Jea Gaviña

Jea Gaviña is an interdisciplinary artist and musician from the Philippines. With Fine Arts degrees in both Visual Communication and Painting, she enjoys exploring different mediums and styles to create art that tells stories. She spends her time painting and illustrating in her little home studio with the company of her five dogs and two cats. She currently works as a freelance illustrator for Canva.

Hi Jea! Tell us about yourself - how did you get to where you are today? What first sparked your interest in design?

I’ve been creating art since I was a kid and it has always been a form of ‘play’ and storytelling for me. Growing up, I naturally improved my skills and found passion in creative pursuits such as illustration, painting, sculpture, and music-making. I completed my BFA degree in Visual Communication in 2019 and my BFA degree in Painting just this year. I was very fortunate to be able to experience and learn different creative mediums such as photography and graphic design, but I always found myself enjoying illustration the most. In late 2020, while I was studying to receive my degree in Painting, I decided to apply as a freelance illustrator for Canva. During my time there, I was able to explore different styles and push myself out of my comfort zone.

Jea Gaviña

How would you describe your design style and how has it changed over time?

My art style is informed by my practice as an interdisciplinary artist. I am an illustrator, painter, and musician—I often take what I learn from one study to another to improve my ways of seeing and creating. I try not to compartmentalize my practices and instead let them seep into one another over time. While I enjoy trying out different styles and techniques, I always find myself using vibrant colors and textures in my works.

Are there particular themes you like to explore?

The thing I enjoy the most in art-making is being able to tell a story. I use art as a means to tell personal stories as well as stories of fantasy. When I create art that is rooted in my own experiences and feelings, I use it as a tool for introspection and processing reality. However, there are times when I turn to art to escape reality. As someone who grew up with video games like Final Fantasy IX, Legend of Mana, and Brave Fencer Musashi, I love magic and other fantasy themes and wish to explore these more in my work.

What is your creative process like and where do you find inspiration?

My creative process is still evolving as I find what works best for me. Inspiration doesn’t always come easily, especially for more personal and conceptual projects. What I find the most helpful in my process is looking at as many things as possible to jump-start my brain. When working with clients, I do my best to understand their vision and go over the brief that they provide. I find that this early stage of rough sketches and ideas is the biggest challenge to overcome. But once you nail it, it’s mostly smooth sailing from there. I try to make the most out of every project and make sure that I come out of it learning something new.

What’s been one of your favorite projects to work on so far? What would be your dream project?

I recently finished my thesis for a BFA degree in Painting. It is a mixed-media artwork that incorporates oil painting and textile work. The idea behind this work entitled ‘Kindness is Punk Rock’ is a personal story of healing and the importance of taking care of yourself through mundane everyday activities. I think this is my favorite work to date because I pushed myself to create something way out of my comfort zone and something that requires a lot of self-reflection. It was a challenge to create something so deeply personal and to work with materials that were new and unfamiliar to me. In the end, it was an incredible feeling to see my work finished and shown to my peers and mentors at our thesis exhibit.

One of my dream projects is to be able to work with my favorite musicians. I would love to make illustrations for their album covers or record booklets someday.

Do you have any favorite design resources? (books, podcasts, magazines, etc.)

I am always looking at things whenever and wherever I go, but my favorite resources would be in music, exhibits, films, comics, propaganda art, and old video games.

What advice would you give new designers who are just starting out?

Try everything. Don’t worry about having an art style especially so early on in your life. Observe and learn new things as much as you can, and take what you like from each experience. Your art style is informed by these experiences and how you look at the world.

What are you working on now and what’s up next for you?

I’m currently working as a freelance illustrator while I catch up on more personal art and music projects. I see these as opportunities to learn and expand my visual vocabulary. I look forward to collaborating with other artists in both gallery work and illustration work. 

Thank you for sharing with us Jea! To view more of Jea’s work, visit her website and follow her on Instagram.

Jea was nominated by Canva. All art courtesy of Jea Gaviña.