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John Arena

"Guitar Pick Artist"

John Arena

Venturing off the grid of his day job in corporate healthcare, John Arena's "Music Icons" collection makes it evident this artist has successfully combined his passion for music and art. John grew up in an Italian family in New York. He spent his formative years performing in rock bands as a lead singer, inspired by recording artists of the 70’s. Years later, after settling in South Florida, his creative inclinations were re-kindled when he heard a presentation by Erik Wahl, an artist, and motivational speaker who believes everyone should seek to find their inner creativity without fear. During the 2020 pandemic quarantine, John began looking for a creative outlet and was inspired by Ed Chapman, a world-renowned mosaic artist from the UK. John decided to create mosaics of musical legends made entirely of guitar picks. Each piece is one-of-a-kind, made with thousands of guitar picks on canvas. A blank canvas comes to life beginning with John's freehand line-drawn sketch which serves as foundation for the meticulously detailed addition of 4,000-6,000 guitar picks, each one carefully adhered into place. The end result? Breathtaking mosaics, as colorful as the show-stopping entertainers they represent.

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