We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Vanessa Zavala Clark a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Vanessa, appreciate you joining us today. Can you talk to us about a project that’s meant a lot to you?
The most meaningful project I’ve worked on is the Meet Me in the Downtown Arts District campaign for the Museum and Cultural Affairs department of El Paso. This was an open call to artists to create a piece of art to be wrapped around a city bus with the mission of encouraging the public to visit the Downtown Arts District in El Paso. My concept referenced Michelangelo’s the Creation of Adam, fingers touching, along with some of downtown El Paso’s artistic landmarks and desert flora. I was thrilled that my art, along with one other artist, was chosen because my illustration now travels as moving public art to different communities and areas of the city. It takes different routes, so the bus reaches a huge variety of El Paso’s population daily. I hope that it encourages people to visit the El Paso Museum of Art and be more aware of the city’s cultural and artistic presence. I have had an interest in public art since college. When I took an Art History class that focused on local public art we took a tour of local murals that was very inspirational. My father, who passed away when I was very young, also painted and created a mural of the Virgen de Guadalupe outside of a little neighborhood grocery store, I have looked upon that fondly for the past 30+ years. So, for me to be able to create digitally illustrated moving public art along with traditionally painted stationary murals is a nice way to feel connected to him and that I am contributing to our community.
Vanessa, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
I have been a full time graphic designer and artist for the past 5 years. I have a B.F.A. from the University of Texas at El Paso with a focus on graphic design and ceramics. Initially I wasn’t sure what I wanted to focus on in college, but once I started taking art classes I felt like I was headed in the right direction. Looking back, this makes complete sense as my father was an artist and my mother a graphic designer. Throughout college I worked at a local printshop doing pre-press which helped me learn about the logistics of printing and how to properly prepare files. I loved the studio classes and learning a bit about working in different types of artistic mediums. My last year in college I was awarded best graphic design for a poster in the student art show.
During the semester prior to graduating, I got married and we started a life and family together. We lived in Okinawa, Japan, central Texas, Colorado and settled back in El Paso, Texas. I was a stay-at-home mom for almost 7 years. I enjoyed doing arts and crafts with my 2 boys, sewed and painted as a hobby when I had time. Once they were both in school, I started working at a screen-printing shop. This work experience helped me feel more comfortable working back on the computer and in computer design programs that I had previously felt proficient in. After 2 years I decided it was time to move forward and become a full-time self-employed, freelance artist.
Once I took that leap, things started falling into place and I felt much more content with my life. I created a lot of self-initiated projects to add new graphics and content to my portfolio. I started participating in local markets and was fortunate enough to find local art-focused shops to sell my artwork. My design clients range from local artists that need a little help creating a professional looking business card to boutique logos and corporate magazine ads. I have painted residential and commercial murals locally, as well as digitally illustrated murals for one of the largest companies in America.
Aside from designing on the computer I also enjoy painting and ceramics. I feel like working in different mediums boosts my creativity and I never get bored. My favorite subject matter is the cactus and flora found here in the Chihuahuan Desert as well as native animals and the Franklin Mountains. I’m very proud of my Hispanic heritage and growing up in a border city has given me a perspective filled with mixed cultures as well as living abroad, traveling and my life experiences. I enjoy sharing my colorful point of view with others.
Have you ever had to pivot?
As I previously mentioned I transitioned from being a stay-at-home mom to working for someone else to being my own boss. That was a huge change involving both my career and personal life. I look back very fondly at those years caring for my kids full-time and being very focused on them. Once I accepted the idea of returning to work outside of the home, I was very happy about the change and adapted to my new role. Forming new friendships with co-workers and finding my creative voice again helped me transition into the career of being a full-time artist and believing in myself. I’m also very fortunate to have a supportive husband. I have been creative and crafty my whole life, so being able to put the focus back on that side of me and look toward to the future with new goals in mind was a very rewarding process.
What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?
As a graphic designer I find the element of problem solving to fulfill a concept very rewarding. It can be challenging to create visual imagery to convey a client’s vision. When a client’s expectations are met or even exceeded, that is a very rewarding feeling. As an artist I enjoy using my imagination and the process of physically creating something from nothing. I like watching people react to my art – whether it’s a funny graphic that I created for stickers or a hand-built ceramic sculpture.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.vanessaclarkdesigns.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/vanessaclarkdesigns/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/VanessaClarkDesigns
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/vanessa-clark-designs/