In a world that often tells us to conform, Edith Quintanilla stands out as a beacon of resilience and creative passion. From her early fascination with Bob Ross to her transition from a stable tech career to founding Poderosa Divina, Edith’s journey is a testament to the power of following one’s dreams. Despite facing societal and familial pressures, she embraced her authentic self and let her art flourish. Edith’s story is not just about art; it’s about finding purpose, overcoming obstacles, and inspiring others to pursue their true passions. Join us as we delve into Edith’s life, her artistic evolution, and the powerful message behind her work.
Can you tell us more about your early experiences with art and how it became your passion?
I remember being influenced by Bob Ross when I was five years old. I grew up in a low middle class family, with three siblings. We had one old, clunky TV that only showed five channels. Every morning my siblings and I would wait for our cartoons to start by watching the shows that aired before our favorite cartoons. My sister’s blissfully played with their toys while we waited, but I was mostly interested in what Bob Ross was painting. As a 5 year old, I found the way that he painted landscapes, leaves, plants and animals fascinating. I imitated his sketches with my crayons and dilapidated pencils and shortly after I started drawing, I learned how to sketch bunnies, owls, and puppies. Fast forward to my career now, I am still painting, sketching and designing. Art has always been there for me when I needed it most and it took me years to figure it out, but I’ve realized creating is my passion. It’s the one thing that calms my thoughts, makes me happy, helps me make sense of what I don’t understand.
2. How did your childhood experiences influence your decision to pursue art full-time?
Art was my safe haven. I grew up in an unstable and chaotic home with parents who were emotionally unavailable and suffered from addictions. My childhood did impact my decision to pursue art full time because I was always told I needed a stable job that made money. Because of this, even though I knew I wanted to be an artist since I was five years old, the world’s voices discouraged me from pursuing art as a career and I ended up taking what I thought was the path of least resistance.
My education and experience led me to the tech industry for five years, where I pushed down my desires to be an artist further and further, until I could no longer hear them. I truly believe God intervened on my behalf because last March, I was laid off. Although at first I was in denial, eventually it dawned on me that I was in a unique position to pursue my creative dreams. I knew that if I didn’t take the leap at that particular time, that I would keep putting it off until my dream was buried once again. Even though it scared me half to death, I took a leap of faith – fast forward – Poderosa Divina was born.
3. What was the turning point that made you decide to leave your tech career and start Poderosa Divina?
I was furloughed from a startup that I had been employed at for almost 2 years. The first few months of being laid off I poured everything I had into the job hunt. I hired a career coach, upgraded my resume, refined my interview answers and learned “the art of commanding presence in a room”. I created a daily schedule that forced me to apply and research for hours a day. Every morning I woke up with a fierce determination that today was the day that I would dominate. And every night I would fall asleep thinking about what I would crush the following day and other ways of self-improvement. I meditated every morning, repeated positive affirmations, went to the gym daily, and drank several cups of coffee to continue my intense routine. I had a goal, and I thought that if I worked harder than anyone else, I would accomplish my goal. There was no time for art. I pushed back the urge to create art as far back into my mind as I could.
As the months crept by, I realized the full weight and intensity of the job market, but I continued going at full speed because I rejected the idea of being jobless. I felt as if there was a higher force almost pushing me out of the tech industry. Now I know it was God redirecting my path, but then I was full of questions and fear. Anxiety crept in the back of my mind before every interview. I prepared for hours on end for each interview, talking to myself in the mirror and practicing my answers. I sent introductory messages, connected on Linkedin, did hours of research on each company and sent countless “thank you” emails to my interviewers. My efforts were met with flowery rejection emails seemingly sympathetic towards me, even praising me for my effort, but sadly claiming that “I wasn’t the one”. The emails and phone calls started getting to me, I was burned out, angry, depressed and simply couldn’t carry on. I decided to take a break from job hunting. My sisters told me to just start creating to take my mind off things, so I started focusing on creating art.
