The Synesthesia of Art

Isabela Cordoba is a Colombian actor who has swapped mellow Madrid for London. She is also a long-time painter who now has staged her first watercolours exhibition in the British Capital. We went to see it and she candidly agreed to answer our questions  

You are a multifaceted artist, do you perceive any hierarchy among the different art forms you practice? Is, for instance, watercolour painting as important to you as acting? 

My three passions are an essential part of who I am; they breathe life into me and give voice to what I sometimes cannot express out loud. They don’t always shine with the same intensity; sometimes, one slips into silence while the others speak louder. But that flow is part of the rhythm of life. Life establishes its own hierarchy. In those moments when acting grows quiet, I am grateful for my other two forms of expression, which continue to sustain and ground me.

Why did you choose watercolours? Some might say that its technique is more arduous than oil painting which can be more dramatic and perhaps more commercially viable too? 

I love oil painting as well. I spent many years working with oils and acrylics. But when I first began painting with watercolour, I was captivated by its unique transparency and immediacy. The delicate dance between pigment and water made me realise that it is a metaphor for life itself, fluid, spontaneous, and dynamic. 

Does your work get produced organically and spontaneously or is there any planning involved? What factors -do you think- are predominant when you are painting watercolours? 

Yes and no. If you are asking whether I start from a sketch, the answer is no. However, there is definitely an emotional groundwork behind my work. I approach painting as I approach a character, by first focusing on a specific emotion or mood I wish to convey. From there, I create internal monologues, write them down, explore related emotions, and prepare myself using acting techniques to fully immerse in that emotional state. This process allows me to attune myself to the feeling, and only then do I begin to paint. From that point onward, the process becomes intuitive and spontaneous.

How important is for you the actual process? Is it as important or less important than the result? 

The process is absolutely essential in my painting; it serves as both the backbone and the guiding direction of my work. The result is subjective, yet for me, it must provide a sense of personal fulfillment and the feeling that I’ve reached a point where I can let the work stand on its own. The process imparts meaning to the piece, while the result marks the moment when I feel ready to let it go.

Is scale important in watercolur painting? 

Scale plays an important role in my watercolour paintings, but not in a fixed or limiting way. The size of the work often determines the kind of energy and movement.

From the premise that every art form has its own very specific limitations, what are -in your opinion- the limitations of watercolour painting if you think that indeed it has any?

For me, the greatest limitation of watercolour lies in its lack of control and the difficulty of making corrections. Corrections are possible, but they often require adding more pigment or lifting colour, actions that can compromise the freshness and transparency that make watercolour so unique. In a way, its limitation becomes its beauty; watercolour demands acceptance, spontaneity, and trust in the unpredictable movement of water and colour.

What has been, for you, the biggest discovery painting watercolours?

I believe my greatest discovery has been the ability to connect and unite my passions for acting, painting, and music. Watercolour has become a medium where these different forms of expression come together, allowing me to explore emotion, movement, and rhythm in a unique and integrated way, always in tune with the immediacy of emotions and life itself.

Isabela Cordoba Torres is a Colombian actress, singer, and visual artist currently based in London. She has cultivated a rich and multifaceted artistic career. Educated at Colegio Colombo Británico in Cali where she studied for 12 years and had her first encounter with visual arts. At 17 she graduated with an International Baccalaureate Diploma in Visual Arts and Natural Sciences. Later she pursued further studies in Industrial Design in Argentina and an MA in Acting for Screen at Royal Central School of Speech and Drama in London. She has appeared on various films and various tv programmes in her native Colombia and in Spain. Isabela’s watercolour work can be see in her Instagram page Koreoplas