“It's all about colors,” says Yeti Iglesias, from her studio in Mexico City. “I have a special connection with colors. And it's weird because when I was starting graphic design, I was like, I only like black, white and red. That's it. But now, I love my work bright and energetic. Since we are in Mexico City, there's a lot of flavor and a lot of colors, I think it’s ingrained in me. When I started working as an illustrator, people were like, I really like your colors because they feel Mexican. And I think that's where my inspiration is.”
If you scroll through Yeti’s portfolio, you’ll also see her inspiration also comes from the plants, creatures, and creativity around her: vibrant leafy tropical greens, floral designs, and often a sly cat or two lurking in the background or manifesting chaos in a scene.
“There’s a lot of nature here — you have this vibrant red in a flower that’s contrasted with a bright green cactus,” she says. “I also like that we have a lot of street art everywhere, also with a lot of colors, a lot of mixing things. And of course, sometimes I feel like the food is really colorful. A lot of spicy food, so you use a lot of chili and those colors, the red, the green. It's amazing. We are all about vibrant colors as well. It all has obviously has influenced me.”
Regularly traveling out of her home town gives Yeti a boost of inspiration. “When I'm traveling, I notice thing like posters and street art. Sticker art that you see when you’re just walking by is super cool too. I'm always noticing little details in the streets, and I’m especially drawn to any art involving eyes — I think they are the soul. They can tell you everything. So when I see an eye, like drawn or a on a sticker or poster, I love it. Also cool lettering graffiti that catches my attention, maybe involving geometric forms. I like to see graffiti because it's really hard for artists to be so perfect there.”
Yeti’s dream project is to work with a brand that she can really go big with. “Khiel’s, or Coca Cola. Or the cover of a magazine. The New York Times would be a dream,” she says. “I'm always thinking about creating — not writing, but illustrating a children's book about an animal’s dream sequence or something, that would be another dream.”
Everything has the potential to be a dream project for Yeti, however. “It's a new canvas,” she says. “A new story, new colors, new concepts, new sketches, new everything. So I really get excited when I have a new project because everything is new. So I would say I have a fascination for the potential of a new thing.”
