– What’s your Nickname?
MUTE
– Where are you from?
Lima, Peru
– Your years?
27
– What have you studied?
Graphic Design and I hated if after a while lol
– How and when did you become an illustrator?
I started taking some freelance illustration clients around 2014, while I was also working as a graphic designer in a full-time job. I officially started working as a full-time freelance illustrator at the start of 2017. Becoming a full-time independent illustrator had been my plan for a long time but I wanted a bit of experience in the design career before starting the freelance journey on my own. 2017 seemed like a good year to focus on this goal.
– What have you worked before an artist?
I’ve worked as a graphic designer in a branding agency. Years ago (back in 2007 or 2008) I took some small commissions on DeviantArt, but nothing too big.
-Where do you work and what are you working on at the moment?
I work as a freelance illustrator so I do all of my work at my own studio space, where I have all of my equipment (pc, Wacom tablet, reference books, drawing materials). I’m currently working on a personal project that I’ve had in mind for some months, it’s in the realm of character design, illustration, and toy design. In a nutshell, I’m creating a bunch of kaiju- inspired monsters (i.e.: Godzilla) with a clear influence taken from a variety of ancient Peruvian cultures. I plan on making a bunch of them and release them as prints, stickers, and sofubi or resin toys. This is my first time going the toy route so there’s a lot of stuff that’s new to me! But that makes it really exciting and I hope to have a finalized tangible product before the end of the year.
– Favorite and good artists for you?
So many! Off the top of my head, one of my main influences back, when I was developing a personal style, was french illustrator McBess. Back in 2012 or 2013, my goal was to do something similar to him but my focus has changed in the last 3 years and now I want to achieve a style that is as different and as unique to myself as his style is to him. I also enjoy the work of artists such as James Jean, Boneface, Jamie Hewlett, Takashi Murakami, Utomaru, Asano Inio, and Katsuhiro Otomo. They come from a bunch of backgrounds, some of them are freelance illustrators like myself, others are fine artists and others are manga artists, I like to keep it varied.
– Favorite drink?
Probably passion fruit juice or lemonade. Gotta love sour drinks.
– Favorite place?
Airports! I just love the intense smell of AC and the variety of stuff you can find in the many stores in them. Also, whenever I’m at an airport it can only mean two things, I’m either going on a trip or coming back from one and that’s just a great moment to be in.
– Favorite movie?
Damn…can’t give you only one so I’ll give you some that come to mind: Pulp Fiction, Love & Pop and Shiki Jitsu
– Advice to young artists:
Might be a bit clichè but just go for it. Put your work out there, the sooner the better. Many people will say that making a living as an artist is a risk but then again almost everything is a risk when you think about it… so might as well risk it while doing something you’re passionate about.
– Your strong side?:
Determination!
– Behind strong side 😉
– Sports?
I’m kinda into jogging, but I’ve never been a sporty person… I used to play basketball at school though but I wasn’t too good at it. Jogging on the other hand…there’s no competition there, I use it clear my mind and help me wake up in the morning.
