The very Stylish artist Javier Ávila always loved fashion as a child, in fact he “Love’s all things beautiful and stylish.”  Born in Mexico, Javier moved to San Francisco Ca where he started painting at 16 years old, worked as a dresser for a theater company. And at 18 became an apprentice to a milliner from New York who taught him to make hats, later to break away and start his own hat business catering to an exclusive clientele in San Francisco for about four years.

( Javier and his portraits of Josephine Baker) Photo credit: Will Vaults

Javier worked in theater production, fashion hat accessories, and segwayed into costume designing before moving to New York where he started interior design, but was encouraged to return to painting after a short hiatus by his friends. Painting a portrait of his mother in 2006 “rebooted” his painting and he has been going strong ever since.

Loving to paint elegant and stylish portraits of famous and iconic women, Javier has created a series of very beautiful and influential woman of the arts such as Josephine Baker, Audrey Hepburn, and Jennifer Lopez.

Before starting a work of art, Javier loves to conduct deep research on his subjects. Being self -taught, his lets his inspiration flow into his work, usually while listening to music and surrounding himself with objects that relate to the subject he’s working on.

(Sophia Loren, Maria Felix, Audrey Hepburn, and Cher by Javier Avila) Photo credit: Will Vaults

Javier feels that artist play an important role in making people think, not just about the beauty of the world around them but also the beauty that is within them.  Javier told me that his work has evolved over time becoming, “more fine tuned”, but sort of stayed the same in a way. Experimenting more with different techniques, his work has become “more-clean” and refined “producing a stronger statement.”  Inspired by the great masters like “Gustav Klimt” and “Diego Rivera” he likes to combine his love of fashion, jewelry, and clothing in his work, despite the fact he is regarded as a “pop-artist.”

(Maria Felix Portrait by Javier ‘Avila) Photo credit: Kenneth Norwich

The next collection of paintings that Javier is working on is the “Chanteuse Collection” which will feature “Sade”, “Amy Winehouse”, “Grace Jones”, “Billy Holiday” and “Anna May Wong” the first Chinese American female movie star! This series will explore the darker side and concepts of love, which will have a more 1950’s spin.

Javier Avila loves the fact that his work is fun and makes people happy, especially when people notice the hidden signatures in his painting as well as the story behind some of jewels or clothing the subjects in his paintings are wearing.

When Javier is creating, he is usually by himself so “the artistic life can be a bit lonely.” To counteract this he told me he just goes to parties.  A big turn off for Javier is “bad manners and rudeness” and people who have no compassion.”

This charming, intelligent, and fashionable artist reflects these attributes in his work and is certainly bound for fame A’ la Andy Warhol!

(Feature Photo credit: Kenneth Norwich)

Leah Pearson-Finnie is an amazing Harlem based Blues and Jazz singer whom I’ve had the pleasure of seeing perform on several occasions. In my interview with her she told me that she started to sing at around 2 years old. The oldest of her siblings, her mother worked nights and her father worked during the day. During the day her father would gather them around the piano as a form of entertainment, and of course she would sing. Later she would sing at church to the pleasure of everyone present.

“Lady Leah” likes to find the message that is already within a song that she sings, and feels that there are so many pieces of music that are important, and likes to perform those songs that have been already written as a form of expression of that message.  Currently she is working on a few original songs that she hope to have ready next year.  Her dream is to uplift the lives of the people she sings for, and brighten their day.

The very first song she learned to sing was “Peter Cottontail” as a child ever before she could walk, and coming from a musical family I can see why. Her father whose is a musician, and her two brothers and sister played instruments behind him in church. Leah and her musical family became very well known locally in her hometown of Ohio, and were always being invited to sing at weddings and special events, known as the “Pearson Family”.

Lady Leah was influenced by famous musicians such as “Cab Calloway”, “Billy Holiday”, and “Ray Charles”. Leah told me that her father taught her everything, as well as learning from the greats she listened to, “style, and “form”.  Leah told me that a couple of her fondest musical memories were, “singing around the piano with family and schools musicals”.

During a live performance Leah likes to get to know her audience so that she can give her all when she sings.  Leah has an R&B and a Jazz band that she rehearses with a couple of times a week.

A live jazz vocalist who sings “purely for the joy” of others, Leah released her CD “Off the Shelf” in 2015, and is also a resident jazz singer during brunch at Cheri restaurant in Harlem every Sunday at 121^st street and Lenox Ave from 12:00 AM to 3:00 PM, and Lady Leah also performs every 4^th Wednesday at the nightclub “Harlem Nights” at 138^th street and 7^th Ave with her Blues band “Sweet Life” at 8:00 PM.