We were lucky to catch up with Kristen Silva recently and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Kristen, so excited to talk about all sorts of important topics with you today. The first one we want to jump into is about being the only one in the room – for some that’s being the only person of color or the only non-native English speaker or the only non-MBA, etc Can you talk to us about how you have managed to be successful even when you were the only one in the room that looked like you?
In spaces where I am the minority, I find freedom in establishing what success looks like to me. I think it’s easy to hold ourselves to idealized versions of what our dreams and goals should look like, or how long it takes to earn that. Certainly, unlearning my expectations of what it means to find success and be successful has made a tremendous impact on my ability to navigate those spaces. Often, I find that I am presently and actively in the spaces I thought I would have difficulty reaching. I recognize that those opportunities come from the collective efforts of finding community in art and fully allowing myself the experience of sharing my work with others. I feel very honored and seen by others to be in the room and I’m allowing myself to truly experience that with so much gratitude.
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?
My name is Kristen Silva and I’m a visual artist with a specialty in coffee on paper as an art medium. I find my work to be very involved in the medium as I’m brewing and crafting my materials by hand for my expression of work. I brew my coffee in several methods to achieve pigments and rich colors through the fine craftsmanship of the people who have picked the coffee beans and roasted my coffee blends. It takes these necessary steps from the very beginning to the final product of my work to create something so organic and unique that I feel so deeply connected to my pieces at every step. I think it’s such a privilege to be immersed in the community around coffee that enables me to work with such incredible resources. I consider myself very lucky to have something that reaches me with such reverence to each detail that I can’t help but give it so much respect when I work with it.
Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
One of the greatest advantages I had when I started working with coffee was truly being open to a new experience. When I worked with classic mediums, I found myself concerned with how things should look like instead of just enjoying the process for what it was. With coffee, I didn’t really know how something so different should look so I was able to truly be in the space to create what I wanted without judgement. It was liberating. In the beginning of a creative journey, I think it’s so important to enjoy yourself so you can make authentic work. I feel so much more connected with myself and others as I have created authentically in my own style. The most impactful things that have helped my creative process were unlearning expectations, enjoying my work authentically, and recognizing that I am already existing in the spaces I want to be creating in.
Any advice for folks feeling overwhelmed?
Feeling burnt out or overwhelmed is such a universal experience these days and it’s very understandable. When I find myself in those moments, I let myself fully experience the emotion and rest when my mind and body need it. It can be so easy to try to push through those difficult moments by denying ourselves what we need in order to produce a product but even the sun sets. I know that after I allow myself a moment of rest I can rise again and apply my energy to the things that need my focus. That applies to my creative work, social issues, mental health and so much more.
Contact Info:
- Website: kristensilvaart.com
- Instagram: @kristensilva_
- Other: etsy.com/shop/kristensilvaart
Image Credits
artworks in the background of my personal photo: Erick Martinez, Abby Aceves, Mary Beth Schwartzenberger.
