We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Bianca Moscia. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Bianca below.
Bianca, so great to have you with us and we want to jump right into a really important question. In recent years, it’s become so clear that we’re living through a time where so many folks are lacking self-confidence and self-esteem. So, we’d love to hear about your journey and how you developed your self-confidence and self-esteem.
It took a long time to truly develop my confidence and self-esteem and it’s still an ongoing journey for me. I’ve come a long way from where I once was though and I realized that the more I challenged myself to do the things that scared me, the more confident I was becoming. Whenever I noticed some fears come up when an opportunity arises or I’m in an unfamiliar space I view it as an opportunity to grow. The thing is though, that confidence is to achievement what self esteem is to acceptance. Both are rooted in having a good sense of self. If you know what it is that you want-who you want to be, then developing your confidence and self-esteem becomes a natural progression almost. You naturally begin attracting the things that present as challenges that will ultimately put you in a position to grow if you choose to keep stepping outside your comfort zone.
Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?
I’m a creative in every sense of the word, but referring to myself as an “artist” is new to me.
I’ll often refer to myself as a creative alchemist instead because that’s what resonates with me the most. This is because a significant theme of my work is centered around the human experience. By taking something intangible (emotions) and transmuting them into something tangible (a piece of art) I’ve been able to find healing and connect with others through these shared experiences. Taking a painful experience from my past, for example, and transforming it into something new entirely-something beautiful, and knowing that someone else could see themselves in my work is incredibly fulfilling. When I feel called to it I’ll share the meaning behind a painting, but lately I’ll only hint at the inspiration behind it and try to remove myself from the viewers experience. I want whoever is viewing my work to formulate their own meaning of what the imagery and symbolisms means to them.
Due to the complex nature of my work and complex themes, I know that my art isn’t going to be for everyone and that’s just the nature of being a creative in general- its all subjective. I’m only just beginning to understand what “my brand” is and I’m excited to watch it grow and share all the highs and lows along the way.
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?
It’s hard to just keep it at three because there are so many qualities and areas of knowledge that made a really big impact on where I am today. But since there can only be three the ones that stand out the most are: perseverance, being open-minded and adaptable.
- Perseverance: We all experience difficulties in life, but I discovered that perseverance has been crucial to achieving my goals. So much so that its my one and only tattoo! I used to think it was motivation that needed to be my driving force, but I learned that this is a fleeting feeling. Perseverance on the other hand, doesn’t need this. Instead of being based on your mood, perseverance isn’t about “waiting until the moment feels right.” You have to to ignore your emotions when doing something that you know you have to do, but are resistant to actually following it through with action. Its not easy but it’s a key component of being able to achieve your goals. I don’t want to regret not achieving something or missing an opportunity because I didn’t do the thing I knew I had to. It may not be exciting or pleasurable in the moment, but the sense of accomplishment that comes afterwards is worth it. With perseverance, anything is possible and without it, it’s so east to quit. Its in persevering that Ive learned my most valuable life lessons and how to overcome self-doubt and adversity.
2.Being open-minded: One of my favorite quotes is from Elizabeth’s Gilvert’s Eat Pray Love about the “Physics of The Quest.” She says that ” if you are truly willing to regard everything that happens to you on that journey as a clue, and if you accept everyone you meet along the way as a teacher, and if you are prepared – most of all – to face (and forgive) some very difficult realities about yourself.. then truth will not be withheld from you.” Being open-minded is an important quality because that’s where so much of my inspiration comes from. I don’t think in black and white- I think in color and with an openness that has allowed me to connect with others in a more meaningful way. It’s why my background is so diverse and that presents itself in my art as a multi-disciplinary artist. With an open mindset it can really help you to cultivate opportunities and relationships that you might missed if you’re choosing to see the world through a narrow lens and can empathize with others despite your differences.
- Adaptability: I think being adaptable has become a super power of sorts. Just as with being open-minded, its through my ability to adapt thats given birth to my diversity in my work and who I am as a peson. There’s a quote by Heraclitus that says, “The only thing that is constant is change.” So being able to adapt is a key component to change because it helps you to grow. This isn’t about changing who you are though and potentially compromising yourself in order to fit in. I fully believe in staying true to who you are and your passions. It’s moreso about learning to understand another’s viewpoint while simultaneously understanding who you are and then deciding how you will interact with that person or situation with this new information. You can either suffer when life goes off the script you have written for yourself or you can learn to embrace change. I encourage the latter!
All the wisdom you’ve shared today is sincerely appreciated. Before we go, can you tell us about the main challenge you are currently facing?
The conflict of sharing my art for profit vs. solely sharing it as a means to form connections through my creative expressions.
I understand that I have a talent that could possibly be an additional source of income- that’s the dream right? To be able to financially support yourself through your passion. Don’t get me wrong, I would love to be able to do that one day and I know those close to me wish that for me but it’s complicated.
It took a long time to even comfortable with sharing my art online as much as I am currently. This is because my artwork, regardless of the medium or subject, is an extension of myself. Therefore when I hit that ‘share’ button online I’m putting a piece of myself out there on social media. This takes a lot of vulnerability because in that space every viewer can now assign their own judgments in the form of likes and dislikes or comments to my art. If I’m not mindful of this and don’t give into the comparison trap, I’ll begin to question my work.
I see so much content on how to monetize artwork and notice a common trend. Sooner or later an artist I follow will make a post about how they no longer create for themselves and it’s become about appeasing their audience. About making art that sells instead of making art for the joy of it. They share about feeling restricted because when they share an art piece that isn’t the ‘norm’ for their grid, they lose followers or are punished by the algorithm. So that’s part of that I’m grappling with currently: I don’t want to subject something that is sacred to me to an algorithm because art has so much more value than likes or dislikes and part of the beauty in being an artist is in breaking the rules.
Would I like to be able to find financial freedom through my art all day? Of course, but until I find a way to do this in a way that stays authentic to who I am and my creative expression I guess that categorizes me as more of a hobbyist. Which I fully embrace! Majority of the time I only sell my work if I notice that one of my pieces resonates with someone and they ask to buy it. Knowing that my source of healing can speak to someone else and where they’re at on their own healing journey is incredibly fulfilling and I suppose that’s what makes it hard for me to try and put a price on that.
To overcome this with my own work I practice mindfulness and take things at a pace that feels authentic to me. The urge to share and profit can be overwhelming at times, but when I begin to feel like this I remind myself that my work does not need to be a side hustle. I can enjoy the purity of creating art for art sake and enjoying the journey and trusting wherever it will take me. As my creative journey unfolds though I continue to support and find inspiration from the many artist I do follow who are living out their dreams as full-time creatives.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: sol.creatrix
Image Credits
Bianca Moscia
