Amaia Arrazola

Amaia Arrazola began as an art director in advertising agencies. She was not aware that her path would not be entirely predictable. She fell in love with drawing after traveling to Paris; Amaia realized that she still had things to discover. A change of scene from Madrid to Barcelona became her door to the world of advertising illustration. Since then, she has found her vocation in the city of Barcelona.

FLIC: You started in the world of advertising. When did you realize that that it didn’t fulfil you?
AMAIA: Well, it was really a natural process. I’d worked for years in agencies and bit by bit I realized that my interest was more focused on illustration than in advertising creativity. So the logical path was to leave it.

How did you get started? Did you have support from your family?
I was able to move to Barcelona through a scholarship program Krea Caja Vital Kutxa, which unfortunately no longer exists. This gave me some stability. And yes, I always had the support of my family. Maybe at first, they didn’t understand why I had decided to leave a stable and permanent job but when they saw that I was very happy, I guess, they realized that it was best for me.

Was art a part of your dreams when you were little?
No, not at all. I wasn´t the typical person who had clear ideas of what I wanted to do when I was a child. It just happened.

You have moved from Madrid to Barcelona. What have you noticed with this change?
The city is different; I won’t say better or worse, just different. I like being able to get around by bike, the sunny weather, its closeness to the sea and of course I like the change in my life.

How would you describe yourself as an illustrator?
That’s a difficult question. I’d like to think that I’m quite creative… I can find solutions to problems. I’m quite quick and effective which I’m sure I inherited from my life in publishing. I like fresh and spontaneous things which I hope are a reflection of who I am.

Is there anything in particular that motivates you?
Many things but nothing specific.

Before you became a freelancer, you were working for advertising agencies such as McCann Erickson. What knowledge from that time have you transferred to your current job?
The way of working, as I told you before you must be fast and efficient. I have learnt about a macro company from the inside. I met the hierarchies and bureaucracies. I learnt how a business works; I figured out what the customer wants, the diversity of styles and also I learnt to be patient.

How do you seek your inspiration when you start a new project? Which places inspire you?
The internet, the street, life, other exhibitions, being aware of what happens around me.

Tell us about some of your recent projects.
In January I was in Miscelanea Gallery in Barcelona, with ‘The Big W.i.p’ project, wip means Work in Progress. I wanted to show more than one result in the process of creating something. And because everything was so small on sheets of paper, I figured out that it was better to do it on walls. Through a streaming camera, people could see what was happening. For 7 days I worked in the gallery, and the truth is that the result was very satisfying.

Later that month, I was invited to participate in the Ús Barcelona, an urban art festival held in the old Encants. For two days I was painting a wall, which was also fun.

Where would you like to see one of your artworks exhibited?
I’d love to see one of my artworks cover the building of Spanish Square in Madrid as happened in 2010, with the campaign for Movistar Spain.