We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Mônica Lóss a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Mônica, thanks for joining us today. Did you always know you wanted to pursue a creative or artistic career? When did you first know?

I grew up in a small town called Soledade in southern Brazil, in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, where contact with art was very limited. Despite this, I always sought to find beauty in the mundane and ordinary aspects of the world around me, even as a child. Creativity was something I consistently tried to cultivate in my daily life, but I had no idea that it would be possible to build a professional path as an artist.
This perspective began to transform into a real possibility of a professional path when I enrolled in the Visual Arts program at the Federal University of Santa Maria in Rio Grande do Sul. Although my main focus was ceramics, I soon began to push the boundaries and incorporate other materials into my work. To keep my professional opportunities as broad as possible, I graduated as a Teacher of Art and completed a postgraduate degree in Surface Design, which allowed me to explore textiles and manual techniques further. I then pursued a masters degree in Arts and Education and later moved to Spain, where I earned a PhD in Arts and Education from the University of Barcelona. During this time, I needed to take a break from my artistic practice.
After living in Spain for five years, I moved to São Paulo, Brazil, where I lived for a further four years and where my son was born. At that point, my work as an artist was still on hold to look after my son.
However, in 2016, my family and I relocated to the United States, and this change provided me with the opportunity to resume my artistic production. I faced many challenges in adapting, but little by little, I began to carve out new paths, establish a work routine, and reconnect with my artistic research.
Since then, choosing art as a professional path has become a daily commitment, filled with dedication and passion. I say it’s a daily choice because I must always be in motion producing work while also navigating the various layers that come with being an artist.

Mônica, 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?

My artistic practice has developed in the textile realm, where I work with fabrics, threads, wool, textile waste, and discarded or donated clothing, among other materials. Many of these materials are sourced from garage sales and thrift shops, including not only textiles but also small ítems of furniture and various other objects. This approach significantly influences the direction of each piece, prompting adjustments and encouraging unpredictability. On one hand, this can be beneficial, allowing me to work at a slower pace that fosters deeper reflection on the process. On the other hand, it can lead to a constant sense of waiting, creating a feeling of incompleteness.

The choice of materials has gained increasing significance for me for various reasons. Firstly, I am interested in exploring the memory and history, both individual and collective, embedded in these materials and the potential to create real or fictitious narratives from discards, scraps, and accumulations, whether from my own life or those of others.

This encounter, sometimes serendipitous, other times intentional, affords me a certain privilege: the ability to determine the fate of materials that no longer hold value or importance. In this way, I develop a strategy of transformation that affects the permanence of these objects in the world. Conversely, I also carry a burden of responsibility and awareness regarding our depletion of the planet’s natural resources. I feel a pressing urgency to engage in discussions about consumption and, more importantly, the often irresponsible ways we discard what we no longer want.

In constructing my pieces, I am drawn to manual and traditional techniques such as weaving, sewing, crochet, embroidery, handmade dyeing, and stamping. However, I do not focus solely on technical rigor; instead, I explore various paths, combining solutions and possibilities to uncover something more personal. For this reason, I prefer to think of my works as “textile constructions” that are not confined to specific techniques but rather represent a collection of attempts to test limits and highlight the significance of “manual making” as a poetic possibility.

At a certain point, my work began to reveal other specificities. Alongside my textile research, I incorporated works in other media such as photography, drawing, video, performance, and installation, enabling new developments in my art practice.

Currently, I investigate the ritualistic dimension of manual crafts as a practice of individual and collective reinvention. At this moment, my work is centered on creating two-dimensional or three-dimensional pieces that articulate the idea of fictional territories, parts of the human body, or hybrid creatures that defy known categories, products of imagination. Many questions drive my thoughts and support my artistic production, including the search for a genealogy of identities and the sense of non-belonging triggered by the immigration processes that have shaped my personal history.
I believe my work resides in the practice of collecting insignificances, detachments, and accumulations, focusing on the memory inherent in these materialities and using this as a strategy to influence the destiny and permanence of objects in the world.

Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can provide some insight – you never know who might benefit from the enlightenment.

