Today we’d like to introduce you to Ana Fuentes.
Ana, we’d love to hear your story and how you got to where you are today both personally and as an artist.
Since I was a kid, I just remember being surrounded by art of all kinds. My mother always had a passion to sing and sang to me every time we were together, when she would put me to sleep, or have me judge her before going out to her karaoke nights. My uncle, her older brother, was a jack of all trades. He had a knack for painting and drawing, selling air-brushed t-shirts inside a mall just to make a living, while spending the rest of his time teaching me how to mold basic faces using the crumb of leftover bread. I was mesmerized by how he took his time to fill in the details of his sketches and share his talent with the rest of the world. He was the type of artist to not care about the money, but how he made sure to leave a piece of himself to those who appreciated his work.
Once he left to Mexico, I couldn’t stop myself from indulging in the arts. I wanted to learn how to further my creative abilities so I took part in artistic extracurricular in school: art clubs, art classes, dance teams, choir, marching band. However, in high school, my passion was pushed back to make way for academics. I had no time to draw because I was constantly overflowed with piles of homework and essay deadlines. The more I tried focusing on economics or English, the more I found myself doodling on the margins of my notebooks. That’s when someone who I’d met my junior year of high school taught me the importance of “living what I love”.
I thought deeply about where I might find myself in five years, and it was definitely not studying for a mid-wage job inside a cubicle. I always pictured myself amongst artists and creatives. Whether it’s becoming one myself or helping them manage their artistic career, I wish to inspire and give confidence to the future minds who have potential to become great creators.
We’d love to hear more about your art. What do you do you do and why and what do you hope others will take away from your work?
My art is best categorized as line art. I focus solely on using ink as my main medium because I love how bold it looks on top of a white canvas. It brings me back to my doodle days, where I’d daydream and escape my responsibilities of the real world to focus on the details of whatever design I was working on. Drawing has always been my escape, as it is for many others. I create to distract, to bring beauty, to have someone look at one of my pieces and smile after a long day.
That’s why I take inspiration from mehndi and zentangle. In Indian culture, mehndi is painted on the hands and feet in order to relieve stress because they are the nerve endings of the body. Zentangle is an adaption of that same concept- stress relief. Just as painting is calming to me, I want people to take away the same aura.
In the majority of my body of work, I use the motif of eyes because their meanings are universal. I typically show under the alias, “s.a.w.”, which stands for “someone’s always watching”. Many people can interpret this in their own way; whether it’s religious and spiritual, literal, or figurative. We always have someone watching our backs or watching over us as we live our lives. Personally, becoming an artist is always a difficult journey because there’s that constant feeling of people wanting more or waiting to see what comes next. I also use eyes because they’re known to be the windows to one’s soul, so maybe I weave a piece of myself with every piece I create.
What do you know now that you wished you had learned earlier?
Follow your dreams and its ok to say “no”. My passion for creating and drawing was put on hold for three full years because someone else thought it was better for me to focus on studying. I was only 14 years old so I didn’t know what my future held or what I should’ve been doing with my time and left that for someone else to choose.
Be in control of your own choices, even if they’re not “realistic”. If you truly desire something, who’s to say you can’t have it? We are all too young to have regrets and there’s so many options for us to take advantage of; there’s no time to waste on not living our best life.
Do you have any events or exhibitions coming up? Where would one go to see more of your work? How can people support you and your artwork?
Follow me on Instagram, there you will find real-time stories of me creating new works or updates on future exhibitions. That’d also be the best outlet to contact me if anyone has any questions or comments.
I also have a website where you can purchase or inquire about my work there as well.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://someonesalwayswatching.bigcartel.com/
- Email: someonesalwayswatching@zoho.com
- Instagram: @_sawyou
- Other: Makeup Page on Instagram: @_makeupbyana
Image Credit:
Sergio Farfán
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