One artist and one mural at a time, David Baker ('22) is emerging as a leader in inspiring the next generation of Denton artists through the North Texas Makers.

The organization -- which began in 2019 as a monthly art show at a brewery -- spearheads festivals and other community events for artists, musicians and others to showcase their talents. Its most recent event, Denton Makers Night Market, brought 100 vendors on a June night to the Denton Downtown Square. And a holiday market is scheduled to take place later this year.

North Texas Makers encountered challenges during the COVID-19 pandemic, but Baker flexed his creativity to make it a success -- as he has with his own career.

"I have loved seeing our art show grow into its current organization. We started so small and never expected things to get to where it is today."

The communication design major, who grew up in Houston, always knew he had the talent to produce a creative career for himself. Apart from his mother, who is an oil painter with a degree in graphic design, and his uncle, who has a degree in English, most of his family had achieved their careers through technical work.

"I thought I wanted to do engineering because that's what all the men in my family did. Then I realized I didn't get a lick of math sense."

Baker's time at UNT was foundational for his career and the creation of the North Texas Makers. The communication design professors helped Baker in some capacity develop his personal and professional life.

"A marketing professor, Francisco Guzman, gave me love for marketing and taught me skills that have been valuable in growing my business and North Texas Makers," he says.

Baker began his career as a freelance graphic designer for the 3Headed Monster advertising agency and worked for various clients including TikTok and Cicis Pizza. He went on to work for other companies including Falcon Events in Irving and Dallas-based The Shop Agency. He also briefly was a freelance clothing designer.

While his accomplishments in the digital space have been rewarding, his painted murals show the true extent of his creativity and passion for art. In Denton, the former Armadillo Ale Works -- now Union Bear Brewing -- and the Blind Fox Denton food truck, as well as Smoke and Fire restaurant in Krum and several other businesses display his murals.

In 2019, while Baker was a student, he worked at Armadillo Ale Works as a bartender. There he met and worked and with fellow UNT student Madison Schmidt, an artist who works with watercolors and relief printmaking. For a time, an event called Fold Festival would take place at the brewery. 

"There'd be maybe 30 artists, a couple bands, all selling at the brewery. It was a lot of fun. Madi and I would both sell (art) at that show."

After the creator of the Fold Festival announced he wouldn't continue operating the event in Denton, Baker and Schmidt saw an opportunity.

"Madi and I were like, ‘Hey, we really like having art shows at the brewery. Would you mind if we took your idea and rebranded it into our own thing and continued doing shows at the brewery?' He was like, ‘Yeah, that sounds like fun.'"

This was the inception of the North Texas Makers. Now, the duo's objective was getting this new and exciting community known around North Texas.

"Our little elevator pitch is that we connect creatives to the community through collaborations with events and venues all across North Texas," Baker says.

Launching the fest proved to be more difficult than anticipated.

"Our first event was set for two weeks after the COVID-19 lockdown started, and so we just ended up canceling, which we were really bummed out about. And we just kept rescheduling it and canceling throughout the pandemic because it lasted a lot longer than any of us thought it would."

In 2022, they brought in Samuel Wiggins ('17), a friend, vendor and fellow Armadillo Ale Works employee who now works at UNT, to help with legal and finance matters.

In its third year the North Texas Makers landed its first event on the square in collaboration with the Thin Line Fest in April 2023, providing another avenue for young, talented artists to display and sell their work.

The opportunities North Texas Makers creates for aspiring artists are about more than just short-term gratification and making a quick buck. They're opportunities to leave a lasting and resonating impact within the North Texas community.

"Another hope is that we can foster a community of young artists in Denton -- or in North Texas -- that'll continue to collaborate and make work with each other and network," Baker says. "If there's any part of North Texas that will be perfect for that, it would definitely be here in Denton."