Meet Ustena Matta | Painter

We had the good fortune of connecting with Ustena Matta and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Ustena, what’s the end goal, career-wise?
This question really stood out to me because it’s one that I have actually had to ask myself years ago. Especially the first part. After being on what seemed to be a roller coaster with my art career combined with imposter syndrome, occasional art block, bursts of ideas with little time to execute- I had to ask myself what I really wanted. I got into painting in almost an “on accident” fashion. I fell in love with it when I wasn’t looking for anything to be THAT obsessed with. So when I was introduced to the art world after taking a class (just for the units to graduate) in college- and realized I actually liked it, I thought it was a no brainer to turn it into a business. However, I realized quickly that I had started the business for the wrong reason. I was looking to monetize so quickly that I got in my own way and stopped reaching that state of flow I felt when I would paint. It took over a year for me to realize this so I started painting for myself again without the background thought of “how is this going to look on the gram”. I set a boundary of not taking on commissions after learning how miserable they made me. I didn’t want to paint what people requested. I didn’t want to paint ALL the time to stay relevant for a social media algorithm. What I wanted was much simpler than what I had been pushing. I want as many paintings as I can get in peoples homes. I want my paintings in different cities, states, and all around the world. They’re pieces of me and if they’re out in the world, that means that I’m there too. The pure joy I feel when someone loves my work enough to want to live with it. Omg, there is no greater feeling for me as an artist than that. I’m not going to lie, a studio space in a cute little downtown area with a gallery downstairs would be nice as well. LOL

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
When I first started painting, it was because I had a large amount of paint tubes left from the classes I took in college. I thought since the materials were pricey, that I would just paint until I ran out and call it a day. I never stopped buying supplies.

When the hobby got a little more serious, I was still really uncomfortable with painting actual things or people, so one day I had this calling to thin the paint out enough to “spill” it on canvas. I had no idea back then that acrylic pouring was a thing and dove head first with no knowledge about how to properly do it. I was having so much fun.

Acrylic pouring is what inspired my business name, Pour Your Art Out, because that was one of the first things I taught myself and dedicated A LOT of time to. I did eventually start wanting more and started to learn how to paint more realistic things with depth because the ideas for paintings were there, I just didn’t know how to execute them. I used to only work on small canvas because I HAD to finish a painting in one sitting.

I have grown a lot since then in ways I didn’t see coming. I was very surface level when I started in terms of what I was choosing to paint. I would get inspiration from Googling random pictures and trying to paint what I saw. I now get inspiration from my own head which is truly an exciting feeling. It’s usually when I’m driving that I will get a concept or an image in my head that really inspires me. That has been both a blessing and a curse because of course there are some long stretches of time where those ideas don’t come to me and Googling just doesn’t cut it for me like it used to. On the other hand, it’s a blessing because almost everything I paint now and have painted for the last few years is a reflection of me or of a feeling I have experienced.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Okay so we’re going to one of my favorite breakfast places in San Diego called Snooze (pls order the OMG French toast & pancake flight if you go). I’d take her to the La Jolla location because I used to work there and would love to see some old friends AND it’s by the beach. We would then go to La Jolla Cove to chill with a beautiful view. Sticking with a delicious food itinerary, we would have lunch at Oscars Mexican Seafood, one of my favorite SD based spots. Dessert would be at Salt & Straw in downtown making sure she samples all the new flavors, and the standard ones too because why not. We would then walk around making sure to show her one of my favorite galleries called Mee Shim Fine Art until we are ready to eat again. For dinner, we’re going to Underbelly for some ramen because that is one of my top spots in SD hands down.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
My supportive husband. I had just met him actually when I was starting my business and he was so encouraging then and still is. When I fully committed to my identity as an artist, there were a lot of moments where I didn’t feel good enough to call myself that. I also felt insecure to share that when I was beginning to meet people in his life because our Egyptian background carries a lot of pressure to be in the medical field, engineering, or anything else that requires a lot more schooling than I had completed lol. So not only did I not feel good enough in the art world, I didn’t feel good enough in my community. This cannot be further from the truth now and I owe most of that to him for believing in me and helping me through it.

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