CJ Hendry changed profession when her ticket didn't go through the pub • Since selling her works on the social network - even to Kenya West

Her major breakthrough into the world of art is owed to specialist realist CJ Hendry on Instagram and social networks where she has millions of viewers. The artist, who paints her work in pencil - a process that sometimes takes 80 hours for a single painting - comes to real realistic accuracy. Among her paintings can be seen perfume bottles, designer shoes, petals and Rorschach stains. "In the past, I had to show up in the gallery for customers to know me," says the Australian artist, who now lives in New York, in an interview with CNN. "And even then it all depended on the gallery's wishes and reception hours. Now on Instagram, my works are exposed and presented to millions all the time." 

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A post shared by Cj Hendry (@cj_hendry) on May 17, 2020 at 6:29 pm PDT

A picture to hang in a Jordan store in Korea

These creations were made as a tribute to Hendry's luxury goods, which was what made her big break in the first place in 2014. "I went out to a pub with friends and wanted to pay for them, but the credit card company rejected my card. That was the moment I wondered if that was all I could achieve in life, "she says.

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A post shared by Cj Hendry (@cj_hendry) on Sep 10, 2019 at 5:52 pm PDT

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Hendry, who's been drawing from a small age, decided to make a change at that moment. She resigned from her position at the Chanel store and interrupted her university academic studies in architecture and finance. She decided to become just an artist, and in the beginning, she sold all the luxury goods she bought over the years, bags, shoes and clothes, and kept from the money she received for them.

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A post shared by Cj Hendry (@cj_hendry) on Oct 30, 2019 at 5:43 pm PDT

The bill with Kanye West's face at the

 same time she began posting videos that included her drawing process as well as works on her Instagram page, which for a time only rose in black and white. "It was right at the beginning of Instagram, I had a real name there," she recalls. A family member bought her the first painting of designer RM Williams boots, and Hendry, who received from the man $ 6,000 for the first piece she ever sold, received a serious push to move on with the paintings. Since then, she has also begun to draw realistic details, such as a disco ball, Andy Warhol's paintings, Rorschach tests, and a crumpled $ 100 bill with the face of the famous rapper Kanye West, who even bothered to buy the piece. 

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A post shared by Cj Hendry (@cj_hendry) on Apr 4, 2019 at 12:31 pm PDT

CJ and wrote about her in The New York Times

Today Hendry's works are sold for hundreds of thousands of dollars to create. "I was really lucky that I started using social media as a tool. I didn't just publish pictures, but only my creations, which allowed them to speak for themselves. The social network is a powerful tool that does not require a gallery publishing process and broad lobbying work," she concludes. 

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A post shared by Cj Hendry (@cj_hendry) on Feb 26, 2019 at 6:10 pm PST

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A post shared by Cj Hendry (@cj_hendry) on Mar 27, 2019 at 2:27 pm PDT