I first encountered Blue’s art through a reblog of one of her designs by our blogger in common, Sherri of Palm Springs.  The vibrance, playfulness, and imagination of Blue’s designs drew me in right away.  In time, I discovered that Blue would be the designer who inspired me to start playing with design as more than an easier way around copyright drama in my blog posts.  Blogging has brought many rewards.  My friendship with Blue is one of them.

Blue is also the only designer I have purchased art from to promote my Natural Gifts book series.  Remember these?

Creatures Velvet Meets in The Dreaming

Velvet and Saunders’ First Kiss

The more I interacted with Blue, the more impressed and curious I became.  That’s why I asked if she would like to answer the ten questions.  She graciously accepted, and now we can all get to know Blue just a little bit better.

Thank you for everything, Blue!

Gina:  How did you become the inspiring person you are today?

Blue: This question is so beautiful, and also very generous, Gina. I have always believed myself to be a lucky and inspired person, rather than inspiring. Or maybe both are connected. I think I’m the person I am today mainly thanks to my parents (both artists: my father a pianist, my mother a singer), to the place where I was born (the colorful and vibrant Brazil), to the various places where I then lived in the World (especially Africa, South America, Caribbean), to the many people I met, and I still meet on the path of life … The incredible connections between all these facts, and even more, have shaped my “being.” That’s why I consider myself to be an inspired person, and the simple idea of transmitting this makes me think of an “exchange” between me and my surroundings, a sort of gratitude for what I had and learned .. .and that I am still having and learning.  😀

Gina: How did you get started in graphic design?

Blue: Since I was a kid I loved drawing.  Growing up I started painting, and about 12 years ago my parents and my brother gave me a computer for my birthday, with a beautiful software for Vector Graphism. I first started learning to use both (never had a computer before!), on my own, fascinated by this new experience! And slowly, time after time, patiently, I started to build what is now my job for a few years now: computer graphics 😀

Gina: What advice do you have for those who are getting started in graphic design today?

Blue: The graphic design world is in constant evolution, and requires not only our skills, our creativity, but also curiosity, enthusiasm, tenacity, perseverance, patience and an inexhaustible desire to learn and discover, every day!

Gina: What are some of your favorite things to do when you are not designing?

Blue: Oh! There are so many things! Walking, swimming, reading, listening or playing music, making little objects with bamboo or palm tree parts, and so many other things! It depends on what part of the world I am in, on the weather, on the opportunity life offers or that the moment offers. 😀

Gina: Please finish this sentence in your own words: The best things in life are?

Blue: Well, it’s almost impossible for me to choose just some among them.  There are a lot of best things in life! But there are two things, in particular, that have the potential to bring us to the best things in life: knowledge and respect.  For ourselves, for others, for nature.  Knowledge, because learning, even every day, is one of the best and important things in life. Respect, because this is the best “passport” for different aspects and pleasures life can give us.

Gina: What advice do you have for those who are struggling right now?

Blue: I know it sounds simplistic, but my advice is to never give up, accept any losses (as we learn to understand our limitations, our weaknesses, and thus strengthen us), never force destiny, but let it guide us through the mental path chosen by ourselves. This means that sometimes we may feel dissatisfied, or even betrayed, and maybe we will be forced to make detours that we would not have wanted to do, but a careful reading of the events will always give the answers, these same answers that will help us to never give up.

Gina: Do you have a muse?

Blue: I’m sure it is Mother Nature, her wonders, her secrets, her incredible beauty. Everything in nature is art and harmony.

Gina: Do you have other creative outlets?

Blue: For a few years I have been working on this strange and fascinating world of graphic design, but I’m also an ex-ballerina, a painter, a musician (pianist, like my Father). Dance is no longer an outlet for me (well, I’m not young enough anymore), but painting and music are still part of my life, even though my work actually is computer graphics, and it takes a lot of time! 😀

Gina: What inspires you most about the world we live in?

Blue: I know I am repeating myself, but the wonders of Mother Nature are for me one of the most valuable sources, inexhaustible, and always surprising, in all its aspects. Our deep roots are there, even if we (human neings) forget it, too often…

Gina: What is something you wish everyone knew?

Blue: I would like everyone to know, they have the awareness of the great, wonderful adventure that gives us life, and how important it is to learn to live in peace with each other, respecting each other, could make us live in a world of harmony. I wish the privileged persons, like me, who live in areas of the world where there are no wars, realize how much luck they have. I would like us to make all aware of the importance of taking “time to live” (“Le Temps de Vivre”): Of course, is not the “amount” of time that counts, but the “quality.” Each of us has preferences, and this “time to live” can be found in admiring the beauty of a flower, or a monument, or being surprised by the shape of a cloud, or listening to the deep vibrations of a melody, and thousands of other things through which we all can find ourselves in the right balance with our surroundings.

Blue’s responses are exactly how I thought they would be – honest, and beautifully inspiring.

I hope you’ve enjoyed getting to know Blue better.  I know I did!

Have a look at her wonderful art on her wordpress site: https://bluedarkart.wordpress.com/

As always, thank you for spending time with me.

Gina

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