BUTLER — I’ve been following one particular Milwaukee artist for a while, Ike Wynter. You may recognize some of his art that has gone viral on social media.
His woodworking technique is really unique. In fact, I even did a story on him in 2021.
Since then his art has gotten better and he’s become even more popular. So, I wanted to catch up with the artist to learn what has contributed to his recent success.
“How have you been these past like three years?” James Groh asked.
“It’s been good, but it’s also been ups and downs," Ike Wynter said.
Three years ago Ike left his job to move to Minneapolis to be a full-time artist.
“I’m trying to pursue this wood endeavor full-time," he said in 2021.
He moved to the Twin Cities, then he switched gears to travel the country with a non-profit helping the dreams of under-served people come true, and now he is back in Milwaukee making art.
"When we met three years ago, what I thought was going to happen versus what actually happened is totally different. But I'm super grateful for everything that has happened," Wynter said.
He is back in his wood shop making art. His art comes with a catch, though.
“So every piece of art you see, I find wood out in society whether it’s in dumpsters or the side of the road, and I use it in its natural state aside from cutting it.”
His art has no paint, no stain, no nothing.
“It’s all cut to fit in perfectly, and there’s no glue," he said.
With that eco-friendly mission, he has made stunning art that is hard to believe isn't painted. One of his most viral pieces of art, which was inspired by SpongeBob SquarePants, used 60 different wood sources to get all the colors just right.
And it's art like the SpongeBob design or one of Tommy Pickles from Rugrats that are getting tons of attention. He's racking up millions of views on his videos across Instagram and TikTok. He was making mountain landscape art; however, now he is tapping into our nostalgia. His pieces can sell for thousands of dollars.
"(Nostalgic art) brings back either a feeling to you, or a smell, or a place, or a person, it makes you feel something, you might not have felt in years, i think that that's such a powerful thing," Wynter said.
His fans also resonate with the art that raises awareness about mental health issues and addresses topics like body positivity and suicide. He created one piece that resembles Scrabble tiles that said 'You Have Purpose' with a hidden message.
“The number value associated with scrabble letters instead of them just being the normal number value I actually changed the value to be the suicide hotline number.”
While his art may have changed, the core message for this self-described delusional optimist has stayed the same - promote positivity.
“I truly have just a huge desire for putting good out to the world, and right now in my life that’s through art.”
Back in 2021, he was writing messages on the back his art like 'Choose Happiness'. He still does that. One of his LEGO pieces has a message that says 'You're Cute'.
He has been reaching millions of people with his art over the years and he even made a custom piece for Mike Tyson. Now, he has sight set on a Cream City landmark.
"To get something eventually in the Milwaukee Art Museum just because we have such an iconic building and a presence with it. I think it's the coolest thing in the world, and to have a piece up there would be cooler than anything I've done, or any piece I've made for celebrities."
You can order his art by contacting him on Instagram or viewing his Etsy shop.
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