San Román Interview | Respect the Artist
How did you get your Artist name?: it's my father's last name and therefore my first surname. I wanted to keep it simple and truthful.
How did you get into creating?: Art has always been around, especially when I was little. A couple of years ago I started making pastel drawings on one of my visits to Paris, three months later while I was studying English at Oxford I discovered that if I didn't dedicate myself to it I would be left with a big gap to fill. This is how I decided to focus on exploring the art world.
How has creating changed your life?: Honestly, I wouldn't be myself. Art leads me to know and guide myself since I was quite lost during my adolescence. It's not a question of age, but when you are young it's difficult to know for sure what you are going to do with your life. My creations do not pay my bills, but without the possibility of creating or admiring other creations, life would be meaningless, it would be total boredom.
Where are you from?: I was born in Laredo, a coastal town in the autonomous community of Cantabría, Spain.
How did growing up in your neighborhood/city affect you?: I grew up in Mojácar, a tourist town on the coast of Almería, Spain. We used to live in an apartment community where I was the only child, so I always played alone imagining fantastic adventures and dramatic romances. When I wasn't playing I was painting only watercolors in black, this fact came to worry my mother. As I was growing I was distanced from my imaginative and artistic world. Studies and making my father proud replaced my desire to create.
What did you do to advance your skills/knowledge?: Nowadays, Social Media and online courses make it so easy for us. When I was little I went to a couple of drawing and painting classes but I ended up getting bored by the limitations. When I regained my interest in art I started looking at art posts on Instagram and video tutorials. I decided to try all kinds of media; acrylic on canvas, oil, colored pencils, oil pastels, chalk, watercolor, ink ...
After a month of enjoying artistic exploration, I decided that I wanted to study a degree in fine arts. I try to be a sponge and absorb ideas and details from everywhere, I don't want to limit my possibilities.
What does your current setup look like?: At the moment I work in the living room of the apartment where I live. I have a drop-down table big enough to hold all the supplies I need. We could say that my "studio" is quite homey. In the future I would love to have a studio with more space, light and privacy.
Who inspires you? Why do they inspire you?: I'm a bit of a mess when it comes to specific decisions and my tastes are very diverse. Since I was little, Japanese animation has been my main source of admiration, both the stories and the more pictorial aspect. Currently, two of my favorite artists are Hayao Miyazaki and Makoto Shinkai.
Cinematography and literature have always been present. I'm a huge fan of J. R. R. Tolkien's creations, of course.
I love the cleanliness and texture of the oil portraits of the American artist John Singer Sargent, the risky performances of Marina Abramović ... I am passionate about the arts in general and I try to absorb information from all artistic movements.
What is your goal when you create? : On a pictorial level, my main goal is to achieve harmony in both drawing and painting, lately using only watercolor. On an emotional level, I try to connect with the piece, I always tell myself that if I lose track of time I'm doing a good job, and even if the result is not the desired one, the practice has been worth it. My main objective is to lose myself in the creative process, ignore the existence of space and time, and be able to show my true intentions reflected in the work.
Why do you create?: it's simply a necessity. If several weeks pass by and I haven't been able to create, I notice that something is not right. I feel incomplete.
What's your go-to song right now and why is it important to you?: "Sobreviviré" by Mónica Naranjo. I think it's a very real, honest, and empowering song. Every time I listen to it, it reminds me that things will not always be perfect, that it is okay to show weakness from time to time, and that it doesn't mean that we are weak quite the opposite.
What is your dream as an artist and what steps are you taking to reach your dream?: I don't like the idea of fitting into a category, it scares me because it gives me a sense of limitation. Nowadays, it seems that specializing is the key to being taken seriously, so for now I have decided to specialize in watercolor. My dream as an artist is to have complete freedom of creation and to be recognized for it.
What is the best advice you would give someone? : Working is fine but it is not everything. You should take your time, a bit of silence and boredom comes in handy. Follow in your steps, listen to advice, keep your eyes and ears open, accept yourself as you are, and embrace change. Keep an open mind, we are all in the same boat.
Tell us about your most recent release: At the moment I am expressing my admiration for the creations of Studio Ghibli and Hayao Miyazaki through fan art watercolors and manga-style drawing. I love the organic effects that can be achieved with watercolors. It has a mysterious and melancholic aura, and I love not being able to control the water one hundred percent, giving the piece more personality and freedom.
I have recently started a YouTube channel in which I show a bit of my working process with watercolor. In the future, I would like to enrich the channel with more content.
I'm also working on a little story that I'd like to illustrate, it's something I've never done and I'm looking forward to trying new things.
Share a link to your most recent release: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W5Wtm3Uc-HI&t=306s
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sanromanart/
Facebook.com: https://www.facebook.com/cati.sanroman/
Stereotype Co’s mission is to shine light on dreamers around the world.
Your support helps us continue make a difference.