Kimberly Solana lives and breathes art and it practically flows through her veins. Despite that, she struggled with it at St. Joseph’s Convent, to the extent that she could never have imagined that her childhood home would eventually house the future 8ttava Boutique where art envelopes every single detail of the atmosphere.
8ttava Boutique is located at McVane Drive, four houses to the left of the St. Lucia Blind Welfare Association in Sans Souci. This is where she spends most of her time lost in music, painting, piles of beautiful clothing and handmade jewelry. Kimberly is the creative director of 8ttava, the brand which epitomizes her rebirth. She was born in Abeline, Texas and has spent exactly half of her life in the United States. The other half she has lived in Saint Lucia, the “beautiful rock” she calls home. Dazzle had the pleasure of chatting with her about her work.
What does 8ttava mean?
8ttava is a combination of the Latin word ‘Ottava,’ which is the musical symbol denoted as 8va, meaning higher Octave.
When I decided to brand my pieces I wanted to come up with a symbol which encompasses the thing that inspires me the most, which is music. Octave is also the last name of a very inspirational person in my life who pushed me to start sharing pictures of my work on social media outlets such as Instagram.
What made you decide to open your own boutique?
Opening the boutique was always in the cards for 2015, I just happened to speed up the process when I decided to quit my job and focus entirely on art and jewelry making. It got to the point where I could barely focus on projects at my day jobs because I was so consumed by thoughts about my future paintings. I would sneak beads and wire to work to wrap natural stone pendants in the lunchroom at work and at my cubicle. Creativity was an obsession and I needed a very big outlet.
Why now?
I vowed from very young that I would start up a business by the age of 30, and somehow I blinked and I was suddenly on the brink of 30, struggling at two day jobs and juggling graduate school classes. I knew that I needed to invest in myself at some point or I would be stuck working a 9-5; or in my case, sometimes 12:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.
Have you had any formal training in art?
Besides struggling with art when I attended the St. Joseph’s Convent, no. I secretly began what I hoped would become a double major in biological sciences with a minor in chemistry and art but I quickly found that a double major is quite costly, so that never materialized into anything that I could brag about. I was only able to afford a few art history classes which are prerequisites to the major practical visual art courses.
Tell us about your influences and/or favourite artists
Romero Britto is my favourite pop artist. Pop art is exactly what I wish my entire world looked like. He knows no boundaries and I paint with this same attitude. I also decorated the boutique with very lively and ‘in your face’ artwork, which keeps evolving anytime there is downtime in between projects. I hope to reincarnate as Françoise Nielly one day. Her giant knife portraits are so refined, yet unapologetically honest and brute. There is so much energy that exudes from each piece and I hope that my pieces reach out and touch people in a similar fashion one day.
Naturally, and as I am sure you are aware, there have been analogies drawn between some of your work and that of some other local artists. What say you?
I worked very hard to be where I am today, and I have only just begun developing the 8ttava brand. I can’t tune in to the chatter of those who would prefer to compare me to other artists, especially those who have yet to visit the boutique. I choose to embrace the positive feedback from complete strangers who support me and come up to me at the bank or supermarket to tell me that they love my work. It is those random conversations which spark ideas for paintings. I am usually very busy and I know for sure I have that in common with other local artists, many of whom I have actually collaborated with. The boutique houses pieces from a growing list of brands, including EB Sandals by Keitha Noel, Paradise Prints by Fiona Compton, and Bijoux by Cecilia Augustin, and I am truly honored to be surrounded by the products of the sweat and dedication of such talented artists.
You are now part of the Saint Lucian Family of Artists, an ever-growing group with the recent focus placed on the arts. What can you tell us about your other art siblings?
I am familiar with some of the other artists and designers in our midst, and I am so amazed that many of them are very young and also female! Christine Samuel who is my soul twin, collaborated with me for my 2015 Hot Couture collection, and I admire how she speaks colours and themes into existence with ease. Her presentation of Christy Creations handbags blew everyone away and she keeps surprising me every single day with her new ideas. What I have noticed is that our artists, poets, designers and photographers are very supportive of one another. We all recognize that art is a very under-appreciated avenue and we all have to hustle to make our mark, and we are guaranteed to be successful if we do it together.
So you majored in biological sciences, give us a little of that history…
I have always been fascinated with science, and my parents even built me a ‘science lab’ next to our house where I would ‘observe plants and animals’ when I was seven or eight. I have worked in almost every field of science imaginable, from pharmacies, hospitals, clinical research labs and even vitamins and supplements. The plan (designed by my parents) was for me to become a doctor, which was never ever something I envisioned for myself. I have a Bachelor’s Degree in Biological Sciences from Georgia State University and I am finishing up my Master’s Degree in Public Health. My dream career is to run a non-profit humanitarian organization focusing on disaster relief and to be able to continue my charity work with Charity:Water and APOPO Hero Rats.
