realistic art and that is where I am concentrating.”

Her success online has greatly surpassed her original oil paintings. Her husband, a contractor, is joking that he will retire to look after the kids while she creates art full time. This is currently a joke between them, but it’s deadly serious.

CryptoYuna has now listed her art on most platforms and is selling well. Her innate curiosity and friendly nature meant she has quickly gained new friends online. As she explains it – she’s the kind of woman that welcomes new families to the neighbourhood with cookies. Same online.

As a result, she met Darren Cullen, of Graffiti King fame. Last month they organised a Graffiti Queens art show in a metaverse, next month she is organising an under 16s online art show.