April Garcia creates soft sculptures full of whimsy, found objects and well, anything you can imagine!
She describes her work as an affinity for abstraction and minimalism.
The process is relatively simple. She creates soft colorful shapes, multiply them, and reconfigures the pieces by sewing them together to combine and transform them into a larger soft sculpture creation.
Her colorful, psychedelic sculptures are featured in Issue 20 “Combo.” Read ahead to learn the powerful story of why April has adapted this playful form of artmaking.
On this creative journey, my inspiration to create has always been a shifting and evolving cosm in me.
Like a flower growing through the cracks of depression, anxiety, and imposter syndrome, the little flower found the light to grow into something really beautiful.
In 2015 there was a shift in my purpose as a creative when I lost my younger sister to suicide. When my sister passed on, I would sit in my workspace and try to create for my upcoming solo exhibit and I just felt lost.
My purpose just to create wasn’t enough anymore and I felt the need to dig deeper and find my “WHY” I needed to be this creative person doing all of this work. What is the point of all this?
It was really difficult for me at first to understand at the time how important my community work was because of what was going on around me. But people showed up to make art dolls and what I experienced was how healing it was for the attendees to have space to sit and create.
“As artists, we really carry so much power to heal ourselves and our community with our art.”
What I realized is I provided a safe place for my community to leave all of their worries at the door, all of the stress, and be free to think and feel in a creative way. It was healing for both the community and myself. It was my moment of realization as to why I’m on this path and I found a purpose for my creative spirit. I always knew art was a therapy and healing process for me, but I was looking past myself and my sculpture work and found a bigger, more inspiring reason why I do what I do. My community.
My obsession to explore my love for soft sculpture seemed to have found more purpose, and the universe was listening. The opportunities to share my love of soft sculpture with the community began to grow and the joy of watching people create little soft sculptures was food to my soul.
I think that’s kind of magical and powerful, how art can make people feel what you were feeling when you were creating the work. As artists, we really carry so much power to heal ourselves and our community with our art.
Support April Garcia & follow them on Instagram
