Meet Tricia Sham

We recently connected with Tricia Sham and have shared our conversation below.

Tricia, so excited to have you with us today. So much we can chat about, but one of the questions we are most interested in is how you have managed to keep your creativity alive.

I keep my creativity alive by staying stocked on inspirations & allowing myself to have dead zones. I have a dedicated folder filled with images of insects, various postures, and extremely rough sketches. Any time I find something intriguing, I document it in this folder for later or maybe never even reference some at all. Although, this way, when I am actively seeking inspiration, I have one place for a multitude of choices to combine for creations. It’s difficult to accept that dead zones are a part of the creative process. I’m mostly referring to natural swerves into different focuses of life such as family, friends, and/or you time, not so much aspects of feeling like creating or feeling ready enough. I remind myself to embrace creating even when I don’t feel ready because it may never come to fruition at all, if I wait. It feels 100% better knowing I started and have something to bring further into life. Keeping my creativity alive is a balance of creating when I do and don’t feel ready; both trying & tranquility.

Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?

I am an Abstract(ed) Figurative artist most known for discovering links between insects’ actions and human emotions. One of my main goals with my artwork is to increase or revive others’ excitement for nature and for viewers to feel the beauty in vulnerability. At first glance, you wouldn’t expect my work to be filled with extensive and relatable instances. For example, my most recent painting depicts a figure in the middle of a tidal wave tying knots on various parts of the body, symbolizing the utilization & embracement of life’s “knots” and their “knecessity.”
Some news I am eager to share! I am in the early stages of preparing to be based out of St. Petersburg, FL! Having a dedicated space for creating has been a dream goal for a couple of years, I am eager to explore the seemingly endless evolutions!

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?

Transforming hurt into fuel to operate highly effectively, creating more works rather than “perfect” ones (you learn a lot more this way, especially early on), and tunnel vision ; no one can sway your line of sight. Channeling hurt into inspirational ideas is a powerful tool. Use unideal situations as drive; it is highly likely that you can change your mindset to that very situation by the creations that stem from it. Writing down your thoughts is extremely helpful; I usually get the concepts and titles of my work based on journal entries!

Thanks so much for sharing all these insights with us today. Before we go, is there a book that’s played in important role in your development?

“Art / Work: Everything You Need to Know (and Do) As You Pursue Your Art Career” by Heather Darcy Bhandari & Jonathan Melber. So far, the advice that has stuck extra well is to not let your work space dictate the size of your creations or what kind of materials you use and to realize most opportunities stem from people you know and respect & who knows and respects you. Although I am not yet finished, I can say without a doubt “Art / Work…” kickstarted and continues to expand my artist knowledge.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://ttsham.com
• Instagram: @TriciaSham
• Facebook: @TriciaSham

Image Credits

First two images from Artist Talk Credit : Rich Van Voorst, Photographer & Creative Director / OPUS Tampa

Image of me with Custom Skateboard Deck : Niko, CEO / Songo Skateboards