Tobin Heath: Creativity is Within All of Us

Tobin Heath works on the piece “ADA”, inspired by Ada Lovelace. Images courtesy of Tobin Heath

U.S. soccer star Tobin Heath lives life to the fullest. For the two-time Olympic gold medalist and two-time FIFA Women's World Cup team champion, that includes pursuing artistic passions. “Painting is a beautiful medium,” says Tobin. “It helps me communicate in ways I feel that I cannot with spoken words.”

Tobin began creating at a young age. “When I was little, my mom said I was going to grow up to be an architect because I was always building…whether it be a tree house or my Legos,” she says. As the Creative Director of re—inc, a gender-neutral fashion and lifestyle brand she co-founded with Megan Rapinoe, Meghan Klingenberg, and Christen Press, Tobin paints an original artwork for each new collection. The pieces act as both the inspiration and physical representation of the collection’s theme.

In April, re—inc launches its Spring 2021 collection, Gamer, inspired by the stories of women, BIPOC, and activists in gaming. Tobin’s new piece is titled the “ADA,” named after Ada Lovelace, an English mathematician and one of the first computer programmers. The ADA was meticulously created following a repetition of the numbers 0 and 1. As with her past work, Tobin offered the piece through an auction and will donate 17% of the proceeds to charity in honor of her U.S. Women’s National Team number, 17. The proceeds from the ADA benefit Black Girls Code. 

Here, Tobin shares how she uses her art to drive change, her approach to the craft, and why she makes a bold move at the end of each piece she creates.

“Creativity is natural within all of us. I am a creator as an athlete…as an artist…and a million other ways.”

When you look at ADA, what does it convey?

ADA is about disrupting the binary. ADA depicts the strange connection between the natural world and the digital world. Named after Ada Lovelace, regarded as the first computer programmer, the painting nods at the hidden narratives of women who have transformed the world.

To create a piece like the ADA, what is your process like? Do you create all at once? In stages? And is there a specific reason behind the process?

At re—inc, instead of creating stories about products, we create collections based around the reimagined story we want to share with the world. As the Creative Director, my job is to bring that concept to the team, so we can collectively bring it to life through products, experiences, and content. Each re—inc painting that I’ve done, including ADA, is the exploration of the upcoming Collection.

Our Gamer Collection is inspired by our own stories and experiences as players and is powered by the stories of other women pioneers in the video game industry. We offer a reimagined perspective of women in the game and we intend to open a discussion about gender identity and representation; and to motivate our community to join us in disrupting outdated systems and rebuilding new, modern, inclusive ones.

In researching and developing this story, I reflected a lot on the excuse we often hear about lack of investment in women’s sports: that women are just not as physically strong and capable as men. I don’t agree with that, and I thought gaming was the perfect industry to look at to debunk that, as the video game world does not have the element of physicality.

The process of ADA was two-fold, building the pattern, which took a few months in itself; and then breaking the pattern, which was the final act. I always crave the moment of disruption. It’s challenging to make a bold move at the end, as you risk ruining all the work. But the energy and motivation I feel to make that bold move is what I want to share with the world.

Is it true that you painted this in the stairwell of your building and got paint on the walls?

No comment :)

“Painting is a beautiful medium. It helps me communicate in ways I feel that I cannot with spoken words.”

Do you feel more self-pressure while playing soccer or painting?

I honestly don’t think too much about pressure. I focus on doing what I love and make a conscious choice to not hold external pressure or expectations in my mind. There is a vulnerability in the performance of football, a window into your soul. I feel a bit of that vulnerability when I share my art with the world.

When the clock runs out, the scoreboard can indicate success. But art can be more subjective. How do you define the success of your work?

If I like it.

You've said "I don’t want a perfect life, I don’t want an easy life, I want to live life to the fullest." Where does your art factor into living life to the fullest?

I truly have a passion for a lot of different things. I’m happy when I’m creating and loving and living. I enjoy learning new techniques or mediums as an artist. I live my life to the fullest by doing what I want to do, and helping others out along the way.

If you’d like to read more from The Creative Factor—such as Morten Bonde’s story about working as a LEGO Art Director while losing his sight or how Alinea’s designer has reimagined the coffee maker—subscribe to our newsletter.