We had a chance to talk with Jackson Hinkle, an 11 year old artist living the dream in Southern California and we were so impressed with his artistic abilities we asked him to paint one of our artist series headphones! See the gallery below.

Jackson is only in sixth grade, but his bio reads like a seasoned artist! His natural talents have catapulted his artistic ability far beyond his years!
Meet Jackson:
He's only 11 but Jackson's passion for art and music began much earlier. Whether he was playing his guitars or sketching the likes of John Lennon, Paul McCartney, and Jimi Hendrix. His taste in music and art went hand in hand until he met San Clemente artist/surfer, Drew Brophy. Drew's influence was dramatic! He seemed to move from charcoal drawings to paint pens and airbrushing overnight. Jackson has been commissioned to create several different items; a canvas painting for the CEO of AppFitters, hats, shoes, skate helmets, cell phone covers and surfboards for customers as far away as Minneapolis. Drew has shown Jackson that you can paint almost anything on any surface, including AERIAL7's.

How was painting AERIAL7’s different than painting say a skate deck or a pair of shoes?
The material and shape made it more difficult to paint but it was fun creating a design on something so different. I never thought about painting headphones before.

How has music influenced your art?
I enjoy music from the 60's and 70's and I collect album covers. The covers from those periods are quite interesting and colorful. Not sure if the music has influenced my art but the album covers have.

If you could go anywhere in the world on a trip to inspire your art, where would you want to go and why?
I would go to the North shore of Oahu. There I would get to do two of my favorite things; surf and paint. The North Shore has some of the most beautiful waves. I would love to capture those on canvas at different times of the day to see how the light effects the color of the waves.

What are some of your other hobbies?
Music, surfing, skateboarding, snowboarding, basketball and football. I especially like playing and collecting guitars.

What are your plans for the near future?
I just started the sixth grade so I'm focused on my school work. I am saving up to purchase a Wacom monitor so I can begin to capture my designs on a computer. My uncle took me to meet the head designer for Oakley and he offered to help me learn how to do graphic design.

Any interesting projects coming up? I have several projects going on right now. I'm going to start painting a surfboard and hat for a future surf star named Hagan Johnson, he is only 7 right now but he has no fear, and will be a force in a few years. I'm also painting a pair of shoes for my Aunt and our next door neighbor.

Jackson offered a few words of wisdom to wrap up the interview: "With a lot of luck, hard work, and practice I hope to someday make a living out of my artistic abilities, whether that's painting, music or both. Doing what you love is a lot of fun!" For an 11 year old, he sure seems to have a grasp on what he wants out of life! We are stoked to see where Jackson's art and surfing takes him in the future!