One thing that will always be true about my life, is that it is ever changing.
Changing the location I live in.
Changing the people that I am surrounded with.
Changing my mind and opinions.
Changing and forming my character with every interaction.
I am uncertain of what my future will look like.
I am uncertain where life will take me.
But I am certain that the uncertainty holds all the answers. It leaves all the possibilities open, without regulation or restraint. Without being conformed with our idea of how ‘our life should be’.
With all the chains taken off, you would be amazed how far it can take you.
Allowing the momentum to carry me anywhere it settles.
From TheArtofTina
Traveling painter and tattoo artist Tina Adams is no stranger to change and disruption. She began selling paintings at age 16 in high school, followed by attending Pacific Northwest College of Arts in Portland, Oregon for one year. During 2015, she would experience a tragic car accident that would be a life-changing disruption and one of several catalysts. After her close call with death, she decided to attend Necropolis Tattoo School in Forest Grove, Oregon.
During 2020, Adams blended her multifaceted artistic talents to open Tainted Dreams Tattoo in Portland, but disruption would come knocking again. Once the pandemic hit, she was forced to close her shop doors just as quickly as she had opened them. With every change comes opportunity, and Adams took the chance to travel the U.S. for the next two years with her partner. In true creative nomad fashion, she started to tattoo and paint her way from the West coast to the East Coast.
Currently settled down in La Mision, Mexico, Adams says her painting is finally starting to take more of a priority in her life, as she is getting ready to have a showing at the local Del Valle Cafe. 13MOONS had the immense pleasure of sitting down with Tina Adams to discuss her artwork, inspirations, and views on change and disruption.
13MOONS: First of all congratulations and thank you for being our first cover artist of 2023! I love that this piece, “New Age”, was a bit of an experimentation process for you artistically. Can you tell our readers a bit about that journey and what inspired the piece?
Tina Adams: “This piece was originally going to take a different direction when I first started it. It was going to be the last piece of a three part series that I had previously started. As we were about to enter the new year, new inspiration came from within. The inspiration of being connected with the Divine comes from me being 40 weeks pregnant, and feeling connected to the Universe as I bring another soul here onto this earth. The flower of life on the side of her face is very important to me, because I studied sacred geometry and the flower of life shows us everything that we are, telling us a story that is connected to many ancient cultures. Finishing the piece on December 31st was a great symbolism of wrapping up the year while welcoming the Divine energy that will be coming within 2023.”
13MOONS: This month’s magazine theme focuses on the concepts of change and disruption. Your artistic work depicts a lot of naturalistic change, like death and rebirth, even the idea of entropy in your skeletal and bird pieces. Can you speak a bit on how you approach these themes and their significance?
TA: “Death has always fascinated me. While it may seem dark and ‘morbid’ to many on the outside, to me, it is just the opposite. I enjoy highlighting the beauty of death as something that we will all experience one day. Death should not be something that is mourned, but instead celebrated, because life was welcomed, experienced, and that life affected everything around it in one way or another. It is a beautiful, natural cycle of life that so many try to turn away from. By highlighting death within a beautiful form of art, I feel I can share the beauty of it.”
13MOONS: While not the forefront of each design, I can definitely see a distinct use of pattern in your work, specifically Mandalas and Sacred Geometric designs like the Flower of Life. Can you elaborate about some of the symbolism behind these patterns and why you choose to include them in your drawings and paintings?
TA: “In 2020 there was a huge shift within my art, as I had a spiritual awakening with the help of plant medicine. After having this huge shift within me spiritually, I found myself for the first time. Within my spiritual experience I learned about sacred geometry and how it is connected to every culture and within everything in the world. I wanted my art to reflect what was going on in my life and to convey a deeper meaning within the imagery. The more recent use of geometric patterns has been influenced by the Mexican art that I am currently immersed in. Using Mexican styles, colors, and shapes inspire me.”
13MOONS: Nature is another recurring theme within your artwork, many times represented through the depiction of animals. This feels so intentional, almost akin to the bond someone might form with a Totem Animal or Spirit Guide. How does animal symbolism inform your artwork and do you pull inspiration from specific cultural representations of animals?
