Romanian Artist, designer and musician Mihai (Mike) Bancila never expected to put down his paintbrush for a few weeks to help neighboring Ukrainian refugees find shelter, anywhere they could, in his hometown but that’s exactly what happened.

In this week‘s episode, he shares his frustration with the war, his love of art and how punk rock is giving his life some context.  

We talk about the choice to be an artist and what it means to follow faithfully wherever that path takes you. How closing our studios and losing everything in 2020 taught us about creative courage and who we really are.

How necessary is courage for creativity to live at the forefront of our lives? Can we overcome our collective hesitancy, as a result of the pandemic, through creative practice?

We get into the importance of presence and why enjoying the process matters. He says “Art is the process of me being with me, enjoying what I am doing without thinking of the outcome”. 

Mihai is high energy, inspiring and a part of a weekly artist’s collective I facilitate, and today we deconstruct the most recent creative challenge he led our group in and share an inside look at our own creative process, emotional upsets and tools for problem solving that work.

What we further explore in this conversation

• - How creative courage teaches us to correct our mistakes because we can’t control- alt- delete them but instead must create solutions.
• - Why showing up consistently as an artist and to the work is critical.
• - How art teaches you the value of being present. 
• - Why our art is our personal message to the world. 

Enjoy this episode. I hope it makes you go out and make art!

You can connect with Mihai (Mike) Bancilla, here:

• Website:: www.bcatelier.ro
• YouTube::  https://youtu.be/N8d6fX7RYH4
• Insta:: https://www.instagram.com/mbancila/
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Quick note, I just want to say thank you for listening to this episode. I know it means a lot to myself and my guests. 

If you enjoyed this episode, you will also like:

Episode #10: Catherine Just: Using Art as Medicine to Heal Your Life

Episode #13: Evan La Ruffa: Building Community Through Art and Activism

Episode #29: Cynthia Morris: Creativity Embodied

Here, you’ll discover even more deep wisdom and practical tools to be more present to your life and create what’s next.

Learn more about me, Robyn Ivy:

• https://www.robynivy.com/
• https://www.instagram.com/robynivy/
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MORE ABOUT MIHAI:

Mihai Bancila is a professional multidisciplinary artist. Graduate of The National University of Arts in Bucharest, Romania. He works on several media, including illustration, painting, sculpture, blown glass and graphic design. He came into contact with art from an early age, being practically raised in the studios of well known plastic artists (his father Dan Bancila is a well known Romanian artist). 

After graduating, he worked in several companies as a designer or art director then opened an advertising agency where he was creative director. In parallel, he exhibited works of glass or painting in various group or solo exhibitions. For the last 5 years he shared a design studio “BC Atelier” together with a photographer friend. 

The studio focused mainly on brand design and illustration, working a lot with theaters. Mihai bancila drew and illustrated over 50 posters for plays from Shakespeare to Fyodor Dostoevsky. He is no stranger to music either. He plays bass in a rock band from Bucharest with countless concerts - Gray Matters (band) and the story is yet to tell :))