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

Anna, appreciate you joining us today. Looking back on your career, have you ever worked with a great leader or boss? We’d love to hear about the experience and what you think made them such a great leader.

Finding a truly supportive boss is the best thing that can happen to you and it’s rare to come by. The first job I got in the U.S. was at the Pottery Barn textile studio, and it was such an eye opening experience. I rememeber my first day working there thinking “I’m getting paid to paint?! I must’ve died and gone to heaven!” My boss at the time was this fantastic, old school artist and painter who deeply understood the creative process and how to foster it. When I interviewed with her it was very casual, I showed her my portfolio and she saw something in me that convinced her to hire me almost on the spot. She was very intuitive with people and it showed in the team she had built- a bunch of magnificently talented artists & designers that she was able to mentor and teach to think outside the box. She never lost her spark and creative spirit, even after so many years working in a corporate environment. I appreciated her protecting that over anything else.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

Hi! My name is Anna and I’m a Spanish born and raised artist and designer. I feel like the creative field picked me: as a kid I always managed to have a pencil or a brush in my hand. My challenge was navigating this field because nobody in my family was creative which made it a lot harder to accomplish what I wanted.

My secret, deep down desire was to become a painter, but I never thought I’d be able to pull that off. I initially wanted to study fine art, but in a country like Spain that felt very risky. What industry would I be able to work in with a degree like that? I decided to pursue Graphic Design as a middle ground of creative but utilitarian to broaden my options. Even though I still wish I had done fine art, Graphic Design is such a useful degree because it’s incredible versatile. I can’t deny how helpful it has been to have this knowledge. And I now paint in my free time as a hobby which I guess makes me a painter of some sort, haha!

The career options for me in Spain were incredibly limited so I made the hard decision to move to the U.S. My mother is American, and even though I had spent my summers here, I had never experienced living here full time. I felt like my only option was to move to try to find a job. This meant leaving behing my family, friends, boyfriend… It ultimately worked out, but it took three attempts (never give up!). It was the hardest and best decision I ever made. Even though I miss Spain terribly and try to visit as much as possible, this was the best move I could have done career-wise. Had I stayed, I would have had to settle for some other career, which I really didn’t want to do.

I began working for corporate companies in the San Francisco Bay Area including Pottery Barn, The North Face, Mountain Hardwear, Rothy’s…. and over time built such a great network of people that I was able to switch to being self employed. Thanks to my experience in these companies, I gained knowledge in textiles, surface design & apparel, which broadened what I could offer my clients, and therefore the job pool. As a freelancer, I have worked with a mix of larger, corporate companies as well as smaller startups. My proudest moment was illustrating 2021 Nobel in Literature Abdulrazak Gurnah’s book cover artwork for the Spain and Latin American markets. I never thought I’d work on such an amazing project and I’m very happy I was able to contribute in that way.

My background being in Graphic Design, then having experience in textiles but also having naturally been able to draw my whole life really expanded my options in the working field. My current work ranges mostly between illustration & surface/ textile design (which requires a lot of illustration). But then I’ll get a request for some hard core Graphic Design layout work which I also really enjoy. I love having a variety of projects to work on, it keeps me focused and on my toes. I’m a person who likes variety and change so I thrive in an environment like that.

I’ve also had a couple of my own companies which have been such a wonderful learning experience. It’s not the same to create artwork than to own the entire product development process. A business is hard to run, and most of it is not the fun, creative aspect. I’m currently working on a paper goods/ wallpaper & fabric brand (@bouprintsandgoods) with my own artwork and again learning as I go, as I’ve never worked with this line of products. It feels like a great vehicle for print design and I’m excited to explore the possibilities!

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

Being genuine to yourself. I think so often about the possibility of having stayed in Spain and having to switch careers. It would have been spiritual suicide. I cannot deny that I’m an artist at heart, and denying myself that would have been a total betrayal. I think even though it wasn’t the easiest path- and still isn’t- I wouldn’t want to do anything else. Where there’s a will, there’s a way!

What can society do to ensure an environment that’s helpful to artists and creatives?

This is such an inmensly important question to ask, especially right now with the up and coming of AI. At the end of the day, I ask myself- what is life without art? Art is culture, it’s storytelling, it’s history… It’s putting your mind and your soul out there for everyone to see. It’s exposing injustices, it’s critical thinking… We need to remember the contributions the creative mind grants to life and human kind. It’s not just something pretty to look at.

When I came to a crossroads in my career, I sat down with myself and thought: what am I going to be proud of when I’m on my death bed? And the only real answer that came to mind was the creation of genuine art. Creativity with no limits or brand guidelines. My own personal, self exploration of topics worth examining. For example, I’m working on a series of paintings and objects based on my Spanish heritage, and in some way, it’s a form of therapy. It’s exploring where I come from, who I come from- who I am as a person. These are the things that make deep, impactful changes and if someone else can enjoy them along the way, even better!

It’s imperative that we protect human creativity. It’s a divine channel. All of the aspects associated with art are so important for our society and culture, we need to protect it and cultivate it as much as possible, especially with the looming threat of AI. Why aren’t machines doing the menial jobs so that humans can focus on the best trait their brains have to offer, creativity? Support your local artists as much as you can, show up, talk to people, buy local if you’re able to. All these things sustain your community and ultimately yourself!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.anna-martinez.com
• Instagram: @annamrtnz / @bouprintsandgoods
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anna-lillian-martinez/

Image Credits

All my own pics :-)