Introduction

“My name is Marta Garcia and I’m a freelance illustrator based in Madrid, Spain. I also teach Digital Art at a prestigious school based in Madrid. I’ve been drawing for as long as I can remember and I started thanks to my granny who was a painter.”

Question 1: How is your art different from other artists? And how is art important in society? 

“I don’t think my art differs a lot from other artists but I try to make my illustrations super textured to get that special result. I find art important in society because it helps people get away, and escape from reality even if it’s only for a little while. There are lots of different kinds of art so people can choose how to disconnect from reality.”

Question 2: What advice would you give to young children who want to pursue art? And what lessons would you give them? 

“I would tell them to risk it! It’s not an easy career but if you do what you love and love what you do the way it’s much easier. That would be my lesson: do what you love, even if it won’t make you rich or famous. Don’t do it for the money, do it for yourself to escape reality for a while. I would also tell them to practice. It may seem a little tedious but if you love drawing or painting you won’t notice how many hours you spend practicing.”

Question 3: What animation movies do you love? And how do you incorporate some in your art? 

“I love all Disney and Dreamworks movies but if I had to choose a favorite I’d go for The Prince of Egypt and Pocahontas. I like to draw fanart as a tribute to my favorite characters always my texture touch.”

Question 4: What type of key factors influence your art? And how do those factors make you improve your art?

“I’d say some of my key factors come from other artists I admire like for example character designers Jin Kim or Glen Keane. I learned from them tips and ways to draw focusing on anatomy and lineart. One key factor for me is studying and working on anatomy; I always use references when I want to draw a specific pose; I find this vital to understand how the human (or other animal) body works. References help you develop the way you draw poses, always use references.”

Question 5: What are some of your techniques to get through creative blocks? And does it help refresh your ideas/mind to create new characters?

“When I have a creative/artist block I try not to overthink it or give it too much importance; don’t stress about it, just relax and do something else. I draw every day of the week except one. It’s my rule that you have to rest once a week so you can reset yourself and avoid blocks. When you want to draw and nothing comes to mind or you don’t know how to start (artist block), one thing you can do is search for references and warm up; draw random poses or people. Inspiration will find you working, said Pablo Picasso.”

Question 6: What impact do you want your art to make in the world? 

“I’d love it if my art meant something to people in general; I’m a vegetarian and it may sound corny but I’ve always wanted to make people think what consequences have their actions. I want my art to “shake” people’s consciences and maybe change their minds about eating animals. Make the world a better place right? I don’t know the kind of politics but that’s how I’d want my art to impact the world (even though I try to be as neutral as possible).”