Sofia completed several visual arts programs in fine art and scientific illustration. She then took a break from visual arts for a time to pursue biology and environmental science (BSc, MSc), driven by her love of nature and the desire to create positive change in the world. After several years as a successful research scientist, she left the profession realizing that change starts in the heart, not the mind. Sofia has spent the last few years delving into art as a medium to reach people’s hearts, while immersing herself in nature connection practices. She now runs nature connection programs for children through Cahoots Outdoor Programs, as well as nature and art programs through Wisdom of the Earth.
Artist Statement:
My paintings bring attention beyond just the beauty inherent in the visual forms of nature, to the beauty of the relationships held within nature. My background in environmental science, nature connection mentoring and art allows me to examine the relationships within nature through a scope that ranges from factual to poetic. I believe the rich web of interconnectedness seen in nature around us, has much to teach us about the nature inside of us; in the ecologies of our community, body and psyche. I often focus on the relationship between humans and the rest of nature, highlighting the ways in which we are inseparable from the earth. I frequently depict human forms that invite the viewer into relationship with nature. My hope is that the viewer might leave with an added feeling of connection and that this might contribute to moving towards a bright future for people and the land.
“Down”
Rise, rise higher they say,
Ascend, attain, enlighten.
But again and again I am pulled down.
Pulled down by creatures of pain and rocked by tears of loss.
When I give in to the pull I remember that these are just love in masks:
Gravity
I let Gravity pull me close to the earth, until she swallows me
And I can rest there amongst the roots and fungi and earthworms
In the richness from which all life rises.
I let it work on me.
I let the small dark murmuring creatures of soil take me apart until I am indistiguishable from the land.
Until I loose the boundaries of my pain, of my grief
Of my body, of my identity.
My tears become the rain, trickling through the soil and bringing prayers to the seeds in my heart.
Rise, rise higher they say,
Ascend, attain, enlighten.
Some people are mountains I tell them
But I am a cave, deep and dark
I may not draw “ous” and “ahs” from miles away
But I may just hold a diamond.