Meet Catalina Diaz | Illustrator

We had the good fortune of connecting with Catalina Diaz and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Catalina, why did you decide to pursue a creative path?
It wasn’t until I was in high school that I realized that being an artist was a viable career option. My art teacher did a presentation on the art college she went to and she talked about how it helped her in her creative journey which inspired me to pursue the same journey for myself. During that journey I decided that I wanted to become a children’s book illustrator, and then to work in children’s media in general. I am still working on getting my foot into the children’s media scene but I’m working hard to get there. I like seeing people enjoy the art that I make and I want it to be art that inspires them as well.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I’ve experimented a lot with different mediums and styles when I started taking art seriously. I like seeing how different mediums act and what I can actually do with them to get the effects that I desire. When I have art block I like to do gesture drawings in my sketchbook to get my hands moving and creating. I’ll change what medium I’m using so I don’t feel like I’m stuck doing the same thing over and over again. I still don’t think I have an established style on how I like to create things but I think that’s the fun part about what I do.

Currently the main thing I paint are chickens in various clothing items or situations. It started with just chickens in hats due to a character I created for one of my college class assignments named Henrietta, she likes to wear hats for her circus performances. The inspiration for Henrietta came from the fact that my grandparents had chickens when I was growing up. Every year my family would go to Mexico to visit them and I would spend countless hours outside in the backyard with the chickens and stray cats.

I think you can really tell when someone had fun creating a piece and when they didn’t so I’ve learned that I can’t keep worrying about pleasing everyone with my art so I try to make sure I put out art that I enjoy and love. If I spent all the time trying to make the “perfect” piece for everybody then I wouldn’t have any art to show.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I’ve lived in Aurora my whole life and there’s a lot of great places now so it’ll be hard to choose. I would like to take my friend to get breakfast at one of the local breakfast places in downtown but I would have them choose since I would be too indecisive to pick just one place. Afterwards I would take them for a walk in downtown Aurora to check out the local spots. Superjumbo and The Yetee Arcade would definitely be somewhere we would stop at. Then we’d check out the local art and murals around downtown, like parking lot H where Bom Da Lot took place where all kinds of different graffiti artists got to put something up for the year. Later on I would probably take them to the Fox Valley Mall to check out Round 1 and to check out Pacifica Square across the street and get something to eat there.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
Shoutout to Mrs. Schroeder-Sears, my high school art teacher, who made me realize that I could become an artist and have a career in the creative field. I’d also like to thank all my friends who’ve stuck with me in my creative journey and helped me get through some tough times. I would like to list them but the list would be a bit long haha.

Website: https://www.catalinadiazart.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/catalinadiazart/

Image Credits
Janice Rodriguez