Ana, it is a pleasure to meet you. I love your work. The piece above, “Safe Inside Myself II” is one of my favorites. It is based on an earlier work. Can you tell us your original concept for the piece and what inspired you to create it? How did your earlier work differ from this one?

Thank you! I did the first version as a quick color pencil excercise a very long time ago when I was still in school! I liked the concept of eternity, which I tried to portray with the woman holding the sphere that had inside of it the same woman and the same composition, so it repeats itself endlessly. The sphere was also a symbolic attempt to illustrate one’s inner ‘bubble’ so to speak. The safe zone.

 

From your bio we know you were trained as a dancer and that is an influence on you. Growing up were there artists in your family and what motivated you to practice and refine your work?

Most of them definitely have an artistic interest, but almost none dedicated themselves to any art. I know my grandmother was a poet and she played the piano. Almost all of them can play at least one instrument and sing extremely well. My brother is a musician and ended up being a music engineer. When I was little, my oldest sister drew with pastels and pencils and I was really amazed one could do so much with just a pencil and a piece of paper. Unfotunately she doesn’t draw or paint anymore, despite my attempts of trying to convince her she made awesome images. I don’t know if they motivated me directly, but I can definitely say that art in many forms has always been present in the house and in my life thanks to their own interest and love for it.

 

What are some of the other artists you admire?

I absolutely adore Alan Lee. I can stare at his drawings for hours. Amy Brown is a fantasy artist that I discovered when I was a teen and she definitely was the reason for me to pick up watercolors. I don’t care if people say faeries are cheesy, most of her artwork is amazing. I also adore Bosco; his symbolism, detail and sceneries is something I can only dream of doing. Duane Michals is one of my favourite photographers for his amazing hability of telling a story and using a variety of techniques to emphazise something. Manzur is hands down my favourite Colombian artist and probably my favourite artist of all time. He’s completely mesmerizing and his works have a certain surreal quality I just love.

 

Do you find it difficult to sometimes get your ideas out in a visual form?

Definitely. I always sketch first and I always struggle with it until I’m satisfied. There’s also the technical aspect which sometimes limits you, but that works as a motivation to always learn and find different ways you can solve a problem.

 

 

 

 

You work with traditional media and with digital tools. What dictates when you will use one over the other and how do you merge the two? Do you have a preference?

Right now my main interest is digital photo composition and it’s also the most prominent technique in my portfolio. I really like the outcome and it’s something I’ve been very interested in for some years now. That’s mainly the reason, really. Drawing is every artist tool, or should be at least, and I’m not an exception; it was my first love and I try to draw and keep always a sketchbook near. But I think right now I’m more interested in experimenting with it to see what I can achieve through digital photo composition.

 

Do you feel your schooling helped you progress as an artist or do you think you would have developed as an artist on your own?

You definitely don’t need schooling to be an artist. You need drive, discipline and hard work. However I am deeply thankful for what I learned at the university, which was analyzing in a lot of levels an image; to see what it needs, what it’s saying, what it can say, what is interesting about it and how can you take it a step further. You are also in an environment with a lot of other people who want to express themselves, and amazing professors that inspire you in many ways. You can also have a taste of what’s going on in the art scene locally, how it works, who are the ones who dictating trends and stuff which can be interesting. But school doesn’t make you an artist. I think I would’ve pursued the same direction eventually without schooling.

 

You have have had work published commercially and in galleries. Is it hard to work professionally as an artist?

I’m going to say yes, in many different ways. It’s hard to grab attention when there’s SO much competition; so many people trying to achieve the same goal. It’s particularly hard in Colombia because there’s still a lot to be done in terms of respecting artists and designers and their work. Most people still don’t really look as “art” as a serious profession, but we’re getting there. Also you have to be your own administrator. You have to have enormous discipline to balance your work, and your life.

You also are a photographer. Your piece above, “Selective Amnesia” was one of your first photoshoots you had with your new camera. Can you tell us a little about the process you used to make this image and how long it took you?

I don’t consider myself as a photographer. Not really. I mean, the basic element of my digital work is photography and I take my own photographs, and I love photography, but I think it’s a discipline that is really complete on it’s own and I still have a lot to learn, in my opinion. “Selective Amnesia” Was a work that I started in mid-late 2010 when I was writing my thesis and had not yet started with the artwork. It was sort of a break of this huge project that was going to define the ending of my career and I was kind of intimidated, so I took a tiny break from it to just have fun and remember why exactly am I doing this. I took the photos of the main character, the feathers, tectures and the smoke. I made the composition of the elements but I couldn’t figure out the atmosphere and the lighting so I became frustrated and left it in the back burner to complete my thesis. Half a year later when I was finally free, I tried it one more time and everything just came together really fast.

 

Out of your complete body of work what are some of your favorites?

Definitely Selective Amnesia, Mausoleum of Senses, In The White (that one took forever to finish), Safe Inside Myself II and positivism.

 

 

 

 

As an illustrator whose main topic is fantasy, what do you hope the viewer takes away from your work?

I’ve learned that no matter what you do, you can’t generate the same feelings on people, so rather than trying to control something besides the basic purpose or meaning in the image through some precise symbolic elements, I try to be at peace with myself and the artwork in the hopes they can take a peek into my mindset at the moment I created something, transmitting the cold, haunting and place of beauty (in my eyes) where I go when I try to get in the zone.

 

What are your goals professionally and personally?

I’d love to keep on trying new things and new mediums. My goal in life is to always draw inspiration and beauty from the simpliest things and try to stay motivated, in every aspect possible. To always find beauty and peace in what I do, and just try to be someone who cares and fights for the ones who are close to me.

 

Do you have any advice you could offer to artists starting out?

Always, always try to be motivated and enjoy first and foremost, what you’re doing. It will help you remember that you love what you do in difficult times when you feel like throwing the towel.

 

Where can we go to keep updated on your work?

You can go to www.anacorreal.deviantart.com , www.flickr.com/photos/anacorreal and I’m building my webpage, www.anacorreal.com which will be up and running very soon! :)