TA: “The use of animals in my work is inspired by Native American and Indigenous culture, as well as my own experiences. The use of frogs mainly comes from my personal use of a plant medicine called Bufo. This is the medicine that helped heal my mind, body, and spirit. I’ve always felt a calling to dedicate my work to the things that help move me as a person. Birds, specifically crows, have been a large metaphor in my life. Crows and ravens have been attracted to me my whole life. I see them as a symbol of wisdom and a marker for me to know that I am on the right path when one comes into my life.”
13MOONS: I can definitely see the influence of some incredible female painters in your work. I see Frida Kahlo in much of your style, specifically your portrait work and even Georgia O’Keefe’s later New Mexico skull pieces. How have these artists, and any others, influenced your art?
TA: “A lot of the women I paint are self portraits. When I am inspired in the moment, I pose for myself and paint based on what model is accessible at the moment. This helps me work through my thoughts and feelings; as I paint, they seem easier to understand. Frida Kahlo has been such a large inspiration, as I feel our journeys are very similar and that is reflected in the style I paint in. Living in Mexico, Frida is a very large icon, and you can find merchandise everywhere with one of Frida’s paintings or her face. Being surrounded by her art has inspired me to paint similar to that style and to use self portraits as my main subject.
Teresa Sharpe, a tattoo artist, is another huge inspiration for my work. She inspired me to get into tattooing in the first place. I’ve always admired her bold use of color, depiction of animals, and dynamic perspective within her tattoos.”
13MOONS: Besides drawing and painting, you’ve also been tattooing since 2016. I feel like acrylic painting can be such a forgiving medium, you can rework and blend over and over again, while tattooing obviously feels more permanent from an outside perspective at least. As the artist, how similar or different are the mediums you choose to use?
TA: “For the longest time I tried to keep the two artistic styles separate from each other because I felt like I brought different energy to the two mediums. Painting was more of a meditative state that I would go into, painting at my leisure, while tattooing was more structured and time restrictive. It wasn’t until a few years ago that I realized that art is art, regardless of the medium and I was stunting myself by trying to keep the two mediums separate from each other. Tattooing has really helped me be more disciplined within my painting, and painting has helped my creativity within tattooing. Bringing my painting style within my tattoo work has also helped me accelerate my career and abilities. It’s extremely satisfying to be able to have the creative freedom and paint what I want while also being able to help others tweak and bring their dreams and visions to life through tattooing.”
13MOONS: I understand you have just published a coloring book for both children and adults! Congratulations! What inspired you to start this project and do you have any advice for other artists looking to publish a coloring book?
TA: “Art is extremely therapeutic for me, as it has helped me through some of my hardest times. I have taught individual art therapy lessons, but a lot of people get discouraged because they feel they ‘can’t’ do art. By the end of the lesson, they would feel more confident working in the medium. I realized that coloring a pre-drawn art page can be just as therapeutic, since it is about intention. Each meaningful and spiritual image comes with the guidance to repeat positive affirmations while coloring. I am currently working on another coloring book with positive affirmation phrases that include designs behind the text. These are intended to help calm the mind from the busy world, while being creative at the same time. There are several really great print on demand websites for other artists looking to make their own coloring book. I would say the biggest struggle is to get through all the pages because sometimes it can feel like you lose momentum half-way through and then tend to forget about it, leaving it unfinished.”
ARTIST GALLERY – TINA ADAMS
13MOONS Magazine would like to thank Tina for the glimpse into her world!
Her recently published coloring book can be purchased here.
To see more artwork from Tina Adams, be sure to connect with her on Instagram @theartoftina.
You can also check out her tattoo page and portfolio!
ABOUT THE INTERVIEWER
Natalie is an Educator, Visionary Seeress, and Creatrix that gives voice to the Sacred and Divine Feminine through her own Earthly experiences. She has been a visual and written artist for many years and sees creativity as a meditative process that unlocks messages from Spirit and the Ancestors.
Her poetry pieces are published under the name, Ishva Auset, The Daughter of Stars.
To connect with Natalie and learn about her programs designed for Sensitive Creatives and Awakening Intuitives, join us over in Speakeasy or reach out to her on Facebook.
