Meet Adriana M. Pineda

Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Adriana M. Pineda. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Adriana M., thank you so much for taking the time to share your lessons learned with us and we’re sure your wisdom will help many. So, one question that comes up often and that we’re hoping you can shed some light on is keeping creativity alive over long stretches – how do you keep your creativity alive?
I feel I need to describe what creativity is to me. I find that creativity is often like being a child again, the pure joy from the freedom to just exist in our minds or explore the depths of its oblivion. To not feel the pressure to conform or follow a set path. To be more or simply just be. But that in it and of itself is daunting. Because to me, to be creative is to let yourself free fall into your mind. And if i was to express creativity, it would mean escaping into the chaos of my mind, behind all the noise and static, finding the place where I just am and then releasing the remnants of that exchange onto whatever canvas I have in front of me. Creativity is where I go to lose myself as I find myself. So really, if you were to ask me this again, I may just say that it may be creativity that’s keeping me alive.

Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?

I am a Latina and Florida native, now living in Fayetteville, Arkansas. And in the summer of 2022, I welcomed a beautiful baby girl into our world, and became a stay at home mother. But, I’ve always been an artist. I’ve dabbled with art and all things creative, from finger painting as a toddler to live painting with my bare hands in front of hundreds of people in my twenties- it’s always been something exploring my imagination.

As an artist I take inspiration from my roots through the use of bright, bold colors and tropical touches throughout my work. When creating art I specialize in acrylics and inks as well as graphic design and digital illustrations. Although my artistic style varies as the days change, you can always be certain to find bits of abstractions and impressionist methods as well as vivid colors and heavy strokes riddled throughout my work. As a professional artist I offer my services as a muralist and live painter- actually in July of 2023 I was live painting at the Gulley Park Summer Concert Series and sold that piece to the City of Fayetteville!! Although I had to take a step back to focus on raising my little one, I’m currently working my way back into the forefront with a pretty big project. I also took that time to create art with my fl daughter and now she has her very own collection available for viewing on my website! And on a more business side of things as we head into spring, I am starting the work to partnering with some local pollinators groups to help bring awareness to our need to conserve our native bees and plants!

And since I must stay busy with my creativity, I and have been an artist for 3 years now, I needed a to do just a little bit more, so,  towards the end of 2023 I went back to my childhood dream of becoming an author and decided it was time to do it. As a result, in December of 2023, I self published my first book: DONDE VA EL SOL – WHERE THE SUN GOES. This bilingual children’s book is written in English and Spanish and caters towards littles aged 0 to 6 years old. It is actually now available for purchase on my website and Amazon, it even has prime shipping available too! I am now working on not one, but 2 more books!

There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?

This one is a little tricky because becoming an artist was one thing, but becoming a mother who is also an artist is whole other. There’s so much that just this year alone I’ve learned- patience being one for sure!

But really, if I was to look back at my journey as an artist from where I am started to where I am now as an artist and human and, now, mom- I would have to say it’s; to keep going, to not care, and to be still.

It’s been a rough ride to get to where I am today. Mentally, and emotionally, I’ve had to learn to just keep going despite what’s going on around me- life keeps going, it doesn’t stop or wait for anyone. Everything moves on with or without you, and it’s up to you to decide where you are.

Learning to not care, was hard. To learn not to care what anyone thinks of my art, of how dirty my hands are or whether or not I have paint in my hair, to not care if my my differences make me stand out. I don’t aim to achieve perfection or do what someone else is doing, I aim to do what I set out to do, and to do it well. I’ve learned to rather focus my energy on listening to the feelings and motions that speak to me from within so that my art can tell its own story. One that everyone feels connected to, drawn to.

And for the last one; the quality to stand still and to let the storms of life blow past so as to not fight with the wind. There’s no point of wrestling with a pig. No point of working yourself up over something whose solution is small. Save your strength for the battles that matter, not everything needs a war cry- let the wind be the wind. Sometimes the answer is only a whisper and all the noise you make fighting the storm is drowning it out.

For those coming up into the world of creativity; don’t let you lose you. Don’t let this crazy world harden your ambition and kill the joy of creating. Don’t let the spark of imagination flicker to darkness. Don’t compete with the image of perfection that you think you seek because perfection is only found when you stop caring about finding it and the joy that’s found in that freedom. Be or don’t be, but always do.

Alright, so before we go we want to ask you to take a moment to reflect and share what you think you would do if you somehow knew you only had a decade of life left?

Oh man, if I only had a decade of life left to live, I think I would spend it making sure I could leave the most beautiful and amazing legacy for my daughter to be able to know where she came from, who she is, to be happy and sure of herself. To remind her that the creativity and joy living inside of her was something she should never hide – never let die. I’d explore the world with my little family and creating lasting memories all over the world so that wherever they go I will be there with them too.
 I’d make sure that I’m able to instill wisdom, love, compassion, diligence, and understanding- I’d spend every second of the day exploring life with her and growing her world. Creating art along side her and sharing my knowledge with her. If I had a decade of life to live – I wouldn’t waste it sitting around waiting for the world to change. I’d be making waves and sending smoke signals before I start the fires. I’d raise my voice for the voiceless and stand firm on this ground. But then again, I’d be doing that anyway.

Contact Info:

Image Credits
Personal Photo: Phantom Photography (Shay Holloway)

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