Behind
Herban Art
Herban plays on the words Urban, like the place I grew up, and Herb, to reference the natural environment I now live in. Herban encompasses the best parts of who I feel I am, the relaxed woodsman with a city-slicker "go get em" attitude.
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My journey with art started a few years ago with @herban.crafts.
I had lived on a hobby farm where there was a ton of glass bottles the old property owner left around, not to mention I had so much time on my hands. I couldn’t work, I didn’t have internet, and I had barely any hobbies (haha oh man if only that version of me knew me now).
Now, being the “WE GOTTA RECYCLE OR USE THIS AGAIN” type of person that I am, I decided I was going to try my hand at bottle crafting or "upcycling"...but hear me out, I lived in the middle of nowhere, there were no craft stores for me to just go to. I had to use what was around me, my options with crafting were a bit limited. I had no idea what I was going to do. So I sat with that for a while and realized a problem I was having. I love nature, but in Canada during the Winter having barely any sun was taking a toll on my little Florida boy Heart. Not being able to go outside and bask in the sun was genuinely harmful to my mental health. I felt trapped, scared, and I didn’t know how to handle this time of year… So what better way to keep nature with me than to create the places I wanted to be in little bottle landscapes. These pieces got me through such a hard time of my life. Since then I've dabbled in a range of crafts/hobbies/art whatever you want to call it, but the one thing remains true, nature and love remain the center of my work and continue to get me through the days.
Sometimes we forget where things start and often stray from our intended path, but the universe will always find a way to bring what's meant to be back to you. As a kid, I loved art but wasn't immediately good at it - so I quit it. Here I am now at 26 living my best creative life all because the universe took me to the countryside and made me GO OUTSIDE!
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Thank you to all of you who have supported my arts, without you I wouldn't be living the dream and loving the life I live.
Herban Art is here to bring YOUR creative vision to life as much as it is here to spread the message of love and nature.​
Much love always,
Elijah
The Herban Boy
Elijah Sherwood-Cotto
(They/He)
Hey, I'm Elijah (@theherbanboy)!
At the fresh age of 21, I moved to Canada with a dream... and it WAS NOT art, but here we are! I am a self-taught queer artist with a background in Digital Media from Florida State University. I am always ready to put my mind and love toward ANYTHING! If I can get creative about it, I will - I'm a libra, it literally is in the stars for me.