An Emotive Conversation with Indi Maverick

Photo Credit: Charles Miranda

Indi Maverick is a Mexican multi-disciplined artist. Her art has been displayed in galleries in her native country of Mexico and internationally. Her illustrations and graphic designs can be seen on the brands of Dr. Martens, Dolce & Gabbana, Steve Madden, Stella Artois, and many more. I got the honor to speak with Indi about some of her favorite techniques, how art helps her break free from norms, and how she looks at the body as a blank canvas when doing a tattoo.

UZOMAH: What is the most important aspect of being an illustrator?

I have more visibility as an illustrator than as a designer. The world of illustration has allowed me to work with very important brands and being a freelancer has helped me to grow much more. In the design agencies in which I have gotten to work. I didn’t have the openness or the possibility of exploiting my creativity and therefore the brands would never have looked for me.

INDI: You have done a lot of artwork for major companies around the world. Can you describe the art you create for yourself?

The art that I create for me is very personal art. I have a work in progress project in which I have been illustrating the places I have traveled to and I portray my perspective of those places and I do it only for myself. When I share it with my followers, people appreciate these types of projects much more than projects for brands.

U: Have your ideas ever been rejected by a client?

I: Since I started as a freelancer, they have never been rejected, the graphic idea of a project,; maybe there were some adjustments or changes in the color palette but they have never rejected it, and it was something that was common when I worked in agencies. I think, when they hire you as a freelancer, it is because they fully trust your work and therefore give you the freedom to propose and express who you are.

U: What are some favorite techniques that you use?

I: I love to paint by hand, use markers and ink, but I also love to illustrate on my iPad.

“Stay Home, Stay Safe”

How do you bring out the ideas and the concepts in your mind and make them a reality?

Many of the times I make sketches and that helps me organize all the elements that I bring in my head and that I want to capture

“Stella Artois” Campaign

U: What would suggest to other artists on how to make a brand for themselves that gets their name around for producing great and original work?

I: I think the basis is to create a lot and all the time, whatever. So you will see what your style is and once you recognize it you can perfect it. Also, create art for brands that you like a lot, then tag them in your posts and when the time is right, some brands will look for you, they will turn to see you, and perhaps the opportunity to collaborate with them will arise. And if not ... don't stop trying.

U: How do you seek to make original and unique designs for tattoos?

I: Sometimes people don’t know how to express their ideas and translate them into a tattoo and that is why it’s easier to offer them previously made designs and it will be easier for them to choose. I think that the more unique and original the design, the more there will be the possibility of it being chosen.

I create the designs as if they were exclusive designs for me. I love details and I’m a super perfectionist and I think my art represents that essence of my personality.

U: How do you get clients who are new to getting a tattoo to be more at ease with the process?

I: Something that works quite well is to generate a conversation with the client, that makes them distracted a little from the pain that the needle can cause and when they see the result, they can see that it was totally worth the pain, and in fact, they even want to repeat it. I think it's also about a lot of trust and making them feel comfortable and listened to.

U: Do you consider the body to be a blank canvas to start from like any other artistic project? How is drawing on the body different from drawing on print or via computer?

I: I think it’s a perfect canvas to capture authentic art and it makes it even more perfect because even though the body is just as ephemeral as a sheet of paper, the body has the particularity of being much more visible to anyone's eyes and lasting for the rest of your life. That is why I prefer to tattoo something permanently on the skin. And what makes it different is that art adapts to the body and not the other way around, more personalized, it cannot be.

U: How does art help you break free from typically being restricted from expressing yourself due to cultural and societal norms?

I: It helps me express what I feel and think. It has been difficult for me to express myself with my voice, and not because someone else stops me, but because sometimes it is difficult to find the right words to do it, but art gives me this opportunity.

“Egyptian Scarab”

U: What was the last book you read and why? 

I: I read Your Inner Critic Is A Big Jerk by Danielle Krysa. I read it because all my career I have suffered from imposter syndrome. I just think that I’m not good enough to be an artist. But until I read that book, that ‘’symptom’’ had no name for me. Now, I know how to identify it and how to try to avoid it but it is still complicated.

U: How important is it for you to be a Latino in demand in illustrating by top companies in terms of representation?

I: For me, it is very important to know and realize that everyone is open to working with artists and illustrators outside their country, and it is important because we all have a different perspective of seeing the situations that surround us and we all have free ideas to express that must be valued and respected.

And in fact, my work is much more valued in other countries than in my own country. I would like it to be the opposite but that speaks to the fact that globalization is closely linked to my career and I depend a lot on visibility. I generate in other countries and that is why my work has positioned itself at a certain level.

“Dolce & Gabbana” “The Only One” campaign

U: What can the art world do to be more inclusive of Latino creative artists from the corporate level to galleries?

I: This topic is curious because just a few days ago I was watching the Netflix series Gentefied. It's about lower-class Mexicans living in Los Angeles, but the most recent generation was born there and they still have a deep-rooted Latino culture in their family.

A girl of this generation, who is a low-key visual artist, very soon becomes involved with a gallery owner who invites her to have her own exhibition in an important gallery. At first, that seemed incredible to me, but the gallery owner took over the culture and the economic and social position of the girl to sell and position her art. It seems to me that it is very close to giving pity for people to turn to see her, and just for that, the people will see the value of her art. I definitely didn't like that, because the gallery owner used those social issues to sell the girl's art. So, I think art has more value without a background that clouds the vision with which you see art.

Ultimately, art is very subjective and I think we shouldn't depend on knowing what's behind it to understand it and value it. So, the less I’m considered as a Latin woman, I think that my art will be given much more importance.

I want my art to talk for itself and not be valued for who I am.

U: How important have nature, floral patterns, and animals been in influencing your art?

I: They are the basis of my style, if nature or animals did not exist, I do not know what I could create. They are basically my muse.

For more information about Indi’s art please visit here. You can also follow Indi on Instagram.