Today on the blog I speak with an artist who I've actually had the pleasure of meeting. It's not often people are so open and honest about what they have been through, if anything it's normal to not feel easy to talk about your past sufferings but with Amja, her calm serene presence makes her at ease to tell her truth and her story.
The presence of Amja is divine, she exudes a cool, calm and collective but really a free spirit that pulls you in to realise how powerful strength and growth is as she tells you more about the meanings behind each painting. All this expressed through her art makes you feel centred and connected to her soul and somehow closer to your own. Exactly what I think makes for a great artist.
I introduce to you, Amja
Hi Amja so we have met before but for anyone that doesn't know you or your work could you explain a bit about yourself and how you became an artist?
I'm Amja, Mother, Motivational Speaker and anything my creative soul decides to be in the moment. After being stalked then attacked metres from my former place of employment whilst simultaneously transitioning out of a domestically abusive relationship I lost my identity in Post Traumatic Stress Disorder better known as PSTD.
While attending a domestic abuse charity I was asked if I would like to take part in an art project. I agreed, was given an untreated piece of canvas and was told by the International Visual and Performance: Artist Rachel Gadsden to go and paint. What materialised was my art piece 'Perception'. Perception was how I was able to tell my story on canvas when my words were misconstrued in the abyss of semantics and gaslighting. Art gave me a place to share my story, my truth unabashedly.
What is your process to get into creative mode?
I am very much a go with the flow type of person and laugh a lot. When meditating I have my journal beside me and if I have an idea I write it down and/ or sketch and then take it from there or other times I follow the feeling in the moment and take it from there. However, I usually listen to music and dance before I start to create as a way of connecting with the Divine Feminine to activate my sacral power centre which is responsible for creativity, sexuality and spirituality and the heart power centre for activating love and compassion for self and others.
Who do you want to see your art, is there a specific audience or you want it to be everywhere for all different people to connect with in their own way?
Although I have been told that my art is very much for the feminine, my hope is that my art is experienced by everyone it speaks to and that they find a message of hope, healing, love and empowerment.
What is your favourite part about being an artist?
The freedom. As I have mentioned before I'm a go with the flow type of person. I wasn't always like this before. When in a domestically abusive relationship the basis of perpetration is to control. While sitting in a therapy session I made an agreement with myself that I would live more freely with intention and not wait for another's permission to live how I want to.
So often I think it takes a lot of courage to follow a creative path, is that something you feel?
Definitely. I have come from a very structured work experience. I managed teams of varying sizes, and supported directors as executive and personal assistant while raising four children which all require a very organised way of being, so being an artist is a very different way of being. Firstly, because I hadn't intentionally done visual art before, or only as a make-up artist which still is someone else's personal brief to follow, most of the time and secondly because my former employment had a guaranteed income. For me, being an artist means you have to trust the process and accept that what is for you will n to pass you by even when your bank account is in overdraft overdrive lol.
When did you realise you want to be an artist?
When my art piece 'Perception' was in the gallery I saw a woman staring at it for a long time, when she turned around she was crying and had her hands on her heart, on the same day Rachel Gadsden held my hand and told me that so many people had been staring at my piece and that I am a really good artist. Later she asked if an opportunity came up would I consider working on an art project where women who had been impacted by domestic abuse could explore their creativity in a supportive, trauma informed way. For many years prior I had often been told that I have a very inspiring and humorous way of speaking, so I thought I could use a combination of my skills to help others and I went from there to Amja Unabashedly; Where Art, Inspiration and Humour empower people of domestic abuse.
What are your current projects/ things you are working on?
I have partnered with the Woman's trust, which is a specialist mental health charity, providing free counselling and therapy for women who have experienced domestic abuse. 10% of all my ' A heart to hold' prints sales will be donated to the charity. The idea for A Heart to Hold was because while attending therapy the counsellor would always say self-love and self-compassion is so important. Initially, I used to be irritated by the saying but now I truly believe in it and try to live by it without an apology.
Also I had planned to do a solo exhibition this summer but due to the current world situation I had to postpone, so I have been working on a very personal piece which I can't share at the moment but will do when the time is right.
To view more of Amja's work Amja Unabashedly
]]>Hey everyone,
on my quest to search for artists that inspire and paintings/art that take me places, I came across the mystical dreamy art by Andrea Morales.
Without a face in the paintings but a silhouette, I found this made me dream and imagine more the character or person in the setting.
Then I thought let me find out about this talent behind the art that stopped me for a moment and sent me to a wonderful daydream.
How would you describe the style of art you create Andrea?
My style of art is simple, geometric and there are no faces. This style enables everyone to see for themselves and they can feel my art as a part of them.
The bodies taken are all the protagonists with different postures and gestures…The palette of color in each illustration tries to transmit a different mood.
Mostly they are neutral and balance colors like beige, light grey, and different types of blue...
What are the main inspirations behind your work?
Well, I was born in Barcelona. I feel the Mediterranean sea inside my soul and everything related with the sea inspires me and makes me happy.
Mediterranean landscapes and exotic places are without a doubt my favorites.
Also, I feel very attracted to feminism. I feel so proud and thankful to be a woman and I believe in all kinds of beauty. For me, the beauty is genuine, innocent, and natural it doesn't care about the shape of the body.
Fortunately we live in a society where we are breaking the stereotype of the perfect woman.
How different has your work developed or been influenced over the years?
