My name is: Sydney Oh.

I’m known as: Ceramic artist of Milk and Clay.

My expertise is in: Strategizing. I dream up creative communications and marketing plans for fashion and lifestyle brands and have been a publicist for the last decade. Working with clay is my preferred medium and creative outlet.

I stay physically healthy with: Iyengar Yoga—it’s my absolute favorite. It’s a very technical form of practicing yoga, which focuses more on alignment, posture and precision. I also do nerve glides and stretches to help relieve stress tension in the neck and traps. I take Korean ginseng extracts that are known to boost immunity. In Asian cultures, drinking herbal medicine to treat ailments is common. It can be customized for your personal needs. I also regularly get acupuncture, which I really miss right now.  

I keep my emotions balanced with: During this time of isolation, I’ve never felt more connected with my friends and family, as we check in on each other daily. It’s been interesting and fun to journal and reflect using Moon Lists’ workbook and wheel prompt. I also have a five-year diary, so it’s nice to have the ability to reflect on a period of time, whether I’m reading an entry from yesterday, today or five years from now to revisit this period of quarantine.  

I’m intellectually stimulated by: All of my recent readings have been about perspective. Currently, I’m reading Minor Feelings: An Asian American Reckoning, and it’s shed light on feelings and experiences I’ve had as a Korean American but didn’t know how to articulate. Charles Einstein’s essay “The Coronation” has profound points, and Atmos Magazine’s newsletter coverage is great. A recent one was titled “Healing” and recapped studies on how climate change and deforestation are related to the pandemic we’re facing today. 

I was recently transformed by: Around this time last year, I went to Oaxaca for a residency program with Pocoapoco. It was my first solo trip, and I realized how much I enjoy personal time to explore and travel alone. I learned a lot about Zapotec culture and these badass women who aren’t afraid to push boundaries. It was fun to meet a group of creatives, connecting with locals and artists over communal dining experiences and studio visits in the most fun and vibrant town.

In the last six months, the ritual that has become so important for me is: Facial massages! I'm very big on skincare and love a daily bath with magnesium flakes, as this is my time to unwind. But, lately, I’ve been incorporating facial massages for myself. I can see that it’s helping tone my face a bit too!

Here’s how you can do it too: There are many tutorials online and on YouTube. I watched several and combined the steps I preferred most, including from this video here. 

It helps me live my process because:  It relieves the areas where I hold tension while navigating these challenging times.

Photographs by Sally Griffiths

Take a “Moment” to learn more about Sydney Oh’s journey here.