Welcome back to our International Artist Series.
Today, we're catching up with five incredible artists from Costa Rica, a beautiful Central American country with incredible sights and creative artistry. I asked each artist how their country and culture influenced their work, and they delivered great responses.
Diana Hernández
First up is Diana, a talented artist from Heredia, Costa Rica. Featuring creative characters and inspiring images, her work shows her amazing handle on gouache and drawing mediums.
See more in her portfolio and follow her on Instagram.
Monkeys
I love that Costa Rica is a small country so you can go anywhere in just a couple of hours. I absolutely love the nature here, as you can see in my illustrations, and animals are my favorite topic. I am currently trying to work on illustrations with animals that you can find specifically in Costa Rica.
Character Design Challenge: African Tribe
Going camping to national parks has had a huge impact on my work. I also think the love for nature which my family taught me ever since I was a child has been the biggest influence on my art.
Fishing Time!
Rain is Coming!
The illustration community here is pretty small, but full of talented people who are trying hard to build a better place for our kind of work. I think it is developing over time in many small steps.
Joe Mono
Illustrator and graphic designer Joe Mono creates amazing toys and graphic designs in San José, Costa Rica. Brightly colored and very funny, his work features incredible technique mixed with delightful humor.
See more in his portfolio and follow him on Instagram.
The Naked Bear
Costa Rica has the perfect amount of nature and beautiful landscapes. Costa Rica is a colorful country, full of adventures and very friendly people.
KOWI - Vinyl Toy
Much of my work is influenced by the artists I admire like Grand Chamaco, Shiffa, Steve Simpson, Aaron Martinez and mcbess. I am also inspired by the places that are seen in my country as well as its biodiversity. Usually I create illustrations of animals such as monkeys, birds, bears and more.
Many of my personal illustration projects are inspired by my daily life, things that have happened to me, and people I know on the street or simple ideas born from funny conversations.
Patrick's Bones Tank Design
Bikini Bottom Underwear Stickers
Currently, the artistic community in Costa Rica is growing very fast, there are very talented people with very good ideas. Usually people here use our culture and traditions to create their own unique characters.
Costa Rica is a country that receives tourists from all over the world, and that helps to grow the community. The foreigners give us new visions and trends to help create new ideas and designs.
Daniela Ramos Solís
Next up is Daniela, an inspiring graphic designer based in San José, Costa Rica. Inspired by nature and the wonders of daily life, she creates lovely illustrations of simple moments.
See more in her portfolio.
A Regular Sunday - Un Domingo Cualquiera
I think that the weather is one of my favorite things in Costa Rica. During the whole year, you'll need just a light sweater and an umbrella, because even if it's a sunny day, at any moment it can rain!
I live in San José, which is the capital of the country, but in spite of that, it's still a small city where you can have a quiet life and a house with a backyard. I like the food, the flowering trees at the beginning of the year, and oh, I also love that in a couple of hours you can travel from the beach to the mountains, and from the rain forests to a volcano!
Souvenir Beach Towels
My parents were born in the countryside and they often tell me their childhood stories of growing up in the middle of the forest or picking up coffee in a coffee plantation. Those experiences made them appreciate the simple details of nature, and they passed that sensibility to me. I learned to appreciate the small details of nature and to marvel at them.
So, every day, even without knowing, I find myself staring at the mountains, and watching the colors and shapes of them. Besides that, I was lucky enough to grow up surrounded by art, as my father is a sculptor. In every corner of my parents' house, there's a sculpture, a painting, or a ceramic piece, and that, of course, developed my interest in art.
A Regular Sunday - Un Domingo Cualquiera
I SCREAM - desArtic Exhibition
The art community is growing, but has not always been so united. It is, however, strengthening and learning to work together, seeing itself more as a unit and not just as a competition. I think there is also a real interest for artists to bring art to the general public, taking it to the streets and putting people in contact with it.
In addition, I am really happy to see that graphic design is becoming more relevant and that the art community understands that, in addition to being utilitarian, it is also an art that brings beauty and content.
Carlos Mora
Designing with clean modernity is our next designer, Carlos Mora, from Alajuela, Costa Rica. Finding a balance between simplicity and form, he creates incredible designs of posters, typography, and logos.
See more in his portfolio and follow him on Instagram.
Composition
Living in Costa Rica is a privilege, it is a country full of color, rich in culture, and has beautiful landscapes and beaches. The people are friendly, cordial and have the freedom to express their opinions.
Freedom
Costa Rica has tried to preserve its customs, identity and originality. At the moment it's taking shape and developing in every artistic discipline.
Poster 24/7
Poster Collection
The artistic community is small but has a lot of potential. It is currently in constant growth and evolution; each artist has different capacities, which they share with the community. This creates a great network of support to obtain feedback and artistic and professional growth.
Diana Salas
Diana Salas has a passion for typography as a brilliant graphic designer based in Cartago, Costa Rica. Multi-talented in many arenas, she creates everything from incredible paper crafts to creative advertisements.
See more in her portfolio and follow her on Instagram.
36 Days of Type - Paper Craft
This little piece of land has many treasures, and the beautiful people are the best. But what I love the most is peace. The "ticos" are under the slogan of "pura vida" and we try to solve everything peacefully, which is something that the world needs.
36 Days of Type - Papercraft
The great diversity that our country has made me discover different spaces to work in and I constantly challenge myself not to stay in my comfort zone.
La Guaria se Transforma en Lluvia - The Guaria is Transformed into Rain
36 Days of Type - Papercraft
I think we are all exploring our origins and becoming more organic. Being so immersed in the virtual, the artistic spaces have been a therapy that I've enjoyed.
Many thanks to the artists who took the time to answer my questions and share a bit about themselves and how their country and/or culture has affected their work. You can check out more of their work in the links below:
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