Today we’d like to introduce you to Cat Barrera.
Hi Cat, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I’m a daughter of Mexican immigrants so I spent a lot of my childhood traveling between the United States and Mexico. I think seeing the bursts of colors in the houses, blankets, the folk art, even the dishes in Mexico was my introduction to design. We would drive to Mexico (14 hours) I only had music and my day dreaming to help the time pass (this was when I only had a CD player, no ipad or wifi). I think the day dreaming exercised my brain to think creativity, it awoke something inside of me.
I was also a huge fan of cartoons and anime, I wanted to recreate what I saw on tv so this sparked my interest in drawing. As I grew I wanted to find a way to combine my art and love of music so I decided I would grow up to make show posters.
I got an associates in graphic design and started as an intern at the venue Mohawk creating posters for local bands. My skills were pretty terrible but I got complete creative freedom. I became more confident and honest with my art over time. What I didn’t expect is that it would speak to people. It started a domino effect where bands would hunt me down to make their tour posters, merch, vinyl covers, and so on. This is how I still get most clients to this day, word of mouth.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
When I was an intern, I was also working as a manager at Jimmy Johns, which didn’t pay well. I was desperate for work and desperate to leave Jimmy Johns so I would take on every single freelance client that came my way for cheap. I eventually started working for an online ad agency but got fired (I had quit Jimmy Johns by then). My only income was the internship and the many musicians who needed posters. My designs were slowly getting better but then covid hit. I lost my gig at the venue, musicians weren’t playing so I didn’t have that income either. Luckily I was able to get money from unemployment and finally had the time to make art for myself. I think this is when I found my art style.
2021 came around, businesses were starting to open. I realized fully freelancing wasn’t for me. I was tired of being desperate for work to keep the rent paid and wanted a full time gig where I could still partially freelance. This way I could be more picky about what gigs I wanted to take on. I found a job in the music industry and I’m still working in the industry full time as a senior designer creating posters and working on festivals. I also still get to create dope posters for folks so I think the struggle was worth it.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I’m a poster artist who specializes in illustrations. Folks know my art work because of the vibrant use of colors and the trippy art I create. I think my favorite poster I’ve created is the house design I did for Built to Spill.
In terms of your work and the industry, what are some of the changes you are expecting to see over the next five to ten years?
Not sure, I would say I’m a little worried about AI but I honestly have no idea what will happen.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://catbarrera.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/catbarreraart/