I came through a different age. I always loved to paint and my father taught me when I was 2 years old but it was never anything serious. One day when I was about 4 years old I sketched all the walls of my room. My parents installed a big blackboard on the wall of my room.
When I was 16 years old I tried m to study art. I loved it but I left it to study Political Science and Marketing. During this lapse of time I was painting but very punctual--always painting followed by throwing everything away.
One year ago, before I moved to California my best friend encouraged me to open an Instagram account for my drawings. I started posting some architecture (another of my passions) because I didn’t feel confident but my love for Picasso’s art and my devotion to Joan Miró made me start with some cubism and realism.
It was easy and funny to be able to draw the eyes wherever I wanted. Everything can be in a different place with cubism, and that’s wonderful. Ironically, I am doing the complete opposite now.
At the beginning I liked everything, and it was difficult following this path to find my own essence. Finally, I decided to stop and take some air. I had just moved to a new country and a lot of things were happening to me.
The nostalgia always comes with me everywhere and I go, always missing my place. For this reason I decided to give tribute to the place where I was born immortalizing in every illustration.
Do you find any challenges when it comes to creating a new piece in terms of new ideas?
Yeah, definitely.
Every commission is a new challenge for me and I always exceed the customer’s expectations. You need to be a perfectionist and really love what you are doing. For this reason, every illustration is like a love story, I left my heart there.
Who or what has been the biggest influence on you as an artist?
Mainly I love Joan Miró and Pablo Picasso. I dream with the Monet’s sunsets and I can be lost in Matisse’s gardens.
In IG a find a lot of inspiration a lot of muses, in special:
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One day I realised I have to use the search option on Instagram a lot more, essentially to fall down the rabbit hole and find the art and people I want to connect with. Fighting off the algorithm to find what it is that I really want to discover.
I have realised the problem is not just the algorithm, but also that we just get so use to following the familiar; our friends, our family, our culture, our celebrities and our media and let's not forget all this whilst getting bombarded with the ads, but sometimes we want to see more and we have ultimately gotten too lazy to discover, looking for the connection that is lacking between the physical versus the online virtual (let's just pretend I woke up like this") eyes roll as you scroll.
However we some how forget we have a choice and rather than see the same old same old, I highly recommend you act like Alice in the wonderland on your discovery of what it is you seek to find. What it is really that you want to connect with rather than scroll obliviously into the distance of disconnected that leads you to discontent. It's funny how we say content is everything in today's fashion world, yet I find it is so lacking the essential human connection part.
If you want to discover and see, feel and connect to something new. Perhaps remember to use the search to find it. This I have realised is the forgotten part of Instagram that let's be honest can sometimes feel like finding a needle in a hay stack but when you find something you connect with and it leaves an impression on you, then I also recommend you to share it! Share the talent as it's not easy for anyone to get through this murky smoke screen of paid ads along with the fact their content doesn't get shown if they don't pay.
For example as well you may type the word artist and you will find plenty of drawings perhaps by someone’s two year old. Hashtags misused are not always the persons fault just a misunderstanding really that let's face it could have been explained a lot better, a long time ago by Instagram. However if you search for example in this case feminist artist you may stumble across more talents than you could ever imagine even existed! There is plenty of talent out there but like it was suppose to happen I typed this in the search on insta, scrolled for a little while until wooow! I fell in love with one of Natalie's extraordinary illustrations. Clicked on her profile and loved everything I discovered there.
Here I ask her, what her views on feminism are, what inspires her and how she started her journey as an illustration artist.
What does feminism mean to you?
Feminism to me means to reconcile with you first. What I mean by that is to truly become a feminist and to fully understand it. I had to forgive myself first and unlearn the very toxic behaviour that as a woman and more precisely as a Latin woman I use to have, regarding in all aspects, such as my looks, my opinion, my social behaviour and even how I saw other women. Feminism now has brought me a better understanding, friendships and a circle of trust, where I feel safe and confident with who I am.
What or who inspires you right now?
Many things inspire me: music, films, magazines, fashion books, other female artists and their own journey to fulfil their dream. Mostly I find my inspiration in every moment of my day and in a lot of different disciplines from Botticelli’s art to an instagram artistic photograph or it can even be from a random person I don't know but they inspire an image. I always look for a detail that catches my attention. I love movies and I use this a lot as inspiration. Sometime I use even the feeling that a movie, book or song leaves me at the end and I paint based on this emotion.
How long have you been an illustrator artist and how did you start?
I've been working as an illustrator for about three years now, but I always loved to draw since a very young age. Drawing has always been one of my favourite things to do. I studied industrial design and for some time I didn't draw so much because I saw my career as my future but with time I felt there was something missing and in the search for what I missed I started to draw again and I've never stopped since.
What is your ultimate ambition for your art?
The thing I look forward to, as an illustrator is to be able to work in the editorial world. I love books and they have always inspired me in my medium. I would love to design books, magazines or signs. I really dream one day to find my art in the shelf of a book store. That's my ultimate dream for my art.
What do you enjoy most about illustration art?
I really enjoy the whole process of drawing a new piece, from making my coffee in the morning, being in my studio, looking for my references and having the freedom to draw. I'll often listen to a pod cast or watch a series on Netflix as I'm drawing. Being in my home with my dog, doing what I want is what makes me happy and keeps me going.
We couldn't agree more, really doing what you want in life is the most inspiring thing you can do.
You can find this extraordinary artists work linked below.
Feminist Illustration Artist, based in Colombia. A little bit nerd.
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