We had the good fortune of connecting with Laura Soto and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Laura, have there been any changes in how you think about work-life balance?
Balancing work and life is an amorphous thing for me as my home is also my studio. Living with my sculptures and paintings adds an intimacy and accumulated history to my pieces that I never want to be without. The balance really shifted a few years ago when I began living alone – having full control over the space is delicious and allows more room (literally and figuratively) for experimentation.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
Since childhood I’ve always made things and knew I wanted to find a way to build my life around this impulse to create — it’s the purest form of communication for me. In undergrad, I fell in love with material focused processes which allowed for experimentation and exploration. Throughout my twenties I continued to create work and complicate my processes with new materials – always supporting myself through other jobs and prioritizing my alone time in the studio (even when that studio was just a desk or corner of the yard). The most important thing I learned along the way was this ability to say no to other things and people so that I could say yes to myself and create the stillness necessary for curiosity and play.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
I can be such a hermit! Still, if I were to show friends around my favorite spots in Los Angeles it would include:

– meandering through the antique malls in Pasadena and the PCC Flea Market
– venturing down to Crystal Cove in Newport Beach to walk and enjoy the tide pools
– definitely spend a day in the Arts District visiting various galleries and walking through Little Tokyo.
– drinks at Tiki-Ti and The Raymond 1886

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I would like to mention Robert Stark and Mara McCarthy. Robert and I met a decade ago and he has been a constant encouragement and mentor in my work. Through him, I met Mara, and her guidance, support, and friendship have been deeply formative. I am so happy to be working with them both at The Box LA, who represents me.

Website: http://lauracatherinesoto.com

Instagram: @lauracatherinesoto

Image Credits
first two images (with artist) credit to: Maya Fuhr mayafuhr.com @mayafuhr

images of installation at The Box : Courtesy of the Artist and The Box LA. Photo Fredrik Nilsen Studio.

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