Justin Bua

Justin Bua is an award-winning artist, author, speaker, and entrepreneur known for his distinctive urban art style, with a career spanning fine art, commercial projects, educational initiatives, and digital collaborations. After graduating from the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California, in 1992 with a B.F.A in painting, Justin Bua quickly became recognized for his iconic ‘The DJ’ poster, which has sold over 11 million copies worldwide, making fine art accessible to a broad audience. Bua, an award-winning artist, author, speaker, and entrepreneur, further solidified his artistic foundation by attending Manhattan’s Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music and Performing Arts.

He also shared his expertise through education, teaching figure drawing at the University of Southern California for ten years, before launching an online program with ArtistWorks in 2013, making his curriculum globally accessible. In 2018, he co-hosted the ‘Art Attack’ podcast with Dr. Lizy Dastin, discussing art and art history, further cementing his role as an influential voice in the art world. His fine art has been exhibited at Pop International Galleries (2010), and featured in an event at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (2011), and on Artsy benefiting ACLU (2017).

Most recently, Bua has embraced digital innovation, being among the first artists funded by Ripple’s $250 million Creator Fund in 2022 to develop NFT projects. This initiative culminated in the launch of a collection of 1,011 unique NFTs at the South by Southwest festival in 2023. His latest book, ‘Original Influencers,’ was published in 2022. Looking ahead, Bua’s work will be exhibited at the Tucson Museum of Art in 2024, and he is scheduled to speak at the Museum of Graffiti in Miami in 2025, continuing his multifaceted career as a leading figure in contemporary art.