By: Jay Feldman
Many people who work in corporate America may dream of leaving the office one day and pursuing a life as an artist, but Mini Mukherjee made that dream a reality. The metalwork artist, based out of Los Angeles, CA, spent a decade working in the finance sector, traveling from New York, Boston, Chicago, and Singapore. In 2017, she decided to leave corporate finance and pursue art full-time — and it’s been a wild ride ever since.
Dreams of metal and fire
Mukherjee is the first to admit that her life in finance looked perfect from the outside. “On the outside, everything looked great: a prestigious spot in a financial leadership program, flying around the world to set up new business opportunities, closing multi-million-dollar deals with an incredible team,” she told SD Voyager. “But through it all, my inner artist was trying to get out at every chance.”
Mukherjee would sketch and write in her spare time and squeeze in lunches at the Met and MoMA any chance she could find. She knew that her heart was in art, not finance, but it took being offered a job opportunity for her to finally follow her creativity.
“The turning point was being offered a job that I would have given anything to land,” she explains. “Everyone around me thought I was pretty nuts to turn it down, including my immediate family, but my husband really doubled down and believed in me. “If you have one person in your corner who sees more in you than you may see for yourself at the time, that’s all you really need to get started.”
Metalworking actually came to Mukherjee in a dream where she saw a glint of silver across a room and was driven to take a metal jewelry fabrication class. After finding a metalworking mentor, Mukherjee’s passion took over, and she couldn’t stop the pull to create. Once she realized what she could make with a metalworking torch, Mukherjee never looked back.
Joy Buddies
“My work is a direct reflection of what I value — joy, resiliency, and togetherness,” she explains. Her Joy Buddies series has encapsulated these values. Beginning as 150-pound sculptures made from cold-rolled copper and brass, Mukherjee wanted the series to answer an all-important question: If joy could be tangible, what would that look like? Joy Buddies evolved into a way of answering the divisiveness that took hold of the country amid the pandemic and the first Trump administration. “I wanted the work to represent coming together,” says Mukherjee. “I wanted to help people focus on joy and helping one another.”
Using a unique fire painting technique and metalworking skills, Mukherjee has built a collection of pieces that allow her to challenge institutionalized boundaries and ideas of success. Recently, the original Joy Buddies piece was recognized as one of the Top 15 pieces at ArtPrize 9, the world’s largest art competition by attendance.
Going into 2025, a new body of Joy Buddies work is set to be released, which is an evolution on the original themes of connection to those who lift us up, finding joy, and challenging societal norms. As divisions persist, the new Joy Buddies creations arrive at a pivotal moment in history, bridging the divides that continue to shape our world.
Refusing to settle
When reflecting on her journey to the art world, Mukherjee is most proud of her refusal to settle. “I had found material and professional success early on in my career, but I was still unhappy,” she says. “I am so thankful I had the courage and patience to follow my heart.”
During her time immersed in corporate life and culture, Mukherjee could never have dreamed of pursuing a career as a full-time artist. It’s a life change that has brought not only joy into her life but new friendships and feelings of personal fulfillment. “I’m grateful for those around me who keep me focused and inspired,” she shares.
Mukherjee admits that her background in finance has helped pave the way for a successful art career, describing herself as an equal part artist and entrepreneur. She remains good with numbers and enjoys the relationship between the creative and the business aspects of her new life as an artist. As she learned to trust her intuition both in business and in creative pursuits, the successes followed. Her art is now featured in private collections and public art installations.
Mukherjee shows no signs of slowing down in her pursuit of creating meaningful art pieces. She is exploring new mediums, including digital art and live botanicals, and hopes to bring her creations to an even wider audience. Through all innovation and creative pursuits, Mukherjee wants to stay true to her hunger to create and her values. She continues to learn and grow within her new chosen industry, and raw emotion drives every new piece.
“At the end of the day, my work is not about a particular race, gender, or class but celebrating our differences as a collective human race,” says Mukherjee. “It serves as a reminder that while we may rest, we will not give in to hopelessness.”
Published by Mark V.
