In 2021, Talisa Almonte established Almonte Studio, a small business that showcases her talent for creating colorful art, illustrations and murals. Since launching, she’s worked on various murals throughout New York City (including a 7,500-square-foot asphalt mural in Union Square with NYC Department of Transportation Art), collaborated with Target on a collection for Latin Heritage Month and much more.
Based in Astoria, Almonte celebrates her love for Queens and her Latin heritage in her creations. “I didn’t realize there’s not a lot of art or merch for Queens specifically . . . Queens should get its recognition.”
Read on to discover her line of products—art prints, greeting cards, stickers, pins, magnets and more—and what goes into making them.
How did you get into art, illustration and creating murals?
Talisa Almonte: My dad was an artist, so as soon as I could hold a pencil he was like, “I’m gonna teach you how to draw.” He ran his own business in the Dominican Republic, and I grew up with this notion of wanting to be an artist like my dad.
I was born in Santo Domingo. I moved to the States when I was 4 and grew up in Miami. I studied fashion design at FIT; I graduated with a BFA and then worked in the fashion industry for seven years. My first job was at Victoria’s Secret as a surface designer. I was in charge of getting the graphics from the graphics team and putting it on the bodies that the design team would give us. That kind of opened up my world to graphics and design, which I thought was really cool.
Tell us about your journey to opening Almonte Studio.
TA: Once the pandemic hit, I was laid off. I’d wanted to start my own business for a while, but I didn’t really know how. I didn’t know how to leave the comfort of a 9-to-5 salary and just be like, “I’m going to freelance now.” In a way, getting laid off was the fire I needed because I had no choice.
What started my business was actually doing pet portraits, because I started doing a lot of commissions like that. So, I just started sharing my work more on social media. I was reaching out to small companies, like, “Hey, would you want to collaborate sometime?”
I did that for about a year, and then in 2021, my dad passed away. When I was going through some of his things, I found a business card from his business in the DR; it was Almonte Studio. I basically took his business card and redesigned the logo, and that’s how I became Almonte Studio.
Newtown HQ
How has NYC helped shape your business?
TA: What I love about New York is the creativity and the opportunities that you can get living in a city like this. Some of the projects I’ve been able to do are because of open calls from the City. It’s really nice to see the City itself reaching out to work with artists to beautify certain spaces—like pedestrian areas.
Also, I live in Astoria and that’s where I started my business. There's such a sense of that small-town community in a city setting. Astoria has so many small businesses and everybody really looks out for each other. There’s a lot of open street markets and pop-ups, and you meet a lot of other small makers. I wouldn’t have been able to get to the place where I am now if it wasn't for that community support.
How has Queens and your Latin heritage shown up in your work?
TA: In Queens, there’s so much diversity in the different cultures and cuisines. That’s something I’ve always admired about being in New York. Before I moved to Astoria, I lived in the Jackson Heights area. That whole 7 train line—if you get off at every stop, you’re, like, hitting a different country. It's so cool. So that's why in some of my pieces I drew the 7 train. I have a print called Taste of Queens, and it’s hot sauces that represent certain minority groups.
My heritage is a huge influence on the colors that I use. Also, a lot of the Latin references I use are usually food related. Food is such a big part of Latin culture.
I did one that’s called Sazonado en Queens. And then I just saw people’s reactions and didn’t realize there’s not a lot of art or merch for Queens specifically. You see a lot of Brooklyn stuff; you see a lot of stuff for New York City as a whole. I started leaning into that more, because Queens should get its recognition.
Talk to us about some of the pop-ups Almonte Studio participates in.
TA: I'll be participating in Queens Night Market for several dates throughout the year. It’s been really good for me and my business. I’ve gotten to interact with so many people and get real-time feedback, which also helps me get more inspiration for my work.
It’s interesting, because with pop-ups last year, it was very tough. It’s been hit or miss because the economy is struggling. People aren’t trying to spend their money, especially not on art. So, I took a step back from doing pop-ups, but Queens Night Market is still one of my best markets.
Newtown HQ
Tell us about the range of products you sell and what the process of making them is like.
TA: I mostly do my art prints; I draw everything digitally and then I print them out myself. If I’m doing any bulk ordering, I get those printed at a local printer in Long Island City. I do stickers and pins. Stickers are really fun, because it's a great way for people to support without having to spend much. The stickers are vinyl, waterproof, so you can put them on water bottles, you can put them anywhere. People have even put them on their cars, which I thought was so cool, like, my sticker’s traveling with you, you know?
I have greeting cards. I started doing some Spanish cards and, like everything else, it’s all the same process. I draw everything on my iPad digitally, and then format it to what I need it to look like.
I also do magnets. I started working with another small business, Lost in the City. He’s another really amazing illustrator, and he makes the magnets for me.
A collab that just dropped: I partnered with Paige’s Candle Co. and designed the label for her candle celebrating Women’s History Month.
I’m also part of Made in NYC, because 90 percent of my business is made here in New York.
What projects have been the most memorable for you?
TA: I’d have to say Target was a really big deal. Not just because it’s such a big retailer, but because it was part of celebrating Latin culture.
My first-ever big-name project was the Star Wars illustration project. They wanted me to illustrate an alternative cover for one of the movies. This agency called Poster Posse did this takeover for May the 4th on the Disney+ platform. They chose eight artists from their roster, but then they also chose eight artists that were not part of their agency, and it was so cool that they found me. I asked how, and it was through a hashtag. It’s crazy to think that even worked. I used to hashtag a lot, like #Latinartists, #Latinillustrator, so that people could find me if they wanted to work with someone who was Latina. I was able to get Rogue One, which was my favorite Star Wars film. I just remember turning on the TV and seeing my art, which was so freaking cool.
Union Square Park
What advice do you have for people who want to start their own small business?
TA: You have to just do it because there's never going to be the perfect time. I think you have to push yourself to reach out to people, to not be afraid to send a DM, find their email address, email them, look people up on LinkedIn, reach out. You miss out on opportunities—you can’t expect people to always come to you. You have to do a little bit of the chasing as well.
Almonte Studio’s products are available at Newtown HQ, New York Botanical Garden, Amani Market, Babs Home and Pantry, Brooklyn ARTery, Center for Brooklyn History, The BookMark Shoppe, Kew & Willow Books, The August Tree, Nose Best Candles, Stay Forever, From Here to Sunday and Little Hippie & Company.
