BY KEELIN EVERLY-LANG for WEEKLY VOLCANO | 7/17/2026
We first met artist Kristina Martin when she participated in the Weekly Volcano’s first Newspaper Box Challenge last year.
Martin showed that inspiration can strike anywhere, with her piece inspired by a delicious bowl of ramen in Hilltop.
For those interested in painting a box of their own, the call for artists is currently open.
Artist Kristina Martin had her first solo show in Tacoma on December 2, 2023, and is developing a new body of work and looking for a location for her second solo show.
Martin’s style features big, bold colors, incorporating elements of animated and abstract styles to express the essence of her portrait subjects. She often finds inspiration in music and her environment.
You might recognize her art from past displays at Intentions Juice and Smoothie Bar in Tacoma.
In Tacoma, some of Martin’s favorite local spots to work have been local cafes and the waterfront.
“I used to do sketching over at Red Elm Cafe because I was staying over there in that area. . . . I’d also take my bike down to Ruston and set up a picnic area in the grass with a blanket,” Martin said.
“I’ve done several pieces down there just while people are walking by. I love when people stop to talk to me about my artwork when I’m down at the waterfront,” Martin said. “It’s a really peaceful thing I like to do. Just go down there with my snacks and my drinks, and paint by the beachside with my bike, and then go grab lunch.”
Painting in public is not the only way she likes to connect with the community through art.
Martin has also hosted several paint-and-sip events around the community, including in King County. She takes a slightly different approach from typical paint-and-sip nights and says she likes to create room for people to express themselves as part of the event.
“I like really making sure I encourage the therapeutic side of things when I host these classes. . . . I know most of the paint classes I’ve seen, they’re very specific to the reference picture, but I do like to have a picture that allows creative freedom,” Martin said.
As one example, she’s planning a paint-and-sip event for August that will feature a variety of sneaker and shoe options traced out for people to paint. Rather than having everyone paint the same shoe in the same color and style, she’ll encourage participants to choose the template and colors that speak to them.
She’s still nailing down where the event will be hosted, so keep an eye on her social media for an announcement if this sounds like something you’d like to participate in.
Whether hosting a paint-and-sip event or a show, Martin loves to create an all-encompassing experience. At her paint-and-sip events, this might include raffles and goodie bags. At her solo show, this meant having a live DJ to set the tone for the art’s neo-soul theme.
“Once you set the tone with music and interaction and other things, it just enhances that and creates a whole collaboration between people that are experiencing it within that venue or within that space. I think it’s really important to have other factors in there, not so much where it takes away from the art, but enough to where you get different parts of that experience.”
Martin has also seen the therapeutic power of art in her day job as a medical assistant working with children at Mary Bridge Hospital.
Some of her art is inspired by this work with kids and addresses topics such as mental health.
She said that at Mary Bridge, she sees firsthand kids who are dealing with unfortunate and sad things, whether those are mental health issues or the ramifications of abuse.
One art piece explores the impact of social media and technology, expressing the challenges her generation and children today face as they are trapped and drawn in by these things.
Whenever she can, she encourages the kids she works with to go after things “that are good, healthy outlets for them, such as art.”
Even the time spent waiting for a doctor’s appointment is an opportunity to encourage them to color rather than reach for a tablet.
Outside her full-time job, she’s also attending Green River College, where she is finishing prerequisites for a nursing program. She runs a photography business on the side and is a self-described “basketball mom” with children ages six and thirteen.
With so much going on, photography can be a more accessible art form than painting, but she’s still quietly working in the background on a series for her second solo show.
This series is going to be a “tribute to West Coast culture.”
The series will include elements such as the city, trees, lowriders, local sports figures and teams, and more, creating a “good mixture of everything that represents the West Coast together.”
She’s also continuing to develop her skill set and is interested in practicing oil painting and realism techniques to add to her style. While she’s always been known as “the artsy girl” since she was a child, she said she rediscovered her love for creating during the height of the pandemic, when, like many others, she needed an outlet after everything shut down.
As she’s gotten involved in art and the community in many different ways, she’s also learned to find a balance among it all.
“It’s not always about monetizing on your art as much as it is just expressing yourself. I feel like once you consume your mind with monetizing your art that way, it kind of takes some of the joy out of that being an outlet for you as an artist,” Martin said. “In the last year, I’ve learned not to be so hard on myself to stay so consistent online, or feel like I have to force myself to create if I’m not in the headspace and really shift the focus on still finding the joy in it without necessarily having to make money off of it all of the time, and just really being able to connect with community is what I’m more drawn to at this point in my art journey.”
Right now, her art can be found at 23rd Avenue Brewery in Seattle’s Central District. While she’s since moved out of Tacoma, she still takes the time to stay connected to the community through events such as Tacoma Connect and by looking out for calls for artists in the city.
