We were lucky to catch up with Zaida Sever recently and have shared our conversation below.

Zaida, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. We’d love to hear about when you first realized that you wanted to pursue a creative path professionally.

I began to recognize art as something that would be crucial to my long-term career and success around 9th Grade. Not because I was a prodigy, or even that I thought the work I was making at that time was worthy of being celebrated, but because it was a true passion. I’ve always loved drawing as an outlet for imagination, but middle and high school is where I began to transform it into a practiced skill rather than a hobby: while I would do the bare minimum for a math assignment or science lab sheet, I poured myself into every project from art class. It wasn’t just a matter of completing it to the best of my ability, it was making it into a challenge for myself. This need to one-up every piece of artwork that came before manifested itself into an integrity that I only have for creative endeavors.
Throughout the rest of high school, my work ethic and reward for it was based on creating. Art projects for school quickly transformed into creating for myself, which then transformed into seeking opportunities in my community. My sophomore year, I was accepted into Art Lab, a paid internship program by PlatteForum that made the expectations and connections to the Art World tangible to me. It showed me that my goal to approach a more subjective career was possible.
Coming from a family of tradesmen and practical careers, Art Lab was the final assurance that helped me leap off the ledge and take a chance on a life of professional creativity.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

I am a freelance artist born and based in Denver, Colorado. I was first exposed to this amazing local art scene as early as high school, and have been eagerly absorbing and growing within it ever since. At 21 years old, I’ve had successes I thought were only possible for artists twice my senior, and have no intention to stop seizing every creative opportunity that comes my way! While I can produce 2D artwork of any style and have experience in graphic design, my truth lies within illustration.
I describe my style as “Impressionist Comic Book”: boldly saturated and black-outlined imagery colored with unblended, chaotic brush strokes. I strive to tell the truth in the imaginary. Among art’s many powers, the ability to capture the viewer’s empathy is among its greatest, even when what we are absorbing only exists in fiction.
Storytelling and representation are at the heart of my work, most often via character design and dynamic scenes. I’ve discovered art to be an incredible outlet for expressing my love for being a biracial woman, even when I’m white-passing and I physically may not represent my black heritage. Thus, much of my personal works are often love letters to black women and the multicultural experience from my perspective.
I hope to tell a story from your life; create the artist dimension you wish to find sanctuary in. Be it in the form of a painting, design, drawing or mural.

Do you think there is something that non-creatives might struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can shed some light?

The first thing that springs to mind when I see this question is a common remark I’ve gotten while working live at a site or in front of my work in a gallery: “But what’s the DEEPER meaning?” Particularly after I’ve already given an explanation behind my art. This question irks me. Not because of the phrasing itself, but the perceived understanding of artists behind it: especially if you paint or draw, there’s an expectation that you are a tortured, suffering individual who can only express their miserable feelings through what you create. If you’re not always three seconds away from cutting off your own ear, you’re not a legit artist.
And yes, those who use their struggles with mental health as a focal point in why they create are fabulously valid, but that is not the only reason people create. Have the pieces I’ve drawn helped me with my mental health? Yes. But not because they aid me in eliminating the negatives of it, but because they reinforce the positives.
“I think Black Joy needs to be celebrated more.”
“Because I didn’t see myself represented in the art or media around me.”
“I simply like the way these colors and elements come together.”
Are answers that are not nearly as entertaining as, “Well the twists I used in this little black girl’s hairstyle represent the twisted, dark pain in my soul!”
We are not all “tortured artists” because our work is but a small glimpse into the strange, terrible internal realm we are trapped in. We’re tortured artists because we spend an insane amount of time deciding whether to use the blue-green or green-blue tint for a highlight only we are paying attention to. Sometimes there is simplicity in our intentions is just that. Simple.

In your view, what can society to do to best support artists, creatives and a thriving creative ecosystem?

SUPPORT. OUR. SERVICES. For those of us who strive to make a living as an artist, we need support from the community and to be hired by our community just like any other business or trade. Have an extra bit of cash for the weekend? Go to a local pop-up instead of the industrial art museum. Have a nursery you need painted? Research those around you who will create something deeply personal to them as well, not someone who will install cheap decals. If you have children or work with young people who show interest in art, expose them to those they can connect with in the scene rather than just the old, dead, white men they only see in their textbooks.
On the local level, so much can be done to support the creative ecosystem. Educate and involve yourself in the events and people around you, and you’ll discover a whole world excited to help you bring your aesthetic; artistic visions to life.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/?hl=en

Image Credits
Ricky Browning – @ricardohardcore