Blirbo is a project that has a Facebook page, profiles on Instagram and Twitter; In addition to an account in Ko-fi, page with the same theme as Patreon, and in Redbubble, where you can buy her products. With a considerable amount of followers, it was a surprise for me to know that Blirbo is a project of just one year; its accelerated growth is a clue to the great work that is being done, making itself noticed more and more.
By Vane Juárez
Puebla, México, March 11th, 2020 (Neotraba)
Birds. That is how little I have ventured to draw. Living with two illustrators, and I, without being born with such a gift, it was comforting to discover that I can illustrate birds.
Birds have a lot of meaning in my life, I have written many times stories that revolve around them. The freedom and tranquility that they transmit is something that I have not yet been able to portray in my illustrations.
For the place where I am growing up, I have a huge taste and curiosity for the world of drawing. Now that the illustrators begin to get in the public eye, all thanks to the internet, I have been able to discover incredible works, both by Mexican and foreign artists; now we have the power to break international barriers. Among many pages of talented artists, I found Blirbo.
I was struck by her style, very soft and tender, because it is to my liking all kinds of works that are distinguished by this.
Its main theme: birds. Lots of illustrations that have them as protagonists. It is very curious when an artist focuses on such a specific subject; I even found illustrations of recognized characters, always integrating some bird in the drawing.
After a couple of interactions with the artist, thanks to her dynamics on Facebook, I discovered her kindness and the attention she places on each comment. This gave me the confidence to approach and ask for an interview, which she gladly accepted.
Blirbo is a project that has a Facebook page, profiles on Instagram and Twitter; In addition to an account in Ko-fi, page with the same theme as Patreon, and in Redbubble, where you can buy her products. With a considerable amount of followers, it was a surprise for me to know that Blirbo is a project of just one year; its accelerated growth is a clue to the great work that is being done, making itself noticed more and more.
Behind the scenes is Angela; Aged 19, she has started an art page that awaits to be discovered by more people. The Blirbo community is mainly English-speaking, but that is not an impediment for people everywhere to enjoy her work since, we know, art is universal.
Angela. I had a very big passion for traditional art ever since I was a young child. I have never done digital art until recently, last year to be specific, which is when I decided to start up Blirbo. As the name Blirbo suggest, I mainly draw birds. I got into drawing birds and birds in general when I was in high school. It began when a friend of mine who had a bird of her own showed me videos of her Indian Ringneck named Stormy. Ever since I saw the personality and charm that bird possess, I realized that they’re quite unique compared to your average house pet and fell in love with them for that very reason.
For the past 5 years now, I have been in the bird community and my love for them keeps on expanding on a daily basis!
I created Blirbo because I wanted to show the world my love for birds as well as to put my artwork out there for anyone who might enjoy it and to hopefully make people happy with my art!
Vane Juárez. Then Blirbo is a very young project.
A. Yes! Blirbo is still very new, I made my page on Facebook around April and it grew from there.
VJ. How did you find out you wanted to be an illustrator?
A. Honestly, before Blirbo was created, I was not interested in pursuing art as a career but more as a hobby. My views on that changed when I realized how much my art has impacted many lives.
VJ. Taking the responsibility to start making commissions is too much, How do you balance that with study or work?
A. I started working at a regular retail job a few weeks ago, so working on commissions have been a bit hectic. Commissions used to take up to a few hours to three days but now take up to one or two weeks.
I try to balance my work life, Blirbo life, as well as my regular life. Everything is going well so far, but I plan on taking a step further for Blirbo (a surprise is coming for the Blirbo followers).
VJ. Where does the inspiration for your artistic style come from?
A. My artwork is inspired by the “kawaii” style from Japanese culture. For example, Hello Kitty!
I really like the simplistic, cute, bold and pastel scheme I currently have for my Blirbos.
VJ. Which illustration software do you use, and what is your favorite tool?
A. I draw everything from my phone, which is an iPhone 6s Plus. The drawing app I use is PicsArt Color Paint and my favorite tool would be the regular pen tool!
VJ. What do birds mean in your life?
A. Birds mean the world to me. I grew up battling depression and anxiety, but birds have helped me through it. I know you have followed my page for a while, so you might know of my two birds, Sunny and Tori! They’re very sweet and full of character. Sunny has been in my life for more than four years and have helped me through the toughest times and I couldn’t have ask for a better companion!
VJ. Who are your favorite artists? Do you follow any mexican artist?
A. My favorite artists consists of bird artists and many of them are my friends! Some of my favorites are: Birb-ber, Birdhism, Ohaiyouclothing, and Chicken Thoughts. I’m not aware if I follow any Mexican artists, but I would love to!
VJ. In Mexico, the female illustrators just were sort of starting to be recognized, How are the women doing, in the field of illustration, in your country?
A. That’s amazing that they are finally getting noticed! I live in America so it’s a bit hard to say. I feel like recognition is usually based off of trends or in good self-promotion, so it depends. But many people are getting recognized as well by the help of bigger artists shouting them out!
VJ. I’ve seen in your work that there are some illustrations about the LGBTQ+ pride. How would you say the community situation is right now for Blirbo?
A. The community I have is nonjudgmental. I’ve had some trouble in the past with pride posts, since there would be some pretty disrespectful people or those who only support heterosexuals, so I made sure to delete sort of hate comments. Now all I have is an amazing and accepting community who is supportive of everything that I do.
I’ve always wanted people to feel comfortable and feel like they fit in, so I made sure that I created Blirbo as a safe space for anyone and everyone. Whenever I made mistakes on my pride posts, people, were always kind enough to enlighten me about it and I really appreciate how they approached me in a respectful manner!
That’s how I discovered more of the artist who has come to the Internet with her flock behind, whose work is inspired by the support she has felt in these curious pets, which she wants to share with the world.
This is an invitation to explore and discover artists, illustrators, creators; there are all types and styles. Perhaps, wandering through Blirbo‘s illustrations, we will find something that we cannot look away from.
