Today we’d like to introduce you to Ellie Cota.
Hi Ellie, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
Growing up I had a hard time being creative. Because of my difficulty learning in school, I spent all my life catching up to my peers who got to take creative electives while I was stuck in remedial classes. In 2015, I applied to Otis College of Art and Design where I got to experience creating art for the first time. I majored in illustration and ended up more into the fine art side of the illustrating. Senior year I made it a goal to explore my childhood imagination and the creativity I missed as child. This made me realize what I enjoy about art is that it allows me to explore and understand myself much more clearly.
I started my gender transition in 2021 and began to use my art to document my life as I changed into the woman I’ve always wanted to be. By narrowing my subject to just cats, I feel more free to explore the whole new spectrum of feelings I now have.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey have been a fairly smooth road?
My education was very difficult for me. I learned both English and Spanish at the same time with undiagnosed learning disabilities. Because of this, I was unable to explore my creativity until I finished high school. On top of that, I didn’t know what gender identity and sexuality meant. I didn’t understand I was queer or even trans, and in a way I had no place.
Towards the end of my high school career, I started having severe lung issues that made me spend a lot of time in the hospital, so there I decided to pursue art. I applied to Otis after I left the hospital, and once I was there, I realized I was starting so far behind everyone else. I had to work three times as hard to graduate along with all my peers. But I learned so much not only about my creativity but about my own identity.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
The work I’m mostly known for is painting cats. It first started out of a series called CatReflection, then turning into CatWall and other cat-related projects. At the moment, I’m very proud of my completion of CatWall: a 6×7′ section of the wall in my house that I’ve covered in my paintings of different cats. CatWall has allowed me to document the emotional experiences of my first year on hormone replacement therapy. Posting the process on Instagram also allowed me to create a community based around my cats.
Overall I think what sets my art apart is that I keep a child-like art style. I work with acrylics mostly due to vague memories I have of them from pre-k, which was one of my few experiences where I can remember being allowed to freely create. Now that I feel caught up in my life, I create art that my childhood self would have wanted to make.
Can you share something surprising about yourself?
Something very surprising is that for amount of cat art I make, I don’t and have never had a pet cat in my life.
Contact Info:
- Website: elliecota.com
- Instagram: @_smellieellie
