When I was 9, I went downtown Lake Geneva with my family. A little shop caught my eye so I popped in and walked around. I was amazed by all the beautiful paintings and thought I could do that. When we got home, I ran to the yellow pages and found the closest arts and crafts store. I begged my mom to buy me the supplies to create my first painting, and she did. After that, I started painting and I never stopped.

When I was 17, my friends and I went to that same store and bought $10 canvas shoes, went back to my house, and painted them. By that time, I already had my art instagram account (@jcollarts) and posted it on there. Eventually, I was painting shoes for people all over town.

When I was 19, I got sent home from art school because of covid. During lockdown, I was constantly creating and sharing all of it on my tiktok account (@jcollarts). Later that year, a mutual artist/friend hit me up for custom Dr.Martens. Instead of payment, I wanted a custom painting in return. We both posted a video about our art trade and both videos blew up. My inbox was flooded with people that wanted to commission me, and that is when I started pursuing art full time.

Since then, I've painted shoes, clothing, purses, and all sorts of things for people all over the place. My art has made it to so many states and countries that I've never been before. It's crazy to think how many people, in so many different places, wear shoes that I painted. Have an original piece of mine hanging on their wall. Have a sticker of my art on something they own. That's what drives me. That is my purpose.