Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Ahona Paul. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Ahona, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Learning the craft is often a unique journey from every creative – we’d love to hear about your journey and if knowing what you know now, you would have done anything differently to speed up the learning process.

Since I can remember, I’ve always been a self-taught creative. This was in the sense that I would always seek out knowledge in the arts spaces around me. I recall sitting in the back of the high school figure drawing class as a little 5th grader, trying to sketch with my color pencils, following the charcoal strokes of the older students. Going to art school was always a dream of mine, so when I got into my dream art university, I made the promise to soak in everything I could and use every resource disposable to me. The first year I was there, I did every shop orientation; learning how to use a bandsaw in the wood shop, new stitches at the sewing orientations, different glazes and firing techniques at the ceramics lab and much more. Whether I used all of these resources for actual projects was not important, it was the pursuit of expanding my creative toolbox that kept me going. I believe this is still true to my practice now, as a working visual artist graduated from art school. I approach my projects as ways to learn and hone my skills, and experiment. I’ve learnt that being overly cautious about my art actually holds me back from doing my best work, and that experimentation and unfamiliarity is how I thrive creatively.
When looking back at all this, I am so grateful I had this plethora of resources at my fingertips. However, I’ve always noticed a struggle with the economics of the creative space. Whether it be fabrics, paints or crafting materials, being a creative is expensive and requires a base level of spending to get your projects at a finished, polished stage. For me, it was using my middle school oil paints in college, squeezing the tubes and cutting them open until there was no paint left. It was saving all my cardboard moving boxes and packages for prototyping and draft pieces. It was going through the masses of materials left at the making center after the school year is over, finding a roll of expensive Japanese rice paper and random assortments of clay sculpting tools. This is another addition to my process, this idea of collecting and foraging instead of buying new materials every time I start a new project, which has made my artistic practice a lot more meaningful and purposeful.

Ahona, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I am a multimedia visual artist, working out of Brooklyn, New York. I was born in Bangladesh, and have roots there through family, but have lived in many countries throughout my life. The current theme in my life is sonder, and I use my art to explore the depths of human experience and create space for empathy. My work right now has a focus on multimedia installation pieces. I come from a fine arts background, so I have my main skillset in drawing and painting, specifically ink and oil. My new practice, however, leans more into new media art, where I experiment with physical computing, digital animation and visuals, and creative coding. You can still see the influences of my drawing and painting coming through my new media work. I’m constantly trying to find the balance between fine art and technology, especially within the context of our contemporary art world, and exploring that through my personal narratives.

What can society do to ensure an environment that’s helpful to artists and creatives?

Art is so integral and intertwined with the everyday workings of society, but I believe a lot of people don’t see or notice it. I think the best way for people to support creatives would be to actually go out there and immerse themselves in the creative space. Whether it be through attending shows and exhibitions, going to artist talks or doing an art workshop, supporting the arts is so readily accessible due to the social aspect of the creative industry. It is true that high arts and fine arts can seem intimidating to most people who don’t know anything about the arts. But art doesn’t always have to be at an unreachable height, hid behind an enormous paywall. I invite people to find creativity in their everyday life and acknowledge and respect it as art. Next time you walk past a tile mural or glass stain window at a random subway station, or a street artist peddling their fares, stop for a moment and appreciate it.
As an anecdote, I want to share the story of how I made my first art sale. I was sitting at a park and drawing in my sketchbook. There was a drawing I had done before on the other page that was open, and it was of a biker I saw ride past me who had cool clothes and a nonchalant attitude. This couple comes up to me to compliment my drawing, and we start talking about art. Within this conversation, the man asks me if he can have my biker drawing for $20. I get surprised that anyone would even want to buy this quick ink sketch I made, much less for twenty whole dollars! It was a simple exchange with strangers that turned into a core memory for me. So, don’t be afraid to interact with art and artists, something as simple as a compliment to your local park artist can make their day and fuel their practice.

Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?

I’ve found that my goal or purpose that makes me create changes through time. When I was a kid, it was all about trying to express myself in a different way. Growing up into a teenager, it was about pouring out my frustrations and anger onto a quantifiable and tangible medium. Now, as an adult, I create to express and narrate, but also to relate and empathize. I believe that the kind of art that comes from a very niche and personal place is the kind that is the most universal. I’ve always been very personal with my creative journey, essentially crafting a mirror for myself. I’ve noticed that the mirror isn’t just looking into me, but into anyone that interacts with my art. That is my goal, to create mirrors.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://ahonapaul.net
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ahonaart
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ahona-paul-521496224/