We recently connected with Dani Mendez and have shared our conversation below.
Dani, so excited to have you with us today. So much we can chat about, but one of the questions we are most interested in is how you have managed to keep your creativity alive.
Keeping my creativity alive is both an easeful, natural part of my everyday life and a collection of intentional behaviors that help me to stay curious and well rounded.
When I experience creative blocks I take that as a cue to set aside the work (if time allows) and revert back to what I know best and to be most true to myself -drawing. I’ve always had a talent for drawing and was taught by my mom, who went to art school in Lima, Peru. I typically sketch new ideas in a sketchbook or on my iPad. I draft original ideas and make studies of other artist’s work. I find that making studies of other jeweler’s work (soldering points, clasp construction, settings, etc.) helps me build the theoretical/technical process behind how I might make my designs work.
I am surrounded by people who inspire me. I believe that you can’t be creatively alive unless you take the time to be an audience member, to really take in other people and their art. I also believe that this brings back that karma: you can’t expect patronage or attention if you don’t participate in your community and put that energy into other artists. I love collaborating and digging into a process that teaches me a new approach and inspires me to see the world through another’s mind. I’ve done a lot of work with Interdisciplinary Arts Collective, which focuses mainly on performance art. I first joined as a visual artist, doing poster design and making painting installations as part of their set design, then they started to rope me into interpreting graphic scores, music performance, dance, and improv. This brought out some insecurities, both with learning the particular fluidity and structure in their rehearsal processes and the way that the performances reflected that dynamism. Performing artists have a very close and loyal way of working with each other, it requires a lot of trust and vulnerability and sacrifice and you have to constantly utilize multiple skills to keep the ball rolling. These experiences made me a better communicator, collaborator, and leader in my business relationships. They also contributed to the confidence and skill set I needed to organize and market a gallery show (our very first!) at the tattoo shop I manage and work out of.
It is also essential to be alone and to take time to reflect on my creativity. Taking space for reflection allows for self criticism and self celebration and allows the growth to set in. Keeping my creativity alive also holds true to physically being alive in my body. Dance and yoga allow me to express and feel emotions and get me out of my head. Playing my flute sparks ideas for my jewelry, as if letting the sound out lets the idea take form.
Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?
I manage Misery & Co., which is a tattoo studio located in downtown SLC. This encompasses keeping the day to day operations running and implementing a long term business plan focused on integrating the studio into the SLC arts and culture scene. I started out this past fall by organizing a gallery show of the shop artist’s work and by hosting twice-monthly figure drawing sessions. I am working towards having the shop regularly host gallery shows that bring in themed collections from local artists as well as artists from around the world. We’re always looking for more collaborators (gallery artists, tattoo artists, etc., so please contact us with any inquiries). Our next gallery show is March 30th, 2024. Submissions to display work in the show will be open from January 15th to February 15th.
While I have been a professional body piercer for the past five years, my primary focus is as a fine jeweler and silversmith. I am working towards the goal fully stocking my own supply of luxury artist-made piercing jewelry. This is quite the task because it involves designing unique pieces that need to flatter a diverse array of anatomies and proportions. They also have to be durable enough to withstand constant wear and have market appeal while staying true to my aesthetic sensibilities and unique designs.
I also make bold and intricate necklaces, rings, cuffs, bracelets, crowns, faux lip and septum rings, tiaras, and even a mask or two. A good way to describe my work is bejeweled gothic evening wear with a fantastical bio-organic twist. it also lends itself well to everyday wear if you enjoy artsy or alternative fashion -jewelry that could be worn with Manolo Blahniks or combat boots.
I currently sell my original pieces on my instagram page, alongside a curated collection of vintage jewelry. You can also visit the current selection of pieces for purchase at Misery & Co. I also consistently keep pieces displayed for sale in a few art galleries around SLC.
I take commissions and have created several pieces for local people in the alternative art and fashion community. If you would like to commission me for a design, please reach out via my instagram.
If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
I’m a natural networker and that has helped me grow my business in a nearly incalculable way. I’m lucky to be a social butterfly gemini, but that doesn’t mean I haven’t had to put work into the skill. I’d say the best to start with any sort of skill building is to first focus on your strengths and refining them. If I hadn’t had a natural ability for networking I wouldn’t have been in the position to develop other skills in areas that were more difficult for me. If you are looking to improve your networking skills, my advice is to genuinely talk to people about what you are interested in and ask them questions about what they are interested in. You should also not feel shy about putting your availability out there: people are generally receptive to working with others or passing along the fact that you are looking for work or a collaboration or whatever it is you’re trying to achieve. You also never know when that friendship or connection will turn into something good for your career, so don’t stress about immediate social or financial gain and just make good friends and acquaintances. You also don’t have to force yourself to work with people you don’t vibe with. If it’s not going to work, don’t waste your time trying to make it work.
Creating a social media platform is essential to just about everything nowadays and we all know that. It can be quite difficult to navigate the ways we need to brand ourselves and our products while building a following and working with the algorithm and managing a business through the platform and on and on. I think staying true to who you are as a creator has to be foremost in your use of social media. At least that is what works for me. I post a lot about my process in a documentarian way because that is the type of content I like seeing from other creators. I also put a lot of graphic design work into posters promoting my business because I already have that skill. I know other people who put a lot of effort into product photography or other areas because there is something there that sparks them. I think a good way to approach it is to make your page something that you like more than what you think other people will like. Since social media success is so difficult, you should make sure that your content is true to you and usable in other formats and on other platforms.
Collaboration will always make you a more skilled person. It naturally forces communication, compromise, leadership, and new ways of thinking and working. It also opens up your network. Even if it is a difficult collaboration you will come away from the experience wiser and more well rounded. There is a lot to learn from other people and a lot to learn from teaching other people.
Is there a particular challenge you are currently facing?
Not burning myself out. I tend to go through boom and bust cycles with my motivation where I work too much, burn out, and then need lots of downtime to recover. I’m working on time and energy management skills, so I am able to get everything I need to work on done in an evenly consistent manner. I think a lot of this comes from my natural passion. It feels good to get inspired and then work on something until it is finished. I think most artists go through this. It is not inherently negative, but when you are running an arts business it is important to train yourself to break up tasks and objectives.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: @dannyelviss
Image Credits
Image of the model in front of the window: Photographer: @karun_the_wzrd. Model: Eliana’s Universe
