Meet Sista Luna | Artist / Maker

We had the good fortune of connecting with Sista Luna and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Sista, we’d love to hear about how you approach risk and risk-taking
Risk is intrinsically tied to growth and failure, making it an inevitable, albeit, often uncomfortable experience. One of the aspects of making art I fiercely value is the space it creates to practice risk, vulnerability, failure, etc. with minimal fallout. Whether it’s experimenting with a new medium or incorporating emotional vulnerability into my artwork, if I’m not pleased with the final piece I can just turn it over to the next blank page in the sketchbook. There is no artistic growth without risk and I find that consciously engaging with risk in my art practice helps me navigate the role it plays in other areas of my life.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I play with a variety of mediums in my work, exploring cycles of death/rebirth and creating space for internal transformation through honoring grief for myself and others. These themes are the common threads weaving throughout my artwork, while the physical manifestations include drawing, painting, mixed media, sculptures, or interdisciplinary performance.

My subject matter can speak to these death/rebirth cycles, such as animal skulls, flora and fungi in my weekly ink drawings. Other times my process and materials carry the entity of transformation and grief. Through the alchemy of using my old artwork as a medium in making new art, I tend to the loss of beliefs, patterns and connections; giving myself grace to build from the ashes anew. In this process coined, “Artwork Alchemy”, I destroy my old artwork by either physically tearing it up and using the paper pieces to construct a 3D work, or introducing new marks, mediums and forms to transform the original piece, giving it new life. For me, this work acts as a microcosm of a cultural macrocosm we are collectively seeming to reckon with, for we are not beholden to the original incarnation of any belief, system, idea, or tradition – we have the power to change it.

Early in my career I felt a sort of pressure to focus on a single artistic medium; an expectation of stylistic mastery to be built over a lifetime. While I greatly appreciate those for whom this approach works, I’ve learned that staying interested is what keeps me committed to my artistic work. Sustaining my creative fire is the guiding light, so once a project or process has lost its momentum, I’ve learned to just let it go. I trust that the space it leaves will be filled with new artwork, curiosity, and perspectives only possible by this necessary shedding intrinsic to my artistic growth.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
First and foremost, (it is in the name after all, Steamboat Springs) I absolutely recommend taking a dip in our hot springs. The Old Town Hot Springs downtown are great, but I do think the Strawberry Park Hot Springs about 20 minutes north of town are well worth the drive.

While Steamboat is well known for our winter fare, my favorite season here is summer. A lazy float down the Yampa river is a wonderful way to spend an afternoon. There’s also beautiful hikes and mountain biking trails. The Steamboat Springs Farmers Market runs every Saturday through Labor Day, featuring lots of local artisans and treats. Our First Friday Artwalk is a great time to check out our creative community downtown at local galleries, restaurants and nonprofit spaces.

As far as food stuffs, for breakfast I recommend Smell that Bread Bakery on 11th – excellent pastries, sandwiches and sourdough loafs, or The Paramount for a mountainside brunch feel. For lunch my favs are, Taco Cabo for delicious Mexican food or Hypnotic Chicken for fried chicken. And for dinner, Sumatera has delicious Indonesian/South Asian dishes or Noodles & More Saigon Café for pho.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I’d like to dedicate my Shoutout to the nonprofit, Young Bloods Collective (YBC). I met my co-founder, Brie Kole, in 2015 after I had recently moved to Steamboat Springs. This adventure started with our conversations about the importance of creative community, lead to finding other like-minded folks, and eventually we co-founded YBC in January of 2017. I believe creation doesn’t happen in a vacuum, and our work in YBC helped facilitate connection, space and collaboration for creatives with each other and our community through exhibitions, performances, events and workshops. A huge shout out to every artist, volunteer, local organization and community member who showed up in creative collaboration and enjoyed YBC’s offerings. I’m incredibly grateful for everything I learned through my time working and leading in this nonprofit that helps me in my artistic practice today.

Website: https://www.sistalunamakes.com

Instagram: @sista.luna.makes