I created fun, colorful pieces of art that seemed to reflect the opposite of the turmoil I was feeling inside. My art started to flourish. At first, I just painted my favorite musicians or pop icons, then slowly I progressed to painting models with vague, almost shapeless facial expressions. After every portrait I created, I began to develop my artistic style, what I liked, and what stood out to me. As I kept going, my voice started to show up on the canvas. My emotions, anger, pain, my grief, and even hope appeared in my creations. I leaned into those emotions and let them guide my pieces.
4. How did you come up with the name “Poderosa Divina” for your business?
My sister Lindsay, a novelist, helped me create my shop’s name! We came up with a name that reflects our roots but evokes power. The spanish was intentional, a tribute to my latina roots. Poderosa Divina, a powerful and divine woman. I knew that it was right because it was a name that put women on a pedestal. Living in a patriarchal society, I wanted a shop name that empowers and uplifts women.
5. What were some of the biggest challenges you faced when transitioning from a stable tech job to becoming a full-time artist?
I’ve always described myself as “Type-A.” Because of my tendencies towards organization, lists, and goals, I did very well in my role in my tech career. I learned the ropes, got into a good routine and met my quarterly and yearly goals. When I was furloughed, I went from a 9-5 job routine, to a job hunting routine, and when I burned out of that routine and could no longer carry on, everything felt like chaos, and I’ve always rejected chaos. Although it felt like chaos, I think my spirit welcomed a change. I needed to purge out everything that was no longer necessary to make room for a new thing to occur in my life. My art needed room, my creativity needed room, I needed to create a new routine that would allow my business to flourish.
Although I am still working on flourishing my business, I have created the space and time needed for my creativity to grow. I’m using my “Type-A” personality as an advantage in running my business. It’s easy to not believe in yourself when you are procrastinating. It’s easy to forget to do something that you’re scared of doing when it’s not on the schedule and you’re not holding yourself accountable. I had to design my schedule around doing the very things that scared me because I knew that it would be the only way I would grow. And I have grown! This past year I’ve learned more than I ever have about running an art print business. I am growing and evolving into an entrepreneur. I never imagined beyond my wildest dreams that I would start my own business.
6. How has your personal journey and background influenced the themes and style of your artwork?
I grew up in an ultra conservative and extremely religious household. I was told what to wear, how to speak and how to act. For most of my life, I’ve felt like a caged bird, looking out from inside admiring the women who were brave, who did as they pleased, and who were truly unafraid of being their authentic selves. Although I’ve been an adult for many, many years, I still carried the voices that oppressed me and my art felt stifled.
A few years ago, I started to question where my beliefs came from and if they were actually mine. I had to dig deep and ask where all the fear really came from? Why was I so scared of being my true, authentic self? My art changed again. I gravitated towards painting women in their natural habitat, women who are free, women who can express themselves courageously and who are unafraid of what the world thinks of them. Deep down inside, all the women I paint are me in some way shape or form. My art has served as a tool for self discovery. My hope is that my art resonates with women and helps her take one step towards becoming her true, authentic self.
7. Can you describe a moment when you doubted your decision to pursue art and how you overcame it?
I doubt my decision quite often, at times the doubt comes after a flurry of emotions and anxiety manifest when thinking about my finances or the future. I was so used to having a secure paycheck every two weeks. My monthly salary was big enough to cover my mortgage, bills, investments, shopping sprees, and even give back to my parents. Now, I must think twice before swiping my credit card. During those moments, I find myself casually visiting LinkedIn and perusing their jobs section even applying to a job or two. In those moments, it’s imperative for me to remember my why. I decided to become a full time entrepreneur and artist because I saw a need for accessible art featuring women and latinas. That need coincided with my passion for creating art that showcased beautiful brown skin, women feeling free and confident and the colorful landscapes that I grew up loving and seeing.
9. What role has your faith played in your journey as an artist and entrepreneur?
The road of entrepreneurship is lonely, and harder than I thought it would be. The act of working on my dream in itself is a privilege and a gift, and I am grateful, but it also makes you question everything at times, especially when the finances don’t match the effort given. I overcome those doubts by reminding myself that every success in my life has taken time, patience and effort and this is no different. There are many moments that happen after a project concludes or after a shop update where the closure and satisfaction of finishing something doesn’t appear. I find myself asking if anyone even cares about my art. During those times, I take breaks to pray and thank God for allowing me the privilege to create. Perspective is everything! I can either decide that the path is too hard to follow or I can keep pushing through until my dream is no longer a dream but a reality. It’s simple to say but it’s harder to do in real life, and the brain must be reminded multiple times, daily, weekly, monthly that we are worthy of our dreams. I’m also taking it day by day so I don’t get overwhelmed!
