Studio Tour with Multi Dimensional Artist Iyana Banks

The importance of self-care and sexual health can never be understated; the Lust Zine Wellness Series invites various experts and guides to help teach practices that will greater expand what wellness means to you. All episodes of the series are available to watch on my Youtube and right here on Lust Zine for free.

Iyana Banks is a multi-dimensional artist, influencer, and content creator based in Los Angeles, CA. She works with a range of different mediums; some of which include music, clay, and collage. Join her on a tour of her studio as she shows you how she works, the themes she's currently working on and how she gets inspired by fantasy and doesn't confine herself to one art form or medium.

Q: What did you think about as you were setting up your new studio?

Yes! I just moved into this new beautiful space and I’m so fulfilled being here. This is a major upgrade from the space I was living in before. There’s so much more room than there was in my last space, like significantly, so it’s really nice. There’s more than enough room for me to spread my wings [and] for my partner to spread his wings. I’m still getting the space set up a lot. There’s a lot of work to be done still in the new space, so I’m only giving you guys a sneak peak!

Q: What does wellness mean to you?

Wellness is health. Wellness is physical health, mental health, spiritual health, emotional health, [and] taking care of yourself. Really taking care of yourself.

Q: Tell us about any important themes or inspiration in your current work.

A lot of my current work is inspired by sexuality, the female body, [and] the female form. A lot of my clay sculptures have three boobs instead of two! I guess I like my work to feel magical and mythical.

Q: Talk about how your art is a way you take care of yourself.

When it comes to creativity, I think I kind of let my desires guide me. It’s really free flowing, like, “What do you want to do right now? What do you want to do in this moment?” I randomly decided I was going to pick up clay during the quarantine and I started sculpting and it was like I had always been sculpting! I had never done it before in my life. I also started making incense holders. I was getting into embroidery for a little bit, and sometimes I’ll make beats on Garageband on my iPad. I feel like you might as well try to do as many things as you can while you’re here, you know? Why not try it all and do everything?

My art is rooted in self care, really, because it’s rooted in joy. Anytime I’m creating, it’s beneficial for my mental health. Being able to see things that you created is such a beautiful feeling. I feel like creating helps me listen to myself because a lot of times when you’re creating, if you’re just allowing it to flow from your spirit, you kinda see where your subconscious mind is at. Even if you’re not consciously aware of what you’re predominantly thinking about or feeling, I feel like your art and creativity will tell you where you’re at.

Q: What’s inspiring you right now as an artist?

Recently, reading books has been really inspiring to me. I’ve been reading a lot. I love that reading a book is like taking a journey inside of your mind. Books always stimulate my imagination, whether it’s fiction or nonfiction. I just love how books can influence your thought process, expose you to new ideas, new ways of seeing things, or new perspectives.

Q: What does being a multidimensional artist mean to you?

To me, being a multidimensional artist means being a jack of all trades and mastering your favorite ones. I don’t think you should be confined to just one thing, I feel like you should be able to try whatever you want to try and do whatever you want to do. You only live one life, right? You should try or do whatever you want to do as long as you’re here!