By Alyssa Riley
Creator TikTok is hit or miss – you either strike gold and get millions of likes, or your content reaches 20 of your closest friends and its kaput. Summer 2021, when Logan Babin, 22, posted a TikTok of her abstract painting, she was astounded at the 3.2 million views and 743 thousand likes the video amassed.
Babin says she remembers always loving art. In kindergarten, she won first place in the art show. Years later, she was president of the art club during her senior year of high school.
“My mom was always super creative,” Babin said, “and I think she inspired my creativity.”
Babin in Kindergarten showing off her artwork that she won first place for at the art show. Photo courtesy of Logan Babin.
May 2020, while quarantining at home in Houma, La., she created ‘Logan Babin Art,’ an Instagram account to showcase her work for fun, which she later turned into a commission page for people who were interested in purchasing her pieces.
After the virality of her TikTok, ‘Logan Babin Art’ reached over 11 thousand followers on Instagram and nearly two million likes and 38.4 thousand followers on her personal TikTok account.
Babin’s pieces have been purchased by people in over half of the states in the country, which she says is her biggest accomplishment thus far.
Last summer, she was commissioned by Jenna Palek, Instagram influencer and founder of ‘Fun on Weekdays’ podcast. The piece emblazoned the show’s name across the canvas and a massive martini glass cuts through the words.
Babin’s piece that she created for Jenna Palek. Photo courtesy of Logan Babin.
Babin says this is her most important sale since her art business began.
Shortly after, she dipped her toes in collaboration when she teamed up with HAN’s HATs, a trucker hat company in Boca Raton, Fl. Together, they sold a limited collection featuring five of her original pieces on the hat patches.
“When I think about the time and care that each piece took, it makes me so proud knowing that someone states away, who I don’t know personally, loves and cares for it the same way,” Babin said. “I’m so thankful for the community on my page and the community around me. They’ve been my biggest supporters.”
As a senior marketing major at the U of A, Babin has to manage her time between school, art and socializing. So, for now, she has stepped away from commissions and toward selling whatever she paints in her free time.
“Living with Logan, I got to see her art business grow and thrive first-hand,” said Ryan Gober, Babin’s friend and former roommate. “Her style is very unique to her, which is another reason why her business has excelled so much; you can’t find anything similar to it anywhere else.”
Babin working on one of her popular designs, ‘PSI Love You’. Photo courtesy of Logan Babin.
Through and through, Babin is an artistic person, and she said she hopes to one day incorporate her creativity into a job, whether in an office or her own business. As for the future of her art, she dreams of showcasing her pieces in an art gallery or even turning them into wrapping paper or birthday cards.
She is humble about her art, and being surrounded by so many people who are amazed by what she comes up with and how she puts it on canvas has made Babin realize how unique her art is, Gober said.
“I want my art to make people feel happy. I think art can portray a lot of emotions, but it can also be fun and exciting to look at,” she said. “I want people to be excited when they see it.”