As both an artist and a mother of three kids, Kovalchuk hopes to delve into better understanding postpartum depression, inspired by a desire to discuss motherhood in tandem with her exploration into multimedia projects including video and interview elements. 

Her most recent project tackles postpartum depression, motherhood, and reproductive health. 

For RE:ARTISTE, I sat down with Kovalchuk in her Hoboken artist studio, to discuss her feelings on motherhood, moderation, and self-management.

A: My name is Anna Nakoussov, I represent RE:ARTISTE International Art Organization, and today I’m here with Oxana Kovalchuk, a mixed media artist – who joins us in her Hoboken artist studio. 

A: My first question is – you are a married woman and a mother of three kids, do you separate your family life and your artist life? 

O: Firstly, hello, and thank you for inviting me! And yes and no. On one hand, I’m trying to make my art separate from my family. If my children are around, they want me all the time, and there is no time for art when they’re around me. But of course, my family and my children, they’re part of my art also, because they have been with me a lot. They support me a lot. And I can’t separate, like, this is my whole life, this is my art, and family, the family is also part of my life. So, they are kind of all together. 

A: So then, how has motherhood changed you? 

O: It changed me a lot, and if we are discussing my artistic life, motherhood makes me more organized and more creative. The most important part for me being a mother of three kids is to have patience and to organize everything and also, to have good time management. It was a new skill for me, because when you’re free, you can’t use your time, how you can, and you don’t depend on anything. Not anything, but not a lot. Being a mother of three kids is difficult. And what else? Maybe I became more creative. A lot of new things came into my life. And it helped my process of art be more bright, colorful, and vibrant. 

A: So, what has been the most challenging part of balancing motherhood in your artistic identity? 

O: It’s always a choice because sometimes there are some conflicts, especially when you have to be in several places at once. It’s a choice of what you focus on at this time – your family routine, or your artistic life. So, for me, this is kind of the most difficult part. 

A: Has motherhood changed your art or your artistic practice in any way, other than with creativity and time management? Was there anything possibly unexpected about how it changed? Perhaps even in a technical approach to your art or artistic process? 

O: Yes, of course. I had new activities and I had a new side of my life and it was all about the childhood of my kids. So, I had some projects that included, for example, pictures of my kids included in my collages. I had one project about emotions, and I started creating my art, using food, as I was really busy at that time with my kids as they were really young and I spent a lot of time cooking for them. So, yeah, I had that experience. 

A: What have you learned about yourself as an artist through motherhood? It seems like you’ve picked up on a lot of new skills, on new ways of looking at the world. 

O: They have given me freedom – and maybe less control for my creative process. 

A: What has been the most rewarding aspect of motherhood? Does this in any way interact with how you feel or work as an artist?

O: The reward is always their love. They always need me, and I really love that feeling when you know that somebody needs you in this life. For me, it’s really important. Also, my youngest daughter does a lot of creative projects. This is rewarding for me, and I have the opportunity to help her sometimes. And actually, she won a competition in her elementary school! I cried when she won. All this is kind of rewarding, you know, and for me, it’s important how they feel about their mom, about me. They’re really proud of me. I can see it in how they explain when people ask them about me and my activities and my job. They’re proud of me because I’m an artist, so this is my reward.

A: Do you ever feel tired – do these dynamics maybe tire you, between aspects of being an artist and being a mother – and then most importantly, how do you recharge? 

O: Yeah, of course. This is a dynamic life and we’re in a dynamic place, where a lot happens around us and it’s really important to participate everywhere. To have this kind of pressure, you know, this kind of pressure because you don’t want to miss anything. It’s not easy, especially when you have a big family and you have to take care of them. As I said, I’m trying to organize everything for me. What helps me to recover is just escaping from everybody, alone with my husband – but without children. Go somewhere. It doesn’t matter how far, but to just see something to do some activities. Doesn’t matter. Something not connected to my family, not connected to my art. Just do something completely different. 

A: What is the best skill or tool you have to balance your family life and your artist career?

O: Skills like finance, logistics, and time management. Also, the skills of being a mom, you have to be a little bit of  a doctor, a teacher, a little bit of everything. But as I said, time management, and keeping myself less emotional and to not overreact. 

Anna Nakoussov, Writer and Interviewer