Meet Danny Upshaw: Creative Native

We had the good fortune of connecting with Danny Upshaw and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Danny, what makes you happy? Why?
During these times my optimistic side is great at finding happiness in the most obscure settings. My weeks are planned out by compensated side projects and self fulfilling projects while I’m not working my main day to day job at a local advertising/design agency in Tempe. The unexpected delights are what make me happy, that’s a very vague description but it ranges. It ranges from everything from how the light peeks through the buildings in downtown Phoenix to randomly running into friends while out n about in the city. The unexpectedness of situations is very exciting to me and gives me great joy to try and find the positive side to any encounter. 

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
My art has been growing and changing since I started creating. Not sure how different my art is from others but I think my art is relatable. Relatable in the sense that people who are familiar with the same surroundings as I am are intrigued by the variety of style of views I can share. I honestly just try and focus on what I’m producing and try to bring something new to what has been done before. I think if you’re content with what you produce based on whether it makes you happy or not there won’t be many challenges. The only challenges that might come up are the expectations you set on yourself and what your personal standards are.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
An ideal situation is that I’m showing a friend the Metro Phoenix area. I’d show them all the parking garages that have the best light in the evening and end at Hilton Garden Inn rooftop for some drinks and watch the sunset. After that I’d take them to a local beer shop to get some to go beers and have a picnic at a park or on top of a parking garage. Pandemic times have made me more selective on locations I’d take folks but that don’t mean you can show them unique spots.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
There are too many to mention who have helped me throughout my career but there have been so many people/organizations that have trusted me to deliver my style of work. I look to many local artists for inspiration and their art ranges from photography to painting murals. A few people creatives I’d love to shoutout are Andy Brown, Tim Brennan, Lalo Cota Tato Caraveo, Antoinette Cauley, Kelsey Dake, Nicole Underwood, Sam Gomez, Diana Calderon, Estrella Esquilin, Shaunte Glover, Ali Salcedo, Andrew Pielage, Anwar Newton, Ashley Macias, Blaise Danio, Punkwasp, Chip Thomas, Josh Rhodes, Justin Katz, Mike Olbinski, Nicholas Polando, Albert Barroso, Matt Fischer, Nicole Stumphauzer, Rachel Egboro, Salvador Bravo, Nader Abushhab and Sara Anderson.

Website: unheardharmony.com
Instagram: @unheard_harmony

Image Credits
Adam Zanzucchi Ryan Evans Lin Seegar and Charley Hernandez Amanda Ochs