Interview
Ana Cortés (Bosska)
Ana Cortés, (a.k.a Bosska), is a graphic designer and illustrator, from Alicante by birth, from Malaga by adoption, and Mexican at heart after having lived there for 7 years. She graduated from La Salle Cancun University with a Bachelor's Degree in Graphic Design in 2013 — a city where she took her first steps, both in design and illustration.
Throughout the years, Bosska has been growing artistically, standing out for her peculiar style of illustrating ‘the drawing within the drawing’. Thanks to this style, Bosska has been interviewed by CNN and RNE (Radio Nacional de España). Her illustrations are the result of many artistic trends, especially Art Nouveau, the style she identifies with the most.
What is your background and how did you start your journey in the art world?
“I studied Graphic Design in Mexico, where I began to explore my facet as an illustrator. Ever since I was a child, I have been drawing and illustrating everything I could. Then I started to introduce illustration as part of my designs, using it in branding proposals or even in personalized photography books. After this, I started painting murals. I started first with a watercolor style, then began emulating styles from other artists until, finally, I developed my own identity.”
What inspires you most?
“I draw the most inspiration from nature and the universe — animals, plants, planets, stars, and the like. Egyptian and Latin American art also attracts me a lot.”
What themes do you pursue? Is there an underlying message in your work?
“I try to express the feeling that everything I see generates in me, and the way I see it. I’m talking about my inner world and all those elements of nature with which I find myself deeply linked.”
“My work is best described as an explosion of color that, at the same time, is not without a dark undertone. A continuous line that surrounds the shapes and colors, which end up becoming the final story.”
Which artists influence you most?
“I closely follow the work of Ricardo Cavolo, Isa Muguruza, Okuda San Miguel. I’m also very inspired by historical artists such as Frida Khalo, Dalí, Pablo Picasso and El Bosco.”
What is your creative process like?
“I always mentally sketch what I'm going to do, and I don't start with the pencil until I have a pretty good idea of what I want. I improvise very little on paper/tablet. When I have a clear idea of what I want, I start to sketch with dirty and undefined lines. Then when I have the composition created, I start to give color, lights, shadows and finally, the thick and irregular black line that characterizes my style. This line is a single line. All the black is united and, in addition, it never has geometric finishes. It is all very organic.”
What is an artist’s role in society and how do you see that evolving?
“I believe that art is necessary, since it is a way of understanding the history of humanity, as well as current times. Nowadays, with social networks, we have access to a lot of information. When you see an artist who is traveling the world, representing other cultures and merging them with his own, you realize that art, like the world, has no borders.
In my case, I really like to see how little girls are inspired by what I do, and are even attracted to this profession; something that did not happen to me when I was little, because I did not have models of female artists I could look up to.”
Have you had any noteworthy exhibitions you'd like to share?
“I have everything exposed through my networks and my website, and people can buy my works directly. It is my way of exposing, in addition to the murals.”
Website: www.bosska.es
Instagram: @bosska_art
