We sat down with Grabie CEO, Evan Li, to discuss the art supply company's mission to use art to support mental health and healing through creativity.

How did you come up with the idea for Grabie?

The idea for Grabie started as a response to the widespread anxiety and depression that touched many of our lives during the pandemic. We ourselves have experienced the uplifting, inspiring, and healing powers of creative expression through art and became passionate about making it available and accessible to as many people as possible!

What’s funny is that there were no artists on our team at the very beginning! Even now, we get a lot of feedback from people saying, “I’m not an artist, I can’t draw,” “I paint like I’m in preschool!”. But, I strongly believe that art should be accessible to everyone, you don’t need to be a professional artist to enjoy the healing power of creative expression through art. All you need is a few moments to yourself so you can take a deep breath and have a little time to connect with your inner self. I believe that no matter your natural artistic skill level, art as therapy is an incredible tool whether you’re a child or an adult, or anywhere in between.

So, starting with a palette of watercolors, we grew Grabie into what you see today. We’re committed to encouraging everyone to embrace their individuality and express themselves creatively. Our goal is to support as many people as possible by giving them access to art supplies.

And along with this journey, we’ve seen how art can support mental health, so we’ve created the Grabie Art Fund to fund donations of art supplies to our partner organizations. Every purchase from grabieart.com helps these organizations provide art therapy programs to kids and teens in underserved communities.

What are some of the most popular products?

Our very first viral product on Tiktok was our 100 watercolor paint set. It includes everything you need in one set with 100 unique and highly pigmented shades including beautiful metallic, macaron, and fluorescent shades. I’m proud to say that our 100 Watercolor Set started the viral Tiktok trend of using watercolors for therapeutic purposes, with 1K+ influencers and 40M+ views!

Our Extra fine tip acrylic marker set of 28 is also an incredibly viral product for us on both Tiktok and Amazon. These markers are super easy to use, ideal for all skill levels, allow you to write or draw on so many surfaces such as fabric, ceramics, stones, canvases, and more. They allow you to infuse color and creativity into every aspect of your everyday life.

And finally our “Let Your Feelings Flow’ Grabie Art Box, this is our brand-new Art club box. The goal of this box is to make it easy and approachable for individuals to find comfort and strength through the power of art. Included is an extensive selection of premium art supplies inviting you to play and experiment with simple, easy to approach activities in an interactive workbook that features 30 days of reflections and drawing exercises to help you understand and navigate your emotions for a more balanced life. The box suits all ages and experience levels, and has watercolors, acrylic markers, oil pastels, sketching pencils, fineline pens, etc. It’s a perfect starter box that allows you to try different mediums and find your own favorite!

How does Grabie fit into the art community? What makes it different from other art supply companies or stores?

We are a creative force aiming to making art accessible to everyone. Not a professional brand for artists, we want to encourage everyone to participate in creative activities and enjoy and healing power of creative expression, using art to support their mental health. That is our key difference. We are a new and passionate member of the art community. Based on that mission, we thoughtfully design our products to make them beginner friendly, and try to create a therapeutic experience by offering everything you need in one set.

Besides that, we created the Grabie Art Fund to giving back to the community and support as many people as possible by giving them access to art supplies that they would not otherwise have.

Tell us about the Grabie Art Fund? What is it and how did it start?

When I co-founded Grabie, it started as a place of art supporting mental health. Then I realized that lots of people do not have access to art supplies because of financial difficulties, availability, or just plain lack of bandwidth to think of such things. Wanting to help, we started the Grabie Art Fund, where 1% of our sales are donated to the fund, which in turn donates art supplies to people who wouldn’t otherwise have access.

Along this journey of giving back to the community, we donated via the Born This Way Foundation to over twenty local organizations in need of art supplies for art therapy. This year, we are collaborating with the American Art Therapy Association to support more programs that provide free art therapy in their local communities. We’re proud of what we’ve achieved with our partners thus far, and are so excited to keep expanding our donations as we grow!

What advice would you give to other aspiring artists or anyone nervous to start their art journey?

We see art as powerful and accessible medium for the heart and soul, that’s why we encourage everyone to freely express themselves this way! So, lowering the barrier of accessibility is definitely something we see as meaningful for us as a company, and the world at large. Starting with a good cause and strong purpose, has helped motivate us to conquer all kinds of challenges. So no matter what you do, I would suggest find your purpose, that will be the initial inner power and guiding light from the beginning to end.

Anything else our readers should know about Grabie or your mission?

I’d love to quote an influencer that shared her feelings about our brand mission last year: A TikTok influencer @msfrizzleart posted a video talking about our viral watercolor set having the power to completely change the world of art. She said that while art is supposed to be self-expression, and being true to yourself, the art world has a tendency to be elitist and to make people feel like they could never be good enough to participate. But our affordable high quality watercolor sets are key to getting more people to indulge in the part of them that they know is a creative. Since it includes everything you need to start creating, at an attainable price.

That was a pivotal moment, allowing us to see that our efforts and purpose were being seen and received by others as we intended! We were excited and relieved that we’re doing enough of the ‘right things’ that people felt it, and we really are making a difference! We would love more people to join us during this wonderful journey!