Zavala Bespoke Combines Fine Art and Fashion

Photography by Lauren Zavala

It’s not every day that one is able to effortlessly incorporate fine art and luxury into their favorite outfit, but Lauren Zavala, founder, designer and lead artist of Zavala Bespoke, strives to allow people to do just that. The artist — and new Providence resident — paints exuberant designs onto luxury leather goods — among a multitude of canvases — that are tailored to fit the needs of each individual client.

While she’s always loved art, it was the difficulty of her master’s degree that prompted Zavala to rely heavily on practicing art as a stress reliever. While Christmas shopping one day during her tenure in school, she saw someone creating art using leather paints and was inspired to gift her whole family hand-painted leather goods for the holidays. Needless to say, the lucky recipients of the gifts quickly fell in love with the idea of wearable fine art and encouraged to start her own business.

Zavala quickly began painting on any leather canvas she could find, establishing a strong portfolio that helped her break into the industry. It has always been crucial for her to create something that aligns with her clients’ personal styles.

Photography by Lauren Zavala

“Having something my style is super important to me. It makes me feel cool. Confident. I want other people to experience that too,” says Zavala.

She creates designs that include bright colors, pop art, Mexican folk art and impressionism — all inspired by her favorite artists, such as Ashley Longshore, Lucio Carvalho and Frida Kahlo. Some of her most popular designs range from monograms and butterflies to skulls and lips. She experiments with not only designs, but also canvases, and has painted on wooden sculptures, tin, a car dashboard and even skateboards.

Each of her creations are customizable and fashionable in nature; she receives client requests for everything from upcycling old handbags to creating designs on new items that people buy just for her art. Some customers provide Zavala with particular designs that they want, while others send general ideas and still others give the artist free rein. What is important to Zavala in each of her projects is that “each piece fit[s] the bag,” she says. “I want my art to complement a bag, not work against it,”

Photography by Lauren Zavala

What happens if she makes a mistake? She doesn’t. In order to prevent errors on the designer pieces, Zavala sends each client a digital mockup of the end result before she begins painting so they can make any final tweaks. She also uses protective wrapping during the painting process to protect the valuable canvases.

Having painted for brands like Neiman Marcus, Staud and Coach, Zavala is certainly a seasoned artist, but she is always looking towards new horizons. As of now, she does client customization pieces and is working on a “collection of canvases that explore metamorphosis and monarchy,” in addition to doing live painting for major brands and independent clients. Those interested in obtaining one of Zavala Bespoke’s incredible pieces can inquire at zavalabespoke.com.