Please introduce yourself, and what it is you so wonderfully do:

My name is Regina, I am from Mexico. I initially came to the UK to study history of yoga and Sanskrit, and even though that is somehow still there in many ways. Now I am creating art with clay as a medium. This practice is now at the center. It has become the way I connect the threads of my lived experience, by exploring the physicality of the material and creating a deeper understanding through concepts that have come through me, like Sanskrit, migration, and identity.

What is your ideal way to start the day?

In silence, I like to wake up early, I love those silent hours before anyone is up. I used to drink coffee for many years, now I drink only hot water or a decaffeinated tea. I like to sit in silence for some time, then I take a shower and go to practice. I practice yoga every morning, I have been practicing Ashtanga yoga, specifically Mysore style, for over a decade now. I like the repetition of the sequence, it gives me rhythm, it has become a great tool to know my thought patterns. It’s the same sequence every day so if something feels off it’s easier to notice it.

Do you have any daily rituals/ routines? (Morning and/or night)

Rituals and routines feed my life. I have worked self-employed for the last 7 years now. So the routines mark the rhythm in which I move, remind me to stop and listen, and also in a way they give me structure. In the morning I practice yoga, and I like to go to bed early so I start to wind down around 8pm. I usually take a shower, read a book, watch a movie with my husband, depends on the evening. During the day I try to keep it open, see how it feels, I have a fixed time to eat but the rest depends on the energy I have. Sometimes I go to the ceramics studio right after practice, some days I prefer to take it easy, go home and do some admin work, and go only in the evenings to the studio.

Do you have any practices or remedies to stay healthy, both in body and mind?

I think the practices have changed, but the most consistent one is listening to that voice that tells me to slow down. I have learned in my experience that the body is working with us, it's not separate from the mind, it’s the same process, and if we listen carefully it is always telling us something. I have noticed that when I get sick it’s probably something that I didn’t say, didn’t feel, didn’t hear. For me, sometimes, it takes time to understand what my body is telling me, so I have learned not to be too hard on myself. So when something feels off, I slow down, I take care and do practices that bring me back to my center (like yoga, sitting in silence, journaling, therapy). What I eat is also a huge part of my health, I like to eat fermented food that keeps my gut healthy, I like to eat colorful plates, and work around my menstrual cycle. I can say that I haven’t had this figured out but my body feels strong and healthy. Also honesty. With myself, with others. It keeps things clean.

When you need to get out of town/ out of routine, where do you go (or, what do you do) to escape?

The first thing that comes to my mind is water. If I can get into the water.
If I can, I go somewhere with wind and water; a coast, a train ride, somewhere where my body feels small again. If I can’t leave town, I turn everything off, cook something with my hands, and stay quiet for a day or two.

How do you like to spend your nights and or/weekends?

During weekdays I like to sleep early, since I absolutely love the mornings, the early quiet mornings. At the same time, I try to be flexible and allow for nights in which I don’t sleep too early, I might go for a walk with my partner, go for a glass of wine, or watch a movie. During weekends I love going to art exhibitions, take a long walk in nature, see friends, go to the pub. I like to keep my weekends open for spontaneous plans, it’s not always possible as if you want to see people in London you have to plan haha but I like the idea. I don’t work during the weekends, I take them off and allow my thoughts to wander.

How do you unwind, re-centre and find balance?

I love taking a bath, it’s one of my favourite things to unwind. Me, the bath and a candle, no cellphone, no Kindle, nothing and just stare at the ceiling. I do notice my body relaxing. If there is no time for a bath, I use my breath. It is always there and it always works. Even five minutes of conscious breathing can return me to the body. There are several prāṇāyāma techniques that I use. Nāḍī śodhana works wonderfully for me.

What is your favourite form of movement? (Or, way to exercise?)

I love swimming, it was the sport that I practiced the most when I was growing up, so every time I am in the pool it feels like home. I also love my Ashtanga yoga practice. Over the past year I have been exploring other ways to move my body, and I can say I have experienced fewer injuries and more vitality, they complement my yoga practice. I have incorporated jumping the rope and lifting weights as well.

Your favourite meal to cook?

Mexican food, I love it and miss it so much. I would say that my favorite meal includes beans, not any type, they have to be Mexican beans. There is a meal called Enfrijoladas. Also I find it very rich in nutrients: corn tortillas, Mexican beans, avocado. That could also mean that I am craving enfrijoladas right at this very moment. If you ask me tomorrow I would say another thing.

