Most interviews with you start generally from the same place, with the fact that you grew up in Sao Paulo, Brazil, were raised by South Korean parents, studied fashion design, worked in the industry for years before pursuing a career as an artist and ceramicist. I want to start our conversation from a slightly different point in your life. A trip to Oaxaca and then a return to Brazil after your mom passed away led to a transition in your career - Can you describe that moment and how it transformed you as a person and an artist?
During my trip to Oaxaca in 2021, it dawned on me that as a ceramist, my physical (tangible?) work/my pieces, didn't require a specific purpose attached. The idea that came about after that trip was to leverage my platform to showcase other artists and artisans, channeling profits to support their communities, particularly in education and arts access. This realization was sparked by various factors, including the moment of sorting my mother's mail in Brazil after her passing. Most were donation requests from arts and children in need non-profit organizations she had quietly supported, highlighting the potential for meaningful contribution.
That experience in Oaxaca led to the formation of Naiana Nami, an organization you founded to support local women artists in the Oaxaca region of Mexico. What led you to this work and what is your vision for the organization? Since its inception, Naiana Nami has shifted from an e-commerce business to a rich resource center, maintaining its core essence and mission of connecting artists/artisans to art appreciators and supporters while supporting arts access for all. My vision for Naiana Nami is for it to become a reliable resource center with meaningful and informative content for both artists & their supporters. While Naiana Nami is currently showcasing and supporting mostly artists and artisans from Oaxaca, it is essentially a global platform. I should also note, while women will always take priority, NN is an all-gender-inclusive space.
You have also opened up your studio in Pound Ridge to host Unwind retreats (the next one happening September 8-10) and are hosting a trip to Oaxaca to visit the women artists you support in October. What do you hope people will leave having gained from these experiences? With the Unwind Retreat and the Oaxaca crafts trip, I envision these experiences as opportunities for participants to immerse themselves in creativity, connect deeply with fellow enthusiasts, and gain a renewed sense of inspiration. Through the Unwind Retreat programming, I hope to share the benefits that the process of creating/making can bring to one’s well-being. The retreat offers a special opportunity to unwind and fully engage in the present moment - a simple yet transformative experience. I envision participants embracing the moment and their surroundings, allowing themselves to be guided throughout the day. Subsequently, I hope attendees leave feeling relaxed, having relished the experience in the company of fellow guests.
As for the Crafts trip to Oaxaca, our primary objective is to connect our Naiana Nami customers/supporters to the people they have supported in a respectful and intimate way. We will bring them on a beautiful journey where they will see firsthand how the crafts are made and learn about the history of the craft. We hope that the guests will, number one, have had a wonderful trip and also have a better understanding of our mission.
Your career has taken you from Brazil, to LA, to Brooklyn and then eventually to Pound Ridge where you are raising your family, working from your studio and hosting your Unwind retreats. How have each one of those places impacted your style and approach to your work?
Each place we’ve lived in has definitely influenced my work. The approach has been the same, a little more refined each year, I hope. I work intuitively allowing the clay, the surroundings, and really anything to collaborate on the form. My work has gotten larger in scale for sure, when years ago living in Brooklyn I had said, I’d never go big. So, having more space influenced the scale and I’m certain that by being more in tune with nature, my work has been greatly influenced by the organic forms found in nature and has motivated my explorations with ancestral firing outdoors.
When you lived in New York City, you worked out of a studio in Brooklyn with other artists and creatives, some of whom have also moved up to our area. What was that experience like and how have you been able to recreate that communal, cooperative spirit up here in a more remote environment?
For several years, we were fortunate to rent a unit in a creative studio collective in Greenpoint, Brooklyn. Amid fellow ceramic artists, our neighbors included floral designers, jewelers, painters, designers, and photographers. This period was particularly special as we formed strong friendships, initiated collaborations, and celebrated memorable holidays together. The sense of community was strong, and although we are now physically apart, we still remain friends and try to get together when we can. For the past six years, we've lived in Pound Ridge. Transitioning from city to country living and building connections took time. Nevertheless, we gradually formed amazing friendships. There’s an ever-growing creative community in and around our area, nurtured through mutual acquaintances, participation in events, and intentional social engagements.
You started your ceramics career hand painting drawings on pieces of pottery you found in the Bowery in NYC and then selling them on Etsy, and credit the online marketplace for helping kickstart your own career as an artist. Can you share a little bit about the business side of being an artist? How has it changed for you since the days of selling on Etsy?
To be honest, the business aspect of my work is quite challenging for me. While starting two businesses has been the best learning experience, it’s been a struggle to juggle both the creative and business sides. Learning about Etsy when I started experimenting with painting on ceramics after leaving the fashion industry was lucky timing. At the time Etsy was the only e-commerce art artist-friendly platform that I knew of. I believe that if this platform wasn’t available at the time, it would’ve taken much longer for me to start a business.
You shared with me that you had a transformational moment around the time you were pregnant with your first child in 2012 when you took a bat to your studio and felt the need to break things in an effort to restart. What was that experience about and how did it open up space for you to move to the next phase of your career as an artist?
While the ease of launching a business through a user-friendly e-commerce platform for beginners was significant and helped me in initiating the business, I was still very inexperienced. The business showed positive growth; however, it grew too fast, resulting in a loss of control. I had very little time to create, as the majority of my time was focused on managing marketing, sales, and processing/shipping. In that pivotal moment, my priorities shifted, and I no longer desired to contend with the stress of overseeing large-scale production, followed by the challenge of moving inventory, only to repeat the cycle. The opportunity for intentional creativity was rare. This moment acted as a reset button. It compelled me to return to making everything myself at a sustainable pace.
You’ve told me that it’s very hard for you to take “no” for an answer - that once you get an idea in your head it’s nearly impossible for anyone around you to deter you from pursuing what you want. How is this trait both a positive and potentially a negative as an artist and creative?
It is a positive trait as I am determined to make ideas happen, whatever way it takes. The flip side is that occasionally the impulse leaps will lead to unintended consequences or mistakes that then need to be addressed.
What advice or lessons have you received over the years that you find yourself passing on to others?
Focus on one thing at a time and “just do it” ;)
I have to say, I have never met someone with so much drive and energy to keep building and creating, it’s almost like you have a constant fire lit under you, how do you yourself find time to reset and unwind?
I am lucky and grateful that my work is my passion. What I do, I love and while I do have many breaking point moments (A LOT), I am at peace. Working with clay is where I really unwind, hence my desire to share this benefit with others, and through Naiana Nami, I carry on my mother’s legacy, by contributing to the art world that has had such a positive impact on our lives.
Lightening Round:
Favorite thing about living in our area:
Being surrounded by nature.
New business you’d like to see open here:
Coffee shop for casual meet ups!
What’s the most recent place, person or thing that has inspired you:
You.
Most cherished item you’ve collected over the years:
I have to say “items” - pieces made by artisans I have met during my travels.
What would you do with one extra hour each day:
Literally nothing.
