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In the work world of Yura Adams, weeds have become native plants, bugs have become insects, birds have become much more interesting and weather is something to watch carefully and her art communicates her relationship with the act of observing. She was fortunate to land in the Bay Area and the Lower East Side in her beginnings and today lives and works on a farm in Western Massachusetts where nature feeds her and her work. Her most recent solo show was at Olympia in New York May 2025, and she is preparing for a solo at the Woodstock Art Museum January 2026. Her awards include Tree of Life Foundation, Pollock-Krasner Foundation, Peter S. Reed Foundation, Drawing Center Viewing Program, Berkshire Taconic Foundation, New York State Council on the Arts and New York Foundation for the Arts Mark Program, and National Endowment for the Arts Individual Artist Grant.
Published on March 2nd, 2026. Artist responses collected in months previous.
Was pursuing your creative work a calling for you? How do you define calling within your practice? Share a concise definition and a moment when this felt most true.
I was labeled artist in my family early on in my childhood and I grew comfortably into that role as I grew. Because the calling was organic, I cant remember a moment when I most felt the calling. There never was a question as to what I would do in life. My calling is defined by the impetus and interest in what is going on in the studio and the calling feels most true when I have completed a work, or a group of works for an exhibition.
What does a successful career in the arts look like to you today? Describe how you measure success now and note any shifts from earlier in your career.
My idea of what a successful career looks like has evolved from a focus on achievements to the work itself. I extremely interested in what is evolving, and less interested in making work to fit expectations. This sounds obvious, but every artist has this question in the studio. I am confident that if I keep the focus on the work and less on the outcome, it is a more effective way to develop a career.
How are you kind to yourself in your art practice? (Include one or two concrete examples such as boundaries, rest, or studio routines.)
I treat my body as though I am a studio athlete in my art practice to put in the hours that I do. I have a bed in my studio that is used! A ten-to-30-minute rest and reset with feet up is a daily part of my routine. I keep good, dried ginger and a teapot for ginger tea going a few times a day, quality water throughout, great lighting, curated shoes for foot comfort, plenty of layers for warmth in the cold months, and thick rubber pads on the cement floor. I work out with a trainer for strength training and work with a physical therapist.
What impact do you hope your work has on others? Name the response you hope to spark and who you most want to reach.
Art does not change the world at large, but it can enhance connections and consciousness with those that wish to experience it. My message is to communicate a deep connection to non-human life on this planet and idealistically spark interest in how I am connected to nature. If the viewers understand my passion, a passion to express myself as a contemporary artist and comment on my observations in nature, I hope this stimulates consciousness to protect what is left wild on this earth.
Do you have any rituals or spiritual practices that you integrate into your daily life as an artist? If relevant, mention frequency, timing, or how the practice supports your work.
I avoid the words ritual and spiritual in favor of explanation, depth of observation and focus. I walk out in nature daily, I pay attention and take note with photographs and drawings, and I use these elements as I develop work. This enriches my life, so I repeat the actions to feed my work and in that way my being. I subscribe to the quantum entanglement explanation of connection and find much meaning in reading about explanation found in physics.
Was pursuing your creative work a calling for you? How do you define calling within your practice? Share a concise definition and a moment when this felt most true.
I was labeled artist in my family early on in my childhood and I grew comfortably into that role as I grew. Because the calling was organic, I cant remember a moment when I most felt the calling. There never was a question as to what I would do in life. My calling is defined by the impetus and interest in what is going on in the studio and the calling feels most true when I have completed a work, or a group of works for an exhibition.
What does a successful career in the arts look like to you today? Describe how you measure success now and note any shifts from earlier in your career.
My idea of what a successful career looks like has evolved from a focus on achievements to the work itself. I extremely interested in what is evolving, and less interested in making work to fit expectations. This sounds obvious, but every artist has this question in the studio. I am confident that if I keep the focus on the work and less on the outcome, it is a more effective way to develop a career.
How are you kind to yourself in your art practice? (Include one or two concrete examples such as boundaries, rest, or studio routines.)
I treat my body as though I am a studio athlete in my art practice to put in the hours that I do. I have a bed in my studio that is used! A ten-to-30-minute rest and reset with feet up is a daily part of my routine. I keep good, dried ginger and a teapot for ginger tea going a few times a day, quality water throughout, great lighting, curated shoes for foot comfort, plenty of layers for warmth in the cold months, and thick rubber pads on the cement floor. I work out with a trainer for strength training and work with a physical therapist.
What impact do you hope your work has on others? Name the response you hope to spark and who you most want to reach.
Art does not change the world at large, but it can enhance connections and consciousness with those that wish to experience it. My message is to communicate a deep connection to non-human life on this planet and idealistically spark interest in how I am connected to nature. If the viewers understand my passion, a passion to express myself as a contemporary artist and comment on my observations in nature, I hope this stimulates consciousness to protect what is left wild on this earth.
Do you have any rituals or spiritual practices that you integrate into your daily life as an artist? If relevant, mention frequency, timing, or how the practice supports your work.
I avoid the words ritual and spiritual in favor of explanation, depth of observation and focus. I walk out in nature daily, I pay attention and take note with photographs and drawings, and I use these elements as I develop work. This enriches my life, so I repeat the actions to feed my work and in that way my being. I subscribe to the quantum entanglement explanation of connection and find much meaning in reading about explanation found in physics.
Find Yura Adams on Instagram
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