Artists interview Artists Showcase 7 Wandy Soto by Anthony Andujar Jr 2/21/16

Artists interview Artists Showcase 7 Wandy Soto by Anthony Andujar Jr 2/21/16

Interviewee: Wandy Soto

Interviewer: Anthony Andujar Jr

 2/21/16

Q1. What was the first set of drawings that you made as a child?

WS: I actually remember my first drawing was in kindergarten that's when I realized that I couldn't draw. Now I could see why it was a big deal when it came to scribbling. I would see other people drawing s I would just start scribbling and I have that to my mom and that was it. That was the first drawing that I remember clearly.

Q2. Who are your artistic influences? What inspired you to pursue your career path? Who nurtured that?  

WS: My artistic influences.. Hmm, it's a hard one. But I like Meryl Streep and Jared Leto. I like them because I know both of them are very smart and Meryl is very passionate about what she believes in and still does it with passion. And Leto because he was an actor and then a signer and then came back to acting and won an Oscar. The fact that he did his thing with his mom and didn't have a father who wasn't present in his life, but always had his mom by his side and giving thanks to his mother. Which reminds me of my mom and how she dealt with myself and my siblings. Also this woman named Ms Ricter who was my kindergarten teacher. She gave me her address because she told me that once I go to college that I should let her know. Ms. Shapiro is another teacher who saw my talent in writing and told me that she would be waiting to read my writing once I'd become an accomplished writer. I never forgot them and I hope that they are okay because I always hope the best in people and see their potential and talent, and that's what they taught me.

Q3. Are you influenced by internal or external forces?

WS: Hmm," in-external" forces haha. If Was an object then i would be a circle. Everything would go in and out. If I'm feeling something inside is portray that and then the external would react to what I projected out.

Q3.1. How does your environment influence your work?

WS: Um, it's a hard one because I don't really feel that the outside influences my work. But the world does, like when I think of something like nature, I think of a setting like where I want to be in a book. I feel like it influences the people I guess, but I don't know if the setting influences me unless it's nature that would influence me.  

Q4. Was art always apart of your family or something you stumbled upon?

WS: Always. It's been always been apart of my family. My mother drew, my father was a reader and we loved music and dancing. We always appreciated those things regardless of our religious backgrounds. We appreciated stuff like watching the Grammys, ballet, or Broadway and other performing arts. Anything that makes you feel, we always appreciated it.

Q5. If there was a film or franchise that you would do your own interpretation of, or continuation, which film would it be? Why? And what would you change and what would you keep?

WS: um .. I wouldn't want to touch a franchise. I would like to see for a film, I'd like to see 500 Days of Summer when the main character met Autumn at the end of the film, like what happened? Or I would like to see more of either Now and Then or the Nightmare before Christmas. I love Tim Burton movies and i'd love to touch it. I'd like to see Jack doing Christmas activity with Sally. Another movie is like to see would be this movie with Keira Knightley where one night her husband cheated on her with some other woman, and that movie ended with a cliffhanger. I would like to see what happened after that cliffhanger, on whether he told the truth or lied. I think liars make interesting characters.  

Q6. What's the most difficult part of the creative process?  

WS: Getting to the creation because you have ideas and some time am the queen of procrastination. Because for me I like to clean and have the space needed to prepare for creating. But I have tons of ideas and trying to get them in the way that I envisioned them and trying to get those ideas outside of you and on to the drawing board is always the hardest thing to do. But once you get the creative flow going that's all you need.  

Q7. If you could make a book, comic, film, or tv show off of an album, which album would it be and why?

WS: As an album, I think I would make a comic off of Celine Dion's album, I forgot the name of that album, but I would choose the song called "if these walls could talk". The reading why I chose a comic is because it's a good medium that could do more than a film. If I could do a song, I would love to make a book off of Beethoven's "moonlight sonata" and Robert Shumman "The Lovely onth of May". I think it's George Bizay "the March to Scaffold". Scaffold. Those three things about love, and it's sad, March of scaffold, like you have to read it to understand why it would be with the other songs mentioned.  

Q8. If you could speak to a deceased creator, who would it be and why?  

WS: hmm, that's really hard, there's so many people that I wish I could be able to speak to. I would like to speak to Marilyn Monroe, she was a good artist. I'd like to know what she was thinking, what was it that got to her that made her sad. Someone else would be, hmm, who was it that I really felt sad for when they died? There was somebody else, I can't think of it right now. But someone I would like to talk to. But so far it would be her, I'd feel sad about it because Marilyn used to write on her own time. But if I could speak to them I would tell them about their legacy after her death, I would like to show her how much people loved her work after death. But Mozart would be another person I would speak to because he was such a genius in his field, he mastered every form of art at that time, sonatas, compositions etc. Beethoven was another one. He made symphony's after he became deaf, to be able to create stuff after becoming deaf is insane.   

Q9. If you could, which living creator would you like to speak to? Why them? And what would you like to collab with them on?

WS: Hmm, that's a good one, but that's also a hard one. Umm, wow, people would say Beyoncé but I don't. I have heard where her creativity comes from. But I would like to speak to JK Rowling, I'd love to speak with her. An actor, I'd like to speak with Juliet Roberts, Meryl Streep, and Natalie Portman. And the rock too. I just feel like these people are truly passionate in what they do. Umm, there is a lot of others, but I can't think of them. The reason why it's hard for me to answer this question, because I've told myself to be open to everyone's success and their goodness. I don't envy their success but it inspires me to be good and by what they do helps the creative young person to find inspiration to live. People sometimes that I like to talk to aren't famous, they could be a store clerk or some one that works at a bookstore.  

Q10. What themes interest you to draw? Happiness or tragedy?

WS: always tragedy, thank you for the tragedy, I need it for my art. When I'm happy I can still create. But when I'm sad , it's like, that's it. I can go tunnel vision into what I need to say and nothing cannot distract me from that. I could be depressed with tears running down my face and end up making the best work. I think it's good to have that.  

Q11. 30 years from now what would you hope to have and reflect on?  

WS: I hope to still have my family around, to still have my relationship with God and I hope to have the success and see myself to be that example that I wanted to be in the work. I want to be able to reflect on the memories with the people that I love, memories reminds us and fuels us. That's why it's important to do things when you're young, go do that work, or to that bar with friends, go for that walk. Because what is a life when you have no memories to look back on? Those are important than what keeps us warm.  

Q12. If you were to write a book what era of your life would you focus on thus far?

WS: Hmm, uh . That's hard. I would pick two parts of my life, when I was a child my logic was so effing hilarious is because the way I was thinks was funny and I could have killed somebody. And the drama that happened before I got married because it was a rude awakening and took me out of my teenage innocence, of how people were and how people are and what I needed to be.  

Q13. If you had a superpower, what power would you want and why?

WS: I would want the ability to read minds when I want to and invisibility and to go through objects as well. I just want to know what people hide from me to only know the truth when I want to know whenever they don't want to be honest. Invisibility, because I don't know what people are thinking and I would want to know, I'm not gonna lie I just like to know what they are trying to hide when it pertains to me. When people lie to me because especially if you're my friend and that you lie to me and you see me as a sucker. Just because I love you doesn't mean that I'm a punching back. Also I don't want to to be found. My name is Wandy which in German for wanderer, also that I'm a person who is a creative has the ability to lead, I can't stay in one look, I'm a chameleon.

 Q14. What would you advise to the next generation or to your younger "past" self ?

WS: My younger past self, I would say that things get better and that things are bigger than you. Go for that team that you wanted to go for. Join it , don't be afraid to be a perfectionist because you are not perfect. And Dance, those are things I wish I should have done. I took things so harshly, I didn't mean to, but I did. I was suicidal and cutting myself, it isn't right for a younger person to do that. For the next generation the same thing, take time to dance, take time to laugh, things get better, how you feel now will not be how you'll feel later. Feel how you feel and then get over it. And Love, learn to love yourself and be kind to people. Have the courage to be kind, always. And Read.  

Q15. What are your hopes about the future in terms of yourself and the world?  

WS: my hope is that, I reach those accomplishments with my mother being able to see. I want to be where I want to be while she is able to see that. I hope to be a good example and mother to my boys and to be a better whatever to all those around me. I want to be able to help.

 Closing statement? WS: "Get ready I'm coming". Or I should say, "Hello , I'm here". Another closing statement is : "Hello Moon". Because I'm always working at night.  Suggestions,  Maybe a question you should ask is :what's their favorite setting to create?