Episode 116: Color Curious: Finding Your Creative Voice, One Color at a Time with Artist Ana Bianchi
Podcast
Episode 116: Color Curious: Finding Your Creative Voice, One Color at a Time with Artist Ana Bianchi
“Everything and anything can be interesting if you observe it in detail or dig below the surface.” — Ana Bianchi
This episode is your invitation to see creativity through the lens of curiosity, observation, and color. I’m joined by Ana Bianchi, artist, illustrator, designer, and author of Color Curious.
Ana defines creativity not as something mystical but as something you can train, sharpen, and practice. She opens up about how her new book grew from intuition and observation, and how color lives in our everyday lives.
She shares how storytelling, cultural nuance, and deep observation became the backbone of her work. In one chapter of her book, she explores how color evokes the spirit of place without resorting to stereotype.
Ana reminds us that creativity is not limited to a few “creative people.” It is a muscle everyone can cultivate, whether you’re painting, designing, cooking, or simply looking more closely at what’s right in front of you.
Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts and Spotify, or on your favorite podcast platform while you cook, clean, or create. Get the full show notes & transcript below.
What’s in This Episode:
How Color Curious emerged from Ana’s everyday life and intuition
What it looks like to find inspiration in small moments and daily observation
A playful color curiosity exercise you can try today
How Ana thinks about creative blocks and how she works with them
What it feels like when a major project doesn’t go the way you hoped and what comes next
Ways to nurture your creative muscle with daily, curious engagement
Ana reminds us that creativity begins with curiosity and that color is everywhere once you begin to see it.
Resources Mentioned:
Purchase Ana’s book, Color Curious
Stay tuned for Ana’s Color Workshop on her Substack, ColorCurious by Ana Bianchi
Questions to Reflect On:
Sit with these questions: Journal, take them on a walk, create a voice note, chat with a friend, or sit with a cup of tea and reflect on them.
Leave a comment below or connect with us on Instagram @chefcarlacontreras & @analovescolor to share your takeaway from the episode.
What’s one color that has been showing up for you lately? Perhaps, it’s noticing one color, like Ana’s dog’s fur and how it looks in different environments.
How does your environment shape your creative voice? Perhaps, you want to explore a new space today like a museum, park, or local coffee shop.
PS: Upgrade to Nourished Creator Studio for quick-hit micro workshops, BTS Podcast, and simple tools to help you work on your creative dreams now, not someday.
Disclaimer: Always seek the counsel of a qualified medical practitioner or other healthcare provider for an individual consultation before making any significant changes to your health, lifestyle, or to answer questions about specific medical conditions. This podcast is for entertainment and information purposes only.
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About Ana Bianchi
Ana Bianchi has always been fascinated by all things related to color. She often jokes that she was born with a bunch of color pencils in her hands and that her first word was green (her favorite color as a kid). When she first met her husband, his last name (now hers) Bianchi, means white in Italian. “bianchi, the sum of all colors, this sounds promising” she thought to herself.
Ana is an artist, designer and illustrator. From graphic to textile design, from ceramics to painting to printmaking, from things for kids and home decor, to branding for companies big and small, it is her lifelong love of color that connects it all and helps her comfortably move from one discipline to another and from one technique to another.
”Color Curious” the book, is where Ana has gathered all those color ideas, color inspiration, color learnings from her mentors and teachers, plus a few color ideas and discoveries of her own. It is loaded with color-rich photographs, color palettes, illustrations she made over the past 5 years and is filled with interesting interviews with artists, illustrators and art agents. This 288 page book will show you how to become Color Curious whether your are an artist or not.
Find + Work With Ana:
Ana’s Book: Color Curious
For illustration commissions and art licensing please contact Ana’s agent Margo Tantau at Studio Tantau agency.
Full Transcript: