Victor Medina

Surrounded by lots of books and guitars, Victor is a freelance illustrator from Madrid, Spain. Most of his work is made up of geometrical shapes and bright colours. Styles from the Art Deco, the Victorian era and the 50s have a huge influence in his illustrations. He works mainly for the children’s books industry, and he has also done work for advertising, board games, stationery and calendars.
The Lighthouse, an illustration Victor created for commercial purposes. This piece is inspired by lighthouses and moon phases.
Vikings and Pirates, using just two transparent colours overlapping each other, Victor gives the illusion of multiple colours for these two pieces. He loves sea-themed film and books, hence decided to create artwork related to his favourite genre.
Hogwarts Houses, Victor is a big fan of Harry Potter and he took the main traits of each house to create compositions based on hand-made lettering. Inspired by vintage Art Deco posters, he applied each house’s official colours and mascot to every piece. If you are a Harry Potter fan, you must be mesmerized by this series!
Spotlight Discovery Yoyo Books, this is a set of illustrations for books. By using a cardboard cut-out torch, the readers search for animals and plants from each page.
School Book Covers, can you imagine your textbooks splashed with colours and whimsical illustrations? That would make learning much more fun! Victor has done a great job here breathing life into the book covers. The beautiful covers definitely make us want to collect all the books in this series!

Can’t get enough of this talented illustrator? Read on and let’s enter Victor’s world:

1. If you could become one of the characters you have drawn, what would it be and why?
I haven’t drawn it yet, but I am currently working on a personal project and I’d love to be in the place of the main character. I hope to be able to show it soon.

2. When did you realise that you wanted to express your artistic talent? Was it encouraged by others?
Expressing myself artistically is something I’ve been doing, even without realizing it. When all the kids at school gave up drawing, I was one of those who kept doing it and had fun with it. When I was a teenager, I also started skateboarding and playing music, which are activities where you can express yourself and be creative. It came naturally to me, and I think I was more discouraged by others than encouraged. Here in Spain, choosing a creative profession is still seen like you’re throwing your life away.

3. What environmental factors do you consider to be helpful to your creative process?
I like to browse and be surrounded by picture books, they help me to create better illustrations and inspire me. Other forms of inspirations are listening to podcasts and music, having a walk or visiting museums/exhibitions. Going out to get some fresh air can make a big difference when you’re going through a creative block. 

4. How much of your creative ability do you think is innate? Or is your creativity something that you have developed?
Drawing has always been easy for me, but to become a professional illustrator you must work very hard on your drawing skills and focus on the style you want to achieve. This requires a lot of trial and error, research, inspiration, judging your own work and improving it. So I believe it’s more a skill I’ve developed with time rather than an innate ability.

5. What is your favourite medium to use and why?
While I like and enjoy finishing my illustrations digitally, I love to draw on my sketchbook, because I feel completely free to experiment and have fun without worrying about the final result.

6. If you could use only 2 colours in your artwork, which colours would you pick and why?
I would pick red and turquoise blue––they are two beautiful colors that I love to use and they combine really well.

7. If you were a pair of shoes, what kind would you be? Why?
I suppose I’d be a pair of sneakers, because they can be used for almost any occasion. It’s better to be prepared for upcoming challenges!

8. Would you rather have a third eye or a third arm? Why?
A third arm, because I can then draw twice as fast.

9. If you could morph two animals to make one super animal, which two animals would you choose? Why?
I think it would be a disaster, but I’d mix a shark with a crocodile to see what it looks like.

10. Which mythical creature would improve the world most if it still exists today?
The griffin, as we would be able to travel long distances easily without polluting the planet.

11. What question would you like to ask the next featured artist?
What is your dream project?