Cory Van Lew is on a truly transcendent personal journey. With his art acting as an extension of himself and his experiences, Van Lew has developed a unique style based around his fantastical personal narrative.

Channeling distinctive blues, pinks and yellows, Van Lew paints with positivity. He puts his full effort into creating something that makes him happy, embodying the joy he feels for his art and the subjects he paints.

“…my brother, who I work with closely – him and I were brainstorming in my studio, which at the time was my mother’s garage, trying to figure out how do I flip the script? Like how do I give a more positive energy like, what’s the move? And we both came up with that I needed to put good intentions with my artwork,” says Van Lew.

With nearly half a million dollars generated in sales from 18 pieces (according to CryptoArt.io) it’s undeniable that others feel the magnitude of his vision. And it’s no wonder Van Lew is being regularly tapped by larger-than-life celebrities.

On the nft now podcast’s sixth episode, the multifaceted artist talks about his journey from tagging walls to being commissioned by Paul McCartney, how collaboration brought him into the NFT space, the importance of his early collectors, the future of his tokens and more.

As an artist, Van Lew has grown in leaps and bounds throughout his relatively short career. Yet as success compounds around him, he has a clear vision of what his art can do for himself and those around him.

On the topic of legacy, Van Lew says he’ll be primarily remembered for his paintings. “I’m creating generational wealth. I want Van Lew to be bigger than Rothschild,” he says.”So painting, is just like painting to me right now. It’s simple and easy – creating artwork.”

Having come up seeing a lack of artist representation in Black communities, Van Lew understands how hard it is to be a marginalized creator. When it comes to accessibility to art materials and education, he aims to give underprivileged kids a chance at walking a different path than what they see around them. 

And Van Lew isn’t just talk, he’s already working towards this goal, raising funds with an idea to provide kids with iPads and inspire them with his story.

“I would like to show up to these schools and do talks and just kind of like show them (kids) I’m tatted up, I’m a street guy,” says Van Lew. “Like I’ve been, you know, in the streets and I’ve been homeless and I want to show them that you can get up and get out and do it… you don’t have to be a sports star or a rapper you can be an artist.”

With good intentions in tow, and a collab drop with Mike Tyson already on the books – there’s no telling what the next NFT boom will bring for Cory Van Lew.
Be sure to hit subscribe and check out the full episode here.