Here at Chulo, we wanted to showcase the creatives with a Q&A to dive a little deeper into the Artist's inner workings - Today we spotlight artist Cátia Martins

If you don’t know Cátia already, let me introduce you to this whimsical illustrator who dives into her artistry with as much curiosity as she does with her clothesmaking brand Catielier. For an artist in her 20’s she illustrates with as much depth and wisdom as you would find hidden under and within all the nooks and crevasses of the unforgotten beauties and treasures found in the world.

Something I really admire about Cátia, is that she is incredibly conscious of the impact her clothing creations make and how she goes about making them. She dreams in abundance about the impact that her art can create for those who come into orb of it. Inspired by artists like Studio Ghibli from a young age she has found her own authentic style. Let's take a deep dive into what makes up her and her style!

So, you are a Portuguese artist; did you grow up in Lisbon? How do you think it has affected the style in which you illustrate? I notice you create a lot Manga inspired art, what about that style excites you?

Yes, I did grow up in Lisbon, but I grew up in the suburbs and didn't actually explore the city and all it has to offer until I was much older, I think my style is affected by mostly what I was exposed to through video games, cartoons, books and so on, sadly I really disliked the place I grew up in, so all of those "tools", as I see them, were my main form of escapism and inevitably influenced my style and life path in general. Being Portuguese affects the kind of stories I tell, the themes I explore, my connection to the land and sea, a deep relationship with food and artisan practices, but I don't think it affects the "aesthetic" look of my work.

As for the my work looking a lot like Manga, it was not intentional, and I actually try to distance my work from it, I don't really read manga besides the classics which are incredible bodies of work regardless of whether they are manga or not (Akira, Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind, Tekkon Kinkreet, the works of Satoshi Kon...), I'm just very influenced by Studio Ghibli and japanese culture in general and I think it's so ingrained in my mind that is really hard for me to deviate from it! 

From a young age have you always had a fascination with this style of manga/ studio Ghibli, what drew you to draw in this style? Was there someone who you grew up with that inspired you to draw? A mentor, teacher? Parents, grandparents, friends? Where did it all begin for you, did someone start off the journey? 

I had incredibly supportive parents, they really paid attention to the things I loved and really fed my soul and my hobbies by buying me books and drawing tools, being present and taking me to the cinema, museums or to the forest/seaside, which were the only activities that got me excited to leave the house (kind of still are?)... I saw Spirited Away at the cinema when I was 6 or 7 years old and that was it for me, my fate was sealed. I made my dad take me 4 more times after the first time I saw it and my entire life has revolved around animation and illustration ever since, although it would not cross my mind that I could make a career out of it until I was an adult, the career options in Portugal back then seemed very limited (a world without internet/social media, as it is today).

I am not sure if you know of the famous illustrator Beatrice’s Potter, she used to talk to her illustrations and feel like each drawing was almost her friend, do you feel any unique connection with a certain one of your illustrations?  

 I LOVE her work! I had the chance to see her original sketches back when I was living in London up until recently! I feel like I am always drawing spirits that come to me and ask me to bring them to life or tell their stories, my characters feel very alive to me.

Were you the type of kid that enjoyed drawing for hours and imagining your own worlds in which your characters exist? Did you ever imagine you’d be doing this as a kid?

I drew a lot, but I mostly played with my toys for hours, I could create story after story without end, and I also took a lot of pictures once my dad got a very powerful 2 megapixel digital camera, I took pictures of my dolls to create (very poorly made) stop motions on his computer. I used my doll house and the back of board games, which were usually black, as the stage in which scenes took place. I had no idea what I was doing was trying to create a stop motion, I just wanted to see my dolls move to tell a story. 

 What is your intention with your art?

Honestly just to be happy, my art gives me a sense of purpose and hopefully the final product affects whoever sees it in a positive way, whatever that means for each individual, the same way Studio Ghibli has affected me. 

 Why do you make art, who do you make art for (yourself, community)?

 I honestly make art for myself, because I genuinely don't know what else I would do with my life if it wasn't for this, but if what I do can have an impact on others, wherever they are, whatever community they belong to, and help other people see that this is an option and you can make a living out of your "silly childhood thoughts", that would be wonderful. I know I'm still in my 20s and I am very young but look at the impact that Studio Ghibli had in Japan, it contributes so much to the economy and so many people visit the country to go to the museum or to visit the recent park they opened, I would love to have an impact like that in the culture and arts/animation industry in my country, which desperately NEEDS more attention... whether or not that will happen remains to be seen! 

I saw that you are also a fashion designer, do you ever illustrate a character and think "I like their outfit, I’m going to make it in real life”?  

Yes! Absolutely! That is exactly how it goes most of the time, ahah! I don't consider myself a fashion designer, the word fashion sounds so weird to me, I am more of a clothes maker and dyer that likes to explore the craft, I am obsessed with materials, fibres and natural dyes, I need to understand a garment from the hands of the person and soil in which the cotton/linen that created the fabric was planted to the moment it is finished in my hands. Garments can be so special, so magical and so powerful in a person's life, a single piece tells so many stories and carries so much energy from the people involved in the process, but sadly most people don't look at clothes that way these days, although there are some designers/artisans out there trying to create awareness in the industry, that gives me hope for what making clothes will look like in the future.  

Do you have any goals within your clothing designs? Do you prefer to work with certain fabrics or materials for certain reasons? 

 I would love to expand Catielier and produce more when I have the budget for it, but the way I like to do things is very slow and precise, I prefer to work with undyed organic fabrics and dye them in my studio with plant material, it is important to me to consider the garments' environmental impact before, during and after its life, so all of this ends up being quite expensive to maintain... I don't know if I will ever have enough demand to keep the brand going, so for now I work on one of a kind pieces upon request, which I really like because each person follows the process of the garment and can give feedback along the way, but it takes a lot of my working hours if I have too many requests and I have to pause working on my graphic novels/animations when that happens... I'm still trying to figure out the best way to make Catielier work and balance it with the rest of my projects!

 What inspires you the most to create? 

I just love to draw and create to begin with! I don't know where my inspiration comes from anymore but lately I've been very interested in portraying other senses in my visual work, specially scents! Like... How can I accurately represent scents in illustration and animation? How could I trick people to smell something by just looking at it, since my work is mostly visuals? It's easy to hear familiar sounds when looking at something but smelling? Very challenging, I'm very intrigued by it.

 What's been your most challenging part of being an artist? 

 Disconnecting my sense of worth as a human being from my work. If I have a bad year, creatively speaking, I feel absolutely useless, as if I am suddenly not worthy of the life I live if I am not working or creating.

If you could say one thing in regard to your art, art in general what would it be?

Earth without art is just "eh". (I think I saw this on Tumblr about 10 years ago, but it's true! Beauty, functional, inspiring and aesthetically pleasing places/projects/products/works in which you can feel the heart, soul and thought that was poured into them make life so much better.)

You can support Cátia by following her artistry on  Instagram, Patreon, ArtStation, YouTube and TikTok

under the same username:catmartinsart 

Check out  Cártia Martins latest work here.For more portfolios from Chulo Creatives Artist stable click through here , also get in touch with Chulo Creative if you are interested in commissioning an artist for your next campaign.

Written and curated by Bella Abraham @Bella.bea.poetry