Arts as Escapism The CreativeMindClass Blog

I'm originally from Venezuela. I grew up in a very tropical city with hills and palm trees. However, I it was never allowed for me to experience my surroundings fully (partly due to my parents' excessive protection and a lot more due to the everyday insecurities in my own country). The majority of my time was spent indoors. TV and reading became my primary forms of escapism - and drawing! I would spend hours drawing my most favorite characters from anime as well as my family, friends, pets I couldn't have, costumes, and anything really.

The main reason was for a leisure activity at the time, and I was conscious that it wouldn't extend beyond Venezuela. However, my family made the decision to move to the UK and that transformed everything for me. As a teen, I was finally allowed some autonomy, and I was allowed to explore places on my own and think about the things I desired to do.

My love for characters and storytelling inspired me to read comics which then led me to illustration. Everything became one. After some years of study (and many hours of effort) I'm now freelance as an Illustrator from London.

I think my work is fun, bold and sometimes a little chaotic (in a good way!). Sometimes , it's simple and sometimes it's incredibly detailed; but every illustration has a person, or an animal, or some nice piece of scenery. I believe all my illustrations are part of the same universe.

For me, the most important thing is having fun with it. I think of the aspects that made me smile growing as a child: vivid colors as well as sly characters, humorous moments, and tiny little details to lose yourself in. It is my goal to encompass the best of these things whenever I create something new. If I'm able to make the viewer feel excited or happy, or like they've discovered something fascinating and interesting, then I've succeeded in what I wanted.

"Another essential element that I am looking for is the sense of humor. Over time, I've realized that I'm probably not an competent person to create complex or abstract artworks, but I can be fairly adept in creating something lighthearted that can inspire laughter. I play to my strengths right now."

Follow Marianna's art adventure on Instagram Discover detailed artwork of the books for children she created during lockdowns as well as backstage images of her recoding Skillshare class, to mention a few. The links to the class and Marianna's books can be found through her web site.