Your favourite place to get dinner?

Oaxaca City in Mexico is my favourite place in the world. I remember going there a few years ago and having the most amazing dinners. Cobblestone streets, mosaic floors, candlelight, Mexican food, and then a walk through a city that feels so alive and full of history. I have a theory that the people in Oaxaca are touched by a different kind of sun. There is something in the way they are so kind, the kindest of all. If you go there, you will understand.

Your guilty pleasure? :)

To watch a Netflix series that I don’t find profound at all, no learning at all, just fun to watch.

Do you experience any challenges in your work/life balance? If so, how do you navigate this? Eg. career, social, family, self

Working independently has taught me a lot about my own rhythms and limits. In the beginning, it was hard to know when to stop. There was no clear boundary between personal time and work, and everything blended into one long to-do list. With time, that has shifted. I understand myself better now. I know that I’m most focused in the mornings, so that’s when I take care of things like maintaining an online presence, reaching out to galleries, applying to open calls, and managing logistics like photography, packaging and communication. All of this is deeply connected to my creative practice; it supports and sustains it. Evenings are slower and I try to wrap up before dinner. That rhythm helps me stay centred. For me, balance is not about strict separation but about creating a flow that feels natural and sustainable. At the same time, I leave space for flexibility. There are days when I choose not to stop, or when I rest completely, either because of my period or because I am exhausted, or simply because I want to. For me, balance is not about strict rules but about staying attuned to what I actually needed. 

What/where/who do you turn to when you need inspiration?

I look outside my practice, and my routine, sometimes listening to podcasts, researching random facts, or just sitting down in a place I don’t usually sit down and look at people. Last week I learned that in 1518, around 400 people in Strasbourg mysteriously danced for days without stopping, it became known as the “dancing plague,” with some of them dancing to their deaths. Several of them died from exhaustion, strokes, or heart attacks, although the exact number of deaths is uncertain. It’s hard to believe. Another example is learning about artists that I admire so much, like Leonora Carrington. I recently learned that she co-wrote a surrealist cookbook with her friend Remedios Varo, she created bizarre recipes like “milk of unicorn” and “cooked iguana brains,” blending satire with magical realism. Those kinds of rabbit holes that I go into help in a way to see life from a different lens. That is inspiring and freeing for me. To know the possibilities of creation.

How would you describe your style? What & who influences you?

Indian philosophical thought from the 9–14th century has opened my perspective to other ways of understanding the body and thus representing it. Also artists and writers like Remedios Varo, Charlotte Yazbek, Leonora Carrington, and Elena Garro. Some have influenced me through their writing, others through their visual work; I keep coming back to them. I also love the long, textured forms in Giacometti’s, and the very profound sculptures of Lynn Chadwick. There’s a certain intensity in all of them that feels very close to what I’m exploring in my own work. I am not sure if I have a style and if I do I prefer not to mention it, I might actually believe it myself, so I prefer to keep exploring.

What is your definition of beauty?

That is very hard to answer. For me, beauty is in nature, in how humans move, and how each human experience is so authentic, and that can be seen through creative outlooks.

Do you have any additional ways that you care for your mind, body & spirit?

Humour. So important, it brings back a bit of joy even in tough times. It is a playful way to relate with the people that I love. I believe that humour can help shift even deeply embedded dynamics, change life a bit, give it a different perspective.

What are you most grateful for in your life?

I am so grateful every day for the life I have, for my family and friends. Sometimes I find it hard to believe it is my life, I feel so privileged. It’s hard to pin one thing, I feel like an overwhelming gratitude when I get asked this question. I can’t say that I feel like that all the time, but right now as writing this I do. In life you encounter moments that remind you how fragile and precious life is, I recently had a moment, so scary, but at the same time it reminded me that softness is a strength, of impermanence, it is everywhere, but when there is a hard reminder of that, you have the opportunity to shift inside, life is full of those opportunities.

Current favourite...

Book – The Hearing Trumpet by Leonora Carrington


Movie – The Darjeeling Limited by Wes Anderson


Song – I Walk the Line by Johnny Cash


Podcast – The Blindboy Podcast


Clothing item – Silk scarves


Coffee shop – Batch Baby in De Beauvoir Town

Where can we find you? Follow you?

Instagram: @reginatorres.arte
reginatorresth.com

Any additional notes:


I feel life is all about perspective :). Thank you for reading a little of my thoughts.