We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Edi Atlanta a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Edi , thank you for being such a positive, uplifting person. We’ve noticed that so many of the successful folks we’ve had the good fortune of connecting with have high levels of optimism and so we’d love to hear about your optimism and where you think it comes from.
In my latest collection of work, Light Series, I began to focus on navigating complex emotions surrounding postpartum depression and anxiety. I found that after becoming a first time mother and experiencing postpartum depression, I felt a surreal sense of how can such dark intrusive thoughts exist during the happiest time of my life? This transitional time can be extremely isolating while you make sense of the complexity behind the major life change and at times it felt hard to be optimistic. But upon further introspection, I had discovered that through most of the darkest times of my life- I had simultaneously felt joyous, inspired and euphoric towards life. Could it be that we have to feel the juxtaposition of the grief in order to appreciate and make space for the joy? Optimism for me began with realizing one cannot exist without the other. You must first know inconvenience before you can truly understand the pleasure of serendipity.
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 self taught painter born and raised in Atlanta, Ga. I have been a lifelong artist exploring different mediums from painting to photography. In 2020, I was introduced to airbrush painting and began making wearable art. I began experimenting with airbrush on watercolor paper soon after, falling in love with the grainy texture and seamless gradients. From that came my Waves Collection in 2023 and my Light Series in 2024. Throughout all of my work my love for color and softness persists. In 2025, I will be spending more time with my old love of film photography, will have upcoming shows to present the Light Series and will continue to explore my love of light. As I continue my art career, I hope to inspire my son to always be curious.
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?
The first quality to jump to mind would be adaptability. With painting, some of my best work has come as a result of making a mistake and finding a way to incorporate it into the final piece. Waves collection 2023 all began as an airbrush accident I made and slowly transformed into something interesting. I always find my innovation in the grey area that exists when I step outside of black and white thinking.
Second, being realistic about my limits and knowing that sometimes rest is the most productive thing I can do. I have established a much better understanding of my own creative flows by paying attention to patterns in my productivity. If you can understand your natural rhythm, then you can build a goal oriented framework around that which avoids burnout.
Lastly, I am really aiming to be more patient with my craft this year. The last few years I have been creating in an intuitive freeform way and I would like to move into more structured practice. I have been practicing this by picking up oil painting and look forward to blending with my airbrush style. What initially drew me to airbrush was the quick speed and fast drying time. Oils are the complete opposite, but feel more in alignment with my now slower paced, mostly offline lifestyle.
Who has been most helpful in helping you overcome challenges or build and develop the essential skills, qualities or knowledge you needed to be successful?
I have felt most successful through my partnership with my husband Eero. Together we have built a very beautiful life that feels more manageable and peaceful than it ever felt on my own. He is secretly very good at drawing and I would love to convince him to collaborate with me this year on something bigger than dining room doodles.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://ediecosystem.com
- Instagram: @edi.atlanta
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