The Constant Search for Balance with Teresa J. Cuevas

Interview: Teresa J. Cuevas

The Spanish artist was born and raised in Madrid, but she attributes her time in South Korea as pivotal to transform her into the artist that she is now. The pursuit of an equilibrium in all aspects of life are a leading influence in her art series. For 2024, her aspiration is to be able to showcase her art overseas.

I would like to start this interview by taking you back to your childhood memories. As a child, you loved to spend your free time splitting rocks. Your work Encuentros (Encounters) reflects you being intrigued since then by the mysteries hidden inside a stone. Were you moved by art from an early age?

Teresa J. Cuevas: Without knowing that this was related to art, I was already fascinated by the hidden beauty of nature when I was a child. I have always been very curious about the world of stones and minerals. Their colors and pigments, the morphological union between small parts, they always sounded like a mystery to me. The “Encuentros” series is a return to my childhood, to a place where I see myself again breaking rocks, discovering their soul, and putting their pieces together in harmony.

Another series of yours, called “Naturaleza y Luz” (Nature and Light) has a very interesting aspect, which is the balance between the opposites: heavy & light, full & empty, light & dark. How do you reach an ideal balance between opposites?

T.J.C.: An artist seeks the measure between the dark and the luminous. We ask ourselves existential and common questions, and somehow, I find that darkness is, in a sense, very close to the next flash. There is no matter without the space in it, there is no joy where there was no silence before, and we all find ourselves in this search for balance. Some look after the equilibrium through ceramics, others prefer to write, and the ones like me, we paint. Dylan Thomas (Welsh poet and writer) used to say: “The light appears where none is shining”. The search for light needs this contrast.

Introspection also plays a crucial role in your art. Are we, as humans, forgetting to take a deep look within ourselves? Can art fill this gap?

T.J.C.: Art helps us to keep our minds and hands busy, it helps us make questions, and to be curious about the human condition. I once had a frenetic daily routine before (few people know firsthand how the working hours in South Korea are). As time passes and I become more mature, I realize that all of us have several layers and that we should take care of them to keep our center aligned. Especially in the case of us women, because we are mothers, daughters, friends, professionals… If we don’t have time for everything that makes us who we are, we can get lost in the noise, not allowing ourselves to think. It seems easy to say, but indeed it is on the reach of everyone. I need 30 minutes of meditation and silence daily in order to be able to put into perspective the speed and time of everything. Art cannot be done in a hurry.

You are also an architect, and you spent some time living in South Korea. How does that experience influence your work?

T.J.C.: I lived in Seoul for about four years, studying (at Sungkyunkwan University, as part of her degree in Architecture) and working as an architect for Jinnie Seo – she is an artist that creates monumental installations. I also worked with One O One, a high-level architecture studio (where Teresa had the chance to work with residential, restaurants and library design). This experience in Seoul changed my life forever in both aspects, professional and personal. The relationship between nature, the search for a balance without symmetry, and the development of my intuition through silence were my three biggest lessons from my time in the country. It is also there that my passion for traditional Korean art was born, and where meditation came into my life. Since then, I have had an urge to do things slower, but better. With more consciousness.

Your art is created in Madrid, but your clients can be anywhere. What do you do to broaden your audience?

T.J.C.: The main channels of communication for me right now are Instagram and my website (www.teresajcuevas.com), they both help me to connect with people all over the world. It is important to note that my pieces can be delivered to any country, and my team and I take care of all details with customs, and we ensure that the art is very well packed, to be able to safely reach any corner of the world.

What are your expectations for 2024?

T.J.C.: My dream is to be able to launch this year an exhibition overseas: in New York, Seoul, or Tokyo. Social media helps a lot, but there is nothing like seeing the art live, in front of you. I welcome people every day in my studio, but being able to see the pieces somewhere else is something that fulfills my soul.

PHOTOS: EREA AZURMEND