Creative Mommas ft. Kaya Faery

During the month of May, we sat down with some of our favorite creative mothers who seamlessly and effortlessly balance their art practice along with motherhood. We interviewed, shot, and documented five creative mommas. We will be sharing their stories, their images, and some behind the scenes.

Our first feature in our Creative Mommas Series is the amazing Kaya Faery, an artist specializing in photography and mixed media.

photo by Dierra Font

Are you children ever subjects or muses in your work? My son is my guinea pig. Whenever I want to try a new technique, he's the first one in front of my camera. He has been in front of my camera for his whole life. I rarely shoot him now because of the themes and subject matter that I work with. But occasionally we will go on an adventure, and he knows my camera is coming too. We both shoot on those days. He has his own hashtag #adventureswithalbert. I don't post him a lot because there are some things I prefer to have to myself. But every once in a while I like to remind folks I'm a mama :).

Photo by Dierra Font

What kind of support do you have as a mother who is also an artist, if any at all? My mother is my biggest supporter. She always has been. We live together now in a big house, so I have a lot more time to work on my art because she helps so much with my son. She brings him to my shows, helps me tote around supplies and pieces, gives awesome advice, and lets me know when I need to check myself. My friends also give me a lot of support when it comes to figuring out my new process with my art. Any question I have they answer without judgement. They pass on their knowledge and push me to learn more. How do you balance being a mother and an artist? What are the some of the challenges you experience in those roles? I retired from teaching (18 years) last May. When I was attempting balancing mothering, teaching, and being an artist drove me to exhaustion.I fought to get everything done, but the cost of it was my health and sanity. My anxiety was out of control. I made the choice to take time off so that I could focus on what is most important to me, my son and my art. Now I have time to work on what I love while he is at school. I'm also a night owl, so I get a lot done while he is sleep.

*** This series was created and curated by Victoria Allen, shot and documented by Dierra Font and Colbie Fray