Today we’d like to introduce you to Shauna La
Hi Shauna, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
Imagine being in your early twenties. You travel from one extended stay hotel to the next every few weeks from state to state. This is not a time for sightseeing, meeting new friends, or trying new restaurants. Sometimes with a new team. Much of the time solo. You are an optimization engineer. Every day for weeks you work 12 hours a day on a computer in a switch office or 12 hours straight through the day or night drive testing to gather data while juggling laptops and RF equipment. One hand on the wheel. One hand typing on the laptop or adjusting equipment. Endless cups of coffee to stay alert. Whatever it takes to complete optimization projects by the deadline for major carriers like Verizon and Cricket. You enjoy the challenge of learning and the satisfaction of success, but there is no passion. When you finally are finished for the day, you are exhausted. You buy a bottle of wine and drive back to your hotel where you have all of your art supplies that you have bought for this optimization project. You feel a deep, all encompassing ache inside and this hour or two helps to quell the waves. Finally. The next day, the cycle begins again.
This is where I found myself for years. Where ever I traveled for work-from Ketchikan, Alaska to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, I knew something was not right about my path. There was an emptiness, a longing. I drew. I painted.
Eventually, I phased out of RF and began to develop my art practice. I had realized that art was my future. My path.
This was many years ago, and I certainly still feel that pull yet with a sense of fulfillment in the pursuit. The void has been filled with a solidity.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
My experience in life has not been smooth, but the adversities have strengthened me. Hurricanes, tornadoes, accidents, break ups, moves, deaths, depression. Who has not had challenges? Whenever there is a difficult situation, once I let it clear a bit, I use the opportunity to prove to myself that I will not give up and will accomplish my goals. I have this urge inside me to push forward and to physicalize the ideas in my head, to embrace life, to truly live.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I am a visual artist. Through my paintings, I delve into subjects such as energy, existence, and Alzheimer’s. The textured monochromatic works of my ongoing Timeless series are for what I am most known. In this series, I utilize texture and color to represent the energy flux during a moment of creation. Movements of the strokes and textures range from smooth and meditative to dynamic and rough. I focus mostly on completely matte black, white, blue, and red pigments, but I am constantly searching for pigments and finishes that create a specific resonance. The series concept originates from my time as an RF engineer, and each painting is a reminder of the all encompassing nonvisible energy of which our universe consists.
I am proud of my fortitude during my journey. It can be difficult to switch careers, to end and begin relationships, to stay true, and to walk an unsure road alone. Regarding my work, I feel fortunate that my practice is growing and that my work is showing alongside legendary artists and is being collected by people who appreciate the concepts behind the pieces. As a person who is from a small town in southern Mississippi, I never felt understood or that I belonged. Finally, I do. I live and work mostly in LA but now also in NY with upcoming projects on both coasts. Actually, I will have work from my Timeless series in an upcoming show at Royale Projects in downtown LA. The show will open this October.
So maybe we end on discussing what matters most to you and why?
Freedom to continually learn, grow, create, and have new experiences matters the most to me. When life feels too stagnant or if I am too stationary, I begin to lose my inspiration. I guess the key is movement-physically and mentally. Understanding is also extremely important to me. I seek to gain insight into our human existence through my work.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.shaunalanla.com
- Instagram: @shaunalanla
Image Credits
Photos 1-3 by Royale Projects in DTLA
1st Photo: Artists from Left to Right: Rubén Ortiz Torres, Shauna La, Richard Serra, Louise Nevelson
2nd Photo: Artists from Left to Right: Nathan Mabry, Liat Yossifor, Shauna La, Richard Serra
3rd Photo: Artist Talk for Back to Black Exhibition: Artists from Left to Right: Rubén Ortiz Torres, Shauna La, Richard Shapiro
4th Photo: Untitled
5th Photo: Moth
6th Photo: Expedition
7th Photo: Delphi
8th Photo: Day
9th Photo: Path
