Meet this month’s featured poster artist, Marisa Kumtong

Since day one, oVertone has exclusively focused on diversity, inclusion, and representation by listening to, and sharing voices from all cultures and subcultures. October’s oVertone package poster, created by Marisa (@sillymarisa), celebrates the eclectic, bold personalities of oVertone’s community while being inclusive of all hair types and textures.

Name: Marisa Kumtong

About Me: Illustrator and designer 

Current Location: Brooklyn, New York

When did you become a professional artist?

My official background is in graphic design but my illustration career started a few years ago during my time at Brit+Co. B+C is an online media company focused on creativity and female empowerment, and I feel so lucky to have worked there right out of school. The company was only a few years old and I was brand spankin’ new to the design world, so in a way we were able to grow with each other, injecting in our different sides and point of views and blossoming into one. During my time there, I was able to try out my hand at illustration and slowly became more confident in figuring out how I wanted to portray myself and my art to the world.

What does October’s poster artwork represent to you?

I knew right away I wanted to make sure I represented the amazing and inclusive oVertone community in some way. Honestly, just looking through the Instagram feed was inspiring enough to want to illustrate the poster with as diverse of characters with different kinds of personalities from all sorts of backgrounds as possible. The community is so bold and joyful and I really wanted to mirror that in my illustration, so people could be reminded to continue to live boldly and colorfully when they see this poster.

How do you represent yourself through your work?

Good mental and emotional health is something that is a big part of my life. More specifically, anxiety is something that I’ve struggled and learned to live with for the past couple years and part of that journey has included following Instagram accounts that talk about things like mental health, and how to cope with it. These accounts act like my little online oasis that speak to me, and it’s an incredible gift that I get commissioned pieces around mental health and radical acceptance, and to be able to add to this online community with my own point of view and personality.

What role do you feel you have in society as an artist?

All visual artists most certainly do play a role in society. We’re able to curate what people see and how they see things through our lens, which is not a task to take lightly. It’s huge that we’re able to get out on paper or canvas and to convey a specific message to the world.

We’re all about hair and individuality, so we have to ask, what role does your hair play in your self-expression?

Some people could say that I’m playing it safe by not going down the route of hair dye yet, but for me, I really want to enjoy my hair as naturally as possible. I’ve battled with body dysmorphia in the past and something that I really try to live by everyday is loving myself in all the ways I can, and for me that’s trying to love myself in my most natural state as much as I can, hair included for now.

If you change your mind about coloring your hair, would you use oVertone?

I’m a virgin to at-home hair dye products but when that day comes, oVertone will be my first pick as I love the fact that it’s semi-permanent, so you’re really able to play with colors as you please, all in the comfort of your own home.

Because oVertone is safe for every hair type and texture, we’d love for you to celebrate your unique hair with the oVertone color that makes you feel even more like you. 

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Explore previous poster artists here!