ABOUT
Troy Holness born in Brooklyn, New York is a trained artist and leather smith whose first run in with the arts far before he could remember but solidified at the age of eight during a summer job. A career spanning over two decades, with what was once a summer job at a leather goods store turned into a passion that transcended beautifying just items to making your body his canvas. He is a true Renaissance man, whose roots can be traced back to a candy shop venture his mother owned. When business slowed, he quickly took up polishing name buckles and painting them for a fixed pay from a neighboring shop’s owner. Pretty soon, his designs became predominantly skylines and more abstract paintings to showcase his talent on. Troy’s style evolved to even include Graffiti, from making collectibles to costumes which ultimately grew his clientele.
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Soon after his local success at a young age, the opportunity to dive deeper into the arts came in the form of a referral. When a local television station needed a body artist, a friend did not hesitate to recommend Troy, who at the time was a teenager in the high school Drama, Theater, and Dance Clubs. By now, Troy had landed an Internship at DC comics, so he has not just tapped into his talent and natural gravitation to the arts through an artistic family but turned that craft into a key to unlock a room full of opportunities. Troy picked up the Airbrush from his older brother, who gave him his first airbrush. An artist with a steady hand and a knack for painting on nearly every surface he could find seemed like the perfect fit for this body painting gig. The drive to become even better catapulted him into jobs and opportunities to fine-tune that raw talent he possessed from an early age. After Highschool, he would go on to attend the Manhattan School of Printing. Where he’d learn about the printing process, he already possessed experience through his Internship at DC Comics. This would of course be one of the challenges he would face, no one would allow him the opportunity to showcase his talent.
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Always keeping the entrepreneurial spirit, he soon opened up a Silk-Screening Shop. While the opportunities he created for himself were ample, the key to growing and continuing to create through the years for Troy, he understood, would be furthering the business which was essentially how he would afford to propel these creative ideas and ventures However, demand is necessary and once the demand for Body Art slowed, it allowed for a transition into leatherwork. Which began with the leather mask. A lot of the inspiration for his designs came from films such as Zorro and The Princess Bride. Troy’s approach was “ I was painting on skin, so what could it be to paint on leather”. A nod to the story of Troy Holness, that would not be complete if not for the moments that may seem random but have always led to learning the skills necessary to evolve. On a random trip to restock on supplies, it just so happened to be a tooling class underway. Upon completion, it was suggested by the instructor that he another class with a different teacher, this would be the moment he’s meet his mentor for the next four years
The apprenticeship would go on to be the first time outside of schooling where he could formally train from someone who possessed knowledge he consciously needed and wanted to acquire. The twists and turns of life have allowed for his work to include some of the most world-known and renowned TV Shows, Featured Films, and Custom Styling among other work that has always been centered around the artist, his toolbox, and his creations.
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