Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Isabella Medina. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Isabella, appreciate you joining us today. What do you think it takes to be successful?

I view success as the ability to adhere to one’s ethics while working towards small goals. I don’t relate success to outside perception, recognition, or traditional markers of achievement. For me and my work, being successful means growing my skills while using my time and resources to connect with and uplift my community. Art and design are powerful tools for communication and advocacy, and as human beings, we like to share our views and feelings, communicating our thoughts whether physically or digitally, allows us to feel represented and seen, and helps reinforce our values to ourselves and others.

In my design work, I try to separate what I do for income, and what I do because I want to see it exist in the world. We’re often taught that a perfect job exists that will provide income, align with our interests and morals, and advance our standing in our field. I’ve found that success for me, is the ability to take care of myself, pay rent, and make time to care for and recognize those in my community who need support.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I’m an always-learning and improving creative practitioner. I started as a self-taught photographer and typography nerd and went on to formally study graphic design. I was lucky to work with a wide scope of media and learn about their historical relevance and context. I fell in love with screen printing, risograph printing, and sign painting, as well as alternative and punk methods of design like zine making and graffiti.
Now in my practice, I spend part of my time doing digital design for less exciting but necessary things like emails and ads, and the rest of my time creating visual solutions for things like political campaigns, abortion and immigration rights advocacy, and small businesses. I’m happiest when I’m able to use design for good, whether that looks like creating awareness and action around social campaigns or using design systems to make everyday life easier, clearer, and more pleasant to look at.

Are there any books, videos, essays or other resources that have significantly impacted your management and entrepreneurial thinking and philosophy?

Two great books I found while studying design, were The Design of Everyday Things by Don Norman, and Invisible Women, by Caroline Criado-Perez, which explores the effects of data bias in the built world. These books helped me understand that everything from crash test dummies to snow plows requires a diverse set of testing in order to create a functional design and that every built system caters towards some groups over others, thereby creating inequality in ways that are imperceptible to the dominant group.
I have also been guided by the Design Justice Network, as well as the concept of the growth mindset. The Design Justice Network teaches us that we can change designed systems through collaboration and using each others lived experiences. The growth mindset teaches us that we are not inherently good or bad at anything, simply learning and growing over time.

Alright – so here’s a fun one. What do you think about NFTs?

I’m a firm believer that it is our responsibility, as creators to begin the creative process with design justice principles in mind, and ask questions like, do we need this? Is this the best solution? Is this approach exploitative? Who will be affected by this approach and is that person involved in this decision-making process?
While it may be possible, it seems unlikely that blockchain technology will ever exist sustainably, (many currently have the energy consumption equivalent to entire countries) I doubt this will change without a clear consumer demand. It saddens me that the Western capitalist concept of ownership is so deeply ingrained in our society that we have created extremely unnecessarily wasteful, and volatile forms of currency, to build wealth, and show off our commitment to consumerism… when we could just, share gifs for free. This is a situation where personally I would ask, do we need to do this?

Contact Info:

• Website: https://siempresnacktime.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/siempresnacktime
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ismeco/