Justin Mays (also known by his Instagram handle @maysgrafx) grew up in Annapolis, Maryland surrounded by art. His mother was the art teacher at his school throughout most of elementary and high school.
Growing up, he recalls frequent family trips to the west coast of Mexico to visit his grandparents and go boogie boarding in the ocean. His five years of college at The Art Institute of Fort Lauderdale were basically a constant “Spring Break”. He received two degrees for graphic design and motion graphics and started his career as a video editor making local car and furniture dealership ads in Fort Lauderdale.
He then moved to Miami Beach with his now-wife. There, he freelanced for Univision making abstract background animations for the Latin award shows. While freelancing all over Miami, he would pull all-nighters on the weekends as a VJ at Cameo, the biggest nightclub in South Beach. He loved Miami, but the national economic crash forced him to move to LA to find work.
Shortly after moving to LA, he realized it was exactly where he needed to be, as it’s the mecca for motion graphics. He has not stopped working ever since. While getting back on his feet in LA, he began to settle in–he married his beautiful wife, and they bought a house and had a daughter. Being in LA has given him the opportunity to challenge himself in his career which has helped him push himself in his personal art.