In general, people tend to believe that only those working in so-called “creative” fields need to be creative or utilize creativity. However, from my perspective, creativity is a fundamental skill that can (or should) permeate all areas of knowledge and human experience. For me, creativity is not limited to the act of making art; it manifests in how we live, how we solve problems, and how we interact with the world around us.
I believe that creativity is a continuous exercise in reinventing our daily life. Even when faced with simple, everyday tasks, we can find new ways to accomplish them. For example, think about how you make your bed in the morning. Each approach brings a new experience, and by allowing yourself to do it differently from your usual routine, you are already exercising your creativity. This act of variation and choice not only enriches your personal repertoire but also stimulates more flexible and adaptable thinking.
When we broaden this idea to larger contexts, such as business or study, the importance of creativity becomes even more evident. Each time you have the opportunity to modify your approach to a task or project, you are exercising your creativity. This practice not only increases the likelihood of finding innovative solutions but also contributes to a more dynamic and collaborative work environment. Creativity becomes a driving force for differentiation, allowing you to stand out in a world saturated with ready-made formulas and conventional solutions.
I like to use the expression “thinking outside the box” to illustrate how I perceive creativity. The world often tries to impose ready-made solutions, encapsulating possibilities within a box. The challenge lies in opening that box and exploring the options that are often not evident. Thinking inside the box can be useful for reproducing efficient processes, but it can also limit our ability to explore new ideas and approaches. For creativity to manifest in our lives, we first need to understand what is inside the box and then venture into the unknown. This requires a willingness to make mistakes, experiment, and continuously question.
Moreover, creativity is not a gift reserved for a few; it can be developed and cultivated. Incorporating a curious mindset into our daily lives by asking ourselves, “What if?” or “Why not?” can open doors to new ways of thinking. Each everyday task, from making the bed to organizing a workspace, can become an opportunity for creative expression. By adopting this mindset, we expand our potential to innovate in all areas of our lives.
I truly appreciate exploring creative processes. I enjoy sharing my discoveries and learning how other artists and professionals develop their own creative practices. In doing so, I feel I am building a network of inspiration that enriches not only my individual work but also the community as a whole. Creativity is a vital skill that, when exercised at all levels of our lives, can lead to a richer, more meaningful, and impactful existence.
Therefore, it is essential to recognize that creativity is not just a tool for art, but a necessary competency for navigating the challenges of everyday life and promoting innovation across all fields of knowledge. Incorporating creativity into our routines not only enriches our lives but also prepares us to contribute more significantly to the world around us.

Is there mission driving your creative journey?

I believe that reflecting on the purpose of my journey in art is directly linked to understanding how I have been building myself as an artist. The first point is to recognize that the creative process and artistic work are the results of a journey that demands a great deal of persistence, resilience, and discipline.

When I look at my work, I don’t focus solely on shapes, colors, or patterns. I see stories, memories, and reflections… What was once clothing transforms into something that inhabits a new dimension. Becoming a “thing” means not being defined or labeled. Everything that becomes a “thing” has earned the right to exist in the realm of becoming, bringing with it the possibility of transformation and reinvention.

Although textiles have been a medium explored by many artists over time, they still do not have the same recognition or value as more traditional media, such as painting or sculpture. I feel we are still far from achieving this recognition, often because this work is associated with feminine labor, which is seen as compulsory and of lesser value.

Weaving, embroidering, and sewing are actions imbued with significance; they are acts of resistance and resilience. The act of sewing, for example, is a technique I use in constructing my pieces. This work is extremely tiring and delicate, as everything must be meticulously checked, reinforced, made, and remade to ensure it doesn’t come undone. Why? Because it needs to endure! To resist is a word that perfectly captures what it means to sew.

Sewing is done to join things (fabrics and skins) in such a way that, together, they can resist separation. It is also done to repair, to close gaps and tears that wear and tear create. In the process of sewing, one must be present, in a time that we do not always have, as life rushes on outside while slow stitches are made at a rhythm of seasons.
Sewing is a form of resistance against the haste of the world; it is a presence that materializes in each stitch made. Sewing is a way to resist, even in the illusion of mending time.
Perhaps this is my greatest goal as an artist: that, just like sewing, I can continue to resist adversity and, in the delicacy of the layers of experience, weave my creative journey.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.monicaloss.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/monicalossart/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/monicalossart/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCKrdN2-XQlnoxZrrrccJ8kg

Image Credits

By the artist