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

Camila , appreciate you joining us today. We’d love to hear about a project that you’ve worked on that’s meant a lot to you.

The most significant project in my artistic career is called En extinción (In Extinction). This project has become a form of plastic and visual memory of the Colombian fauna with which we coexist. The project highlights animals that, due to various environmental and social issues, are at risk of disappearing from Colombian territory. En extinción is a call for the recognition of each species, to promote their care and conservation.

This project is especially important to me because it deeply connects me with my responsibility as a human being in relation to nature. Working on En extinción has allowed me to better understand the impact we have on the environment and the species that share our home. Through this project, I feel that I am contributing to raising awareness about the urgency of acting to save the biodiversity that is still with us, and this purpose gives my work a profound meaning. Additionally, it has allowed me to learn more deeply about animals I didn’t know, which has enriched my perspective on Colombia’s biological diversity and inspired me even more to continue with this project. On the other hand, new works centered around animals have emerged from this project, further expanding and deepening my focus on the conservation of fauna and its artistic representation.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I was born in 1991 in Bogotá, Colombia. I began studying a degree in Visual Arts, and as I explored various techniques, I realized that my interest was focused on sculpture. I immediately connected with the possibility of awakening forms through clay. Later, I began to study sculpture and ceramics in depth at different workshops with renowned artists to better understand how the artistic world functioned, as well as to deepen my knowledge of both technical and conceptual aspects. I completed my professional studies by pursuing a Master’s degree in Plastic Arts, Electronics, and Time-based Arts. During this time, I was able to conceptualize my interest in animals in much more depth, focusing on the unknown and indeterminate. Through sculpture, I appeal to the hidden, the underground, and the strange—those things ignored by mankind. It also helped me understand that my artistic research arises from the act of creation itself. It is from there that I begin to connect ideas and concepts.

Currently, I am working on different business models: one of them is offering clay modeling workshops with a variety of themes, creating commissioned artworks, and I am also working on creating different collections of artistic pieces for my personal shop. In the short term, you can find them in specialized art stores in Colombia, and I hope to have them available in other parts of the world later on. In parallel, I continue my artistic research and creation. You can follow my work on Instagram and TikTok as @camilasotoart.

Is there mission driving your creative journey?

My creative journey is driven by a love for music and film. I find inspiration in the stories of other artists and people I encounter in everyday life, not to compare myself, but to understand that the path of art, like life, is not easy. It’s like a rollercoaster of emotions—both positive and negative—that sometimes push you to abandon the journey, to give up. But the most important thing is not to give up and to believe in yourself.

Have you ever had to pivot?

In 2016, I rented a space to have my own studio, with the intention of creating artwork and living solely from it. I soon realized that it wasn’t as easy as I had imagined. At that time, I thought I would achieve it in a short period, but I understood that I needed a solid economic foundation to sustain myself long term, along with a lot of patience and persistence. The Camila from back then was impatient and wanted immediate results, so after a year, I decided to give up. I handed over the space and felt frustrated. It was at that moment that I decided to focus on teaching art to have a stable income that would allow me to keep creating. Since then, I’ve learned that I must balance the work that gives me financial stability with my artwork, which, to this day, is what keeps me focused on my artistic projects. I hope that in the short term, I can dedicate myself exclusively to my personal brand.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @camilasotoart
• Facebook: camila soto
• Other: Tik tok: @camilasotoart

Image Credits

No credits apply as the photos were taken by me.