10. What advice would you give to women who are struggling to pursue their creative passions due to societal or familial pressures?
I would tell them that I was once that woman who always gave in to the familial and societal pressure to push away my creative talents for something that they approved of. I got the degrees and I scored a high paying job. That path did not lead to happiness. It led to conditional acceptance by those around me. I say conditional because people approved of me when I fit into their version of who they liked. I gave in to the societal pressure of being liked and it led to a version of me that wasn’t authentic. I craved the validation that I never got from my parents and a small part of me was fulfilled temporarily, when I got it. Only to realize that I had created a monster that required validation 24/7. The void ruled my life and created a version of me that was stifled, oppressed and hidden. I swallowed my strong opinions, smiled and nodded. I wasn’t being honest with myself or the world.
When the shift happened, it happened gradually. I didn’t wake up one day and realize that I wasn’t being authentic. It’s not that simple. My undoing started when I was furloughed because losing my job felt like I was losing part of my carefully crafted identity. I had to question who I was and what components made me, me. The minute the question was asked, was the moment when that question would lodge itself in my brain and live rent free for the rest of my life. Now, I ask myself before I do anything, if in reality it’s what I really want to do. If the question gives me pause then I simply don’t say yes or commit to anything right away. I require time to understand and dissect what it is that I want. It’s not a perfect strategy so far, but it’s my way of honoring myself and my intentions.
12. Can you share some of the most rewarding experiences you’ve had since starting Poderosa Divina?
Recently I was invited to showcase a piece at a gallery. It was a gallery designed to highlight women’s voices through their art. The day of the event felt surreal. I was surrounded by so many brilliant artists and photographers. I felt so blessed to be in the same room. At some point during the night, I wandered off to the side and watched as the attendees stopped to look at each art piece. I witnessed some reactions to my piece. A couple conversing amongst themselves asking questions about my piece to one another, another staring intently probably creating their own narrative of what is taking place in the painting, and others just simply glancing and walking past. I’ve always dreamt of being invited to showcase in a gallery but oftentimes, the dream felt faraway. Seeing all the reactions made me feel proud of how far I’ve come, it made my creative journey feel real. In that moment, I allowed myself to say I was an artist.
13. How do you handle criticism or negative feedback about your work?
I grew up in an environment where the adults around me were very vocal and seemed to thrive on criticizing those around them, especially the children. Due to my lived experience, as a teenager and young adult, I became very critical and hard on myself. I didn’t believe that there could ever be a scenario where criticism could be constructive and for years I didn’t grow as a person. In my late twenties, I started discovering how to speak to myself a little softer and how to have self love and my perspective started shifting. I became more open to advice, and feedback to the point that I sought out opportunities for feedback and growth. I am now open to receiving feedback on my work but I am also careful not to diminish the intention or voice of my work by doing so. I’m also discovering that feedback is a critical component to my art, but also in that same vein, not everyone’s feedback will resonate with my art and that’s ok! Art is subjective and everyone will take it differently based on their lived experiences. I go off the feedback that resonates with me!
14. What future goals do you have for Poderosa Divina and your artistic career?
I am meant to follow this path right now. My vision for my shop right now is to keep creating art and grow my shop and social media. Beyond that I would love to collaborate with other artists of color to create pieces that resonate with our community!
15. Are there any upcoming projects or collaborations you’re excited about that you can share with us?
I am currently collaborating on a project with Melanie Feliciano, the creator of Dr. Nutmeg’s Femmebots. She interviewed me and we are working on releasing an animated version! I found her through Latinas in tech, she became my mentor and now good friend. Apart from that, I am always creating art and videos. If you would like to know more about my process, please follow me on Instagram and tik tok!
