We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Melanie Benyahya a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Melanie, thanks for joining us today. Learning the craft is often a unique journey from every creative – we’d love to hear about your journey and if knowing what you know now, you would have done anything differently to speed up the learning process.

I was raised in a family of artists, so my love for creation has been part of my life since I was a child. My relationship with art has been led by a need for expression and a constant search for belonging. Although my educational background is in journalism and graphic design, I love doing a lot of different things such as illustration, analog photography, collage, writing and tattooing.

I started my journey as a self-taught artist – observing nature and translating it to paper and from there to skin. Because it resembles a way of drawing that I have always resonated with, fine-line tattooing has become the medium that I have connected with the most.

I have always loved to organize and lead teams, especially when the goal is to bring to life a vision or a project, so the evolution towards Creative Direction has been natural. I started working at Pineal Magazine as Editorial and Creative Director. After my time at Pineal Magazine, I felt a strong calling for the music industry and I starting working as a Creative Director with bands including London based Alien Tango, Madrid based Dear Leo and New York City based City of the Sun. I love experimentation and keeping my mind open to new ideas – creating merch, stage design, art direction, designing promotional materials and social media content – building towards a bigger coherent concept.

The most essential skill as a creative is to be resilient, adaptive, and to never give up. Like any field, there are always going to be others around you doing amazing things and it’s important to find that inspiring without comparing yourself – you have to be confident in your individuality, keep your vision clear and stay focused!

I’m still learning how to improve and be a better creative – implementing new techniques, tools, reading, taking courses, etc. There’s always something that can be learned and that is enriching. I wish I would have studied something related to design and drawing earlier on to accelerate my process. And although being a self-taught artist has been a longer journey, it has been fun because I have gotten to experiment and find my own way.

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?

I am a multidisciplinary artist and most of my work is in Fine Line Tattooing and Creative Direction. Although these are two worlds that seem distant, there are many things in common. I fuse various artistic disciplines with a constant exploration of new forms of expression, both digital and analog, while maintaining an inclusive perspective linked with nature, psychology and sustainability.

I started publishing poems, illustrations and photographs at Pineal Magazine. It was a DIY project that I founded, including Spanish and Latin American artists such as Lara Moreno, Bran Solo or Escandar Algeet and had a very good response from the public. We were creating a monthly issue that was first published online and then in print. It was exciting seeing these pages brought to life, selling out edition after edition.

My time at Pineal Magazine gave me the push to believe in myself as an artist and provided me the courage to start my independent career as an Illustrator and Tattoo Artist. I am grateful to have worked as a Tattoo Artist for so many years now, along this jourmey I’m super happy to have worked with some notable companies and celebrities including Universal Music, Sony Music Entertainment, DVICIO, Art Company Shoes, Andrés Ceballos, Elena Furiase and Victoria Shoes.

I’ve always been inspired by nature and the intricacies of the mind and this is highly characterized in my art. After posting my designs, bands started reaching out wanting me to create their artwork. Nowadays I don’t only work for bands, but am also working for brands, helping them to launch projects and events creating their online and offline image. This is how my career as a Creative Director started.

Currently I’m working as a Fine Line Tattoo Artist and Creative Director. This year I’ve also started providing art workshops, along with other friends, as one-day retreats based on environmental awareness, health, athletics, and well-being. We’ve been fortunate to be sponsored by brands that aligned with our vision such as Matcha and Co., Víver Kombucha, Agua Nea, Gloop, and Yuyo Calm. It’s been a continuous journey of exploration and I’m loving it.

Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?

I find value in what I can bring to the world, making sure my contributions align with my core values. The intention that you put out there sets the tone of your career. As a Spanish woman of Moroccan descent, I’ve grown up with racism and the feeling of never fitting in, and that’s why one of my main priorities is to create a safe space for women, the LGTBIQ+ community and people at risk of social exclusion.

Working with the body is intimate and can be extremely vulnerable, especially when it comes to tattooing because it’s a permanent modification. People need to be treated with care and respect and I have focused my efforts in creating safe spaces and giving my clients the communication, sensitivity and care they deserve.

I prioritize human rights, animal wellbeing and taking care of our planet collaborating with NGO’s and always doing the research before working with a company or another artists. As a Tattoo Artist I’m committed to reduce single use plastics and all products that I use are cruelty free.

How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?

My life has always been shape-shifting, I am constantly experimenting and challenging myself in different environments and disciplines. I started in journalism because I wanted to become a writer. At first, I was self-publishing my work and writing everyday. Through this process, I discovered how much I loved using photographs, collages and drawings to complement my writing, and soon after that I started giving more energy to visual expression. Drawing naturally led me to tattooing and from there to creative direction. I have also found a passionate connection leading creative workshops based in wellbeing, nature as well as community building.

It has never been a straight line, but what I’m sure of is that I need a creative life surrounded by nature and artistic people. That’s what makes me thrive.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://melaniebenyahya.com/
• Instagram: @melanie.benyahya
• Other: Tiktok: @melanie.benyahya

Image Credits

Picture with sunset background by @alt.cto
Picture working on the ipad by Vico Calbó
“Marte” collage for Dear Leo single cover.