We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Salomon Vertiz. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Salomon below.
Hi Salomon, so excited to have you with us today, particularly to get your insight on a topic that comes up constantly in the community – overcoming creativity blocks. Any thoughts you can share with us?
Nine months ago, the northwest neighborhood of Pacific Palisades was engulfed in flames, eventually encompassing about 5,000 acres. Fires spread to Pasadena, Altadena, Eaton. Inner cities like Bell Gardens were surrounded by thick, ominous layers of smoke. Couple days prior, I suffered a fall in the LA River, bruising my ribs. It hurt to laugh, cough. If I sneezed it would feel like a baseball bat had struck me. My mother had a bad reaction to the smoke with a lingering cough and my dog couldn’t stand the humidity. In the middle of all this, I was able to finish a handmade collage art piece which demanded a certain amount of focus.
Even though I was seriously concerned about everything, but motivated by fear, I felt a glimmer of accomplishment by finishing (for me) this perfect thing. A perfect expression. If the fires had consumed us all, at least I had finished my masterpiece.
The fires made me realize that there was no time for a creative block.
Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?
Intuition. A lot of the things I do are based on intuition. I’m usually inspired by aesthetics, things that are considered bad taste, style. However, these feelings that I wait to manifest makes me creatively inconsistent. Ultimately I make art as a hobby. I don’t have a business mindset when I’m making something. Since my last interview I have dabbled in having pins, postcards, and stickers made of my art pieces. It’s been extremely rewarding to see these types of ephemera materialize. The important part is being able to share these things with coworkers, friends and family.
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?
Like Orson Welles said, “Ignorance. Sheer ignorance.” I think if you care too much about perfection, you’ll be too scared to make a mistake or scared to be criticized. Sometimes these mistakes are actually good for your art. A happy accident. Many times I don’t know what I’m doing but I let my imagination fill in the gaps.
As an artist, you will always be making shit up. If you can’t find what you’re looking for, then make it.
What was the most impactful thing your parents did for you?
Being dysfunctional. Having parents with a dysfunctional relationship is something that teaches you a specific kind of patience and empathy. It also taught me that there’s so much nuance in people. My father has done things in his life that make it difficult to be there for him. However, I still try to find a different perspective and hear him out.
Most importantly though, they’ve let me just be a person, with all of my own complications, failures and successes.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.saturdaynightwristblog.wordpress.com
- Instagram: @salomon_vertiz
- Twitter: @Salomon_Vertiz
Image Credits
Photo/Model by Elise Laurenne
Photos by Salomon Vertiz
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