We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Daniel Barojas. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Daniel below.
Daniel, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today How did you learn to do what you do? Knowing what you know now, what could you have done to speed up your learning process? What skills do you think were most essential? What obstacles stood in the way of learning more?
Seeking manners in which to channel your creative and artistic ideas and inspirations into reality is a lifelong pursuit. From an early age I was fascinated by how things are created, from the carpentry of a wooden stool to the painting of a masterpiece, the creation process fascinated me endlessly.
I believe it was this inquisitive nature to learn how things were made that drew me to pursue a creative outlet for my ideas. I began to draw, and take photos at an early age, and i very often would incorporate objects or textures into the process and would experiment with mixed media artwork.
Additionally graffiti street art culture was fascinating and I became involved in the graffiti world for about 2 decades of my life. I will always be fascinated by graffiti but I don’t pretend I am an active participant in the culture like I once was. However graffiti was my first introduction into muralism which is a big part of my artistic process and creation these days. I am currently an artist, designer and muralist with many years experience in each field. Graffiti also helped lay the groundwork for design aesthetics and layout that would later greatly help my design career.
I studied art and photography in high school, and later pursued my MFA at art school, however after a year and a half, I continued my education at community college and later finished my photography degree in Mexico City where I am from. I relocated back to Mexico and continued my creative and artistic education there for several years before returning to the United States.
After my education I began to get small jobs in photography and also in design at various companies, I continued to work and gain experience in both fields until i got a job in product/toy design. I was at that position for 13 years up until covid. During this time I learned so much in design and also continued to work actively in photography as well as painting and doing mixed media artwork on my spare time. This period f my life I developed a unique style and aesthetic and also developed my brand, logo, online presence and creative output. During this time my muralism career had also begun to take form and I was starting to be able to paint more murals than before, after covid I dedicated full time to this and my artistic pursuits and haven’t stopped since. It is however a rollercoaster where there is a challenge to find ways to create a stable center where there is not such heavy financial/emotional/inspirational shifts that may cause imbalance.
I feel fortunate and I am very grateful for my creative and career trajectory, however I believe certain things in my past could have been optimized for an easier future. During my years of learning and education, i could have also began to slowly build my brand and online image/presence and began to have personal outreach for clients and work outlets for my creativity. I could have been more involved in my youth, additionally being young comes with its own challenges of which I also dealt with making my career and art trajectory even more bumpy and challenging. More dedicated focus on learning, outreach and creation of artwork would have helped strengthen artistic fundamentals and creative skills sooner.
The more time and focus that one places upon their intended creative pursuits the closer that goal seems as one achieves things step by step. The more time you are dedicated in taking tose steps the farther you go, the more you get distracted the longer it takes. Always staying of focus 100% is challenging and has been for me, life and emotions sometimes get in the way, inspiration cant be summoned on whim, the more foundations you have set for yourself, the more you can lean back on to continue your forward creative trajectory. The more you learn the more arsenal you have, so continued dedication to your pursuits is always most recommended.
Daniel, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
I am a compulsively creative creature always seeking to inspire myself and others with artworks that hopefully have a resonance and connection to the viewer, community and client. My inquisitive mind and spirit has led me to work in a variety of disciplines that have each shaped my career and also my creative process and artwork.
Muralism, Artwork and Public Art
Currently my main focus and dedication is the pursuit on expanding my career as a muralist/artist and furthermore continue to expand and explore the creative realms of the Public Art space. Since covid I have taken my muralist and artistic career as the main focus in my life, I have been fortunate to have been awarded many mural public art grants and I have had the pleasure of working with various agencies, governments and foundations in creating impactful murals for the community.
Through my murals and artworks I have continually developed a unique style while becoming familiar with a variety of mediums such as latex paint, spraypaint, gold leaf, mosaics, metal and LED’s as well as the processes in the creation of large scale murals.
Murals ranging form 5000 square feet to canvas sized artworks display a continued exploration of color, patterns shapes and forms, that are used to create the subjects and inspirations behind the artwork. Often inspiration and reverence is created within the works honoring natives and essential human fundamentals such as connection and understanding of each other and the world we all inhabit.
Graphic Design & Product Design
I have worked in the graphic design industry for more than 20 years, graphic design work was my main income for many decades, and I continue to do work in graphic design, additionally being a muralist very often involves graphic design in the creation of concepts, and presentations for projects and grants.
Photography
Photography has been a passion for many years and I have had the pleasure of working in many facets of photography from live events to studio work. The bulk of my experience comes from the many years that I worked under the tutelage as main assistant for Juan Carlos Briceno, Hyon Smith and Clay Blackmore. With these photographers I have done countless weddings, live gala events, conventions and live presentations, concerts, fundraisers and all types of events. Aside form events are the many on-site portraiture sessions and architectural photography, that involve the setup of strobe lights and reflectors and backdrops. Furthermore in-studio photography including portraiture and product photography withing a totally controlled environment allowed for an extensive opportunity to work and learn the many facets of photography.
Alright – so here’s a fun one. What do you think about NFTs?
NFTs are an interesting approach to present an item, and there have been some noteworthy examples. However the NFT boom showed that perhaps the platform needs more time to develop in a slower more organic manner. The future will determine how this platform evolves.
What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?
The most rewarding moment for myself as a creative, comes during the process of producing the artwork, many times murals. There is a point during the painting that you are so focused on your process and completely immersed into your artwork and achieving each step to get to the final result. For me this single pointed attention to creating the artwork, many times mixed with a heavy dose of music with sporadic dancing as i paint creates moments where there is nothing that matters, its only myself, my process and my artwork, the world disappears and i fully resonate in that moment, fully lost in creation. These moments are often fleeting and random, and cant be conjured on whim, yet getting lost in my artwork completely even if momentary allows me a glimpse into the connection to the essence of creation of simply just manifesting artwork from within. These rewarding moments can become fuel for times when doubt uncertainty and imbalance presents itself, you can remember how deeply creating art moves you, and you fight through the hard times.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://r5imaging.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/r5imaging/?hl=en
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/danbarojas/
Image Credits
Daniel Barojas