Elon Artist Ari Levine Shares Her Authenticity and Gratitude Through Art

This article is part of our Spring/Summer 2020 print issue, included in the ‘Movers, Makers, Creative Shakers’ spread. See the full, digital version of the issue here.

In 2020, a year of uncertainty, a positive attitude has become as necessary as our daily caffeine fix. While remaining positive is difficult for most people, Elon student Ari Levine exudes it through her sunny personality and colorful graphic designs. While each piece Levine creates is different, there is one quality that they all share: They are guaranteed to make you smile.

Photographer Carlyn Marinaccio featuring model Ari Levine.

As people who are always looking to learn something new—especially the secret to positivity—we were curious as to how Levine projects this upbeat lifestyle in her artistic work. Her answer was simple: authenticity and gratitude. While authenticity is clearly evident in each of her pieces, her gratitude is something that truly makes her unique.

“When people buy my pieces, I always tell them how grateful I am of their support,” Levine said. “The expression of gratitude goes a long way and can be contagious. There are so many challenges we have to face as humans, even just as college students. Through it all, I think if you can come out the other end grateful, you’re doing alright.”

While spreading positivity through art, Levine has also gained a sense of comfort from her artistic creations. Throughout her life, digital art and photography have been creative outlets that encourage a sense of peace and reward within her everyday life. To her, she said, art is what makes society feel.

“Art is our color, nature, music and food. It is a beautiful part of this world, and I think a lot of people would agree,” she said.

Levine said this love and appreciation for art is nothing new because having grown up with an artist mother in the textile design field, color and design have always been on her radar.

“Since I can remember, my mom was having me do projects or bringing me to her office to color in model sketches or play with color palettes,” said Levine.

While Levine’s passion and positivity have been evident from a young age, her success has not come without hard work. Much of her art comes from her personal photography, which often focuses on close friends and family. She then uses that work, along with her iPad and Apple Pencil, to create masterpieces.

Despite the end results appearing effortless, countless hours go into each piece. While large chunks of time—and we can only imagine incredibly sore fingers—go into her pieces, her radiant attitude never dims. As a student and aspiring digital artist in the fashion industry, she hopes to continue to intertwine her art and positive attitude.

“Art is a voice for what my mind can’t explain or simply my outlet of passion. I love the memorable impression that artwork can make on people,” she said. “Whether that be through my photography, graphic design, illustrations or writing, I enjoy putting my creative mind into every piece I make.”