Vanessa S. Rodriguez
Artist Statement
When I was in fifth grade, I was introduced into the idea of creating stories for publishing and I was intrigued. Before then, I loved to create mini comics of my favorite characters and wrote stories for creative writing clubs. One day, my teacher gave me a blank sketchbook and had me write a Christmas story that would stay in her classroom library for others to read. This had opened my eyes into creating works that fit into the audience, which I had to learn to be conscious about my intended audience and how to communicate my ideas properly. My introduction to graphic design came later to high school, where I became aware of advertising and designing for others.
Each of my work is an extension of myself, stretching to fit the requirements of each assignment. I strive to make each work fit together like a puzzle, not only fitting a theme, but resembling a glimpse of my personality. Each person in the world communicates similar ideas in their own way and in their own designs, displaying their own perspective on their art.
I like to thank most of my inspiration from Professor Karen Dorff from University of North Texas, who had retired, who helped me understand how to apply technical and traditional art into design. I learned to apply myself into using textures, color theory, and drawing inspiration from other artists and illustrators that I have not heard of before, bridging a connection between fine art and graphic design. I also learned to emphasize forms and break down styles of artists, and how they make it work. I take the concept that I need to create and try to form it into my own style. I create as many sketches as I can, analyze which one’s work, and taking each part of each design and make various combinations. Before receiving criticism, I would often gamble on which ones are popular, improving my own judgement in case I have an employment where criticism would be lacking.
