Mariana Ocejo - Visual Artist
Always having an affinity for art and creating, Mariana tried her hand in architecture and music before settling on an advertising and communications degree—which brought her back to her first love: graphic design. Today, she’s a freelance visual artist, graphic designer and creative director based out of Mexico City. She’s worked with musical artists like HAIM, Cisco Adler, Jay Stolar, Goody Grace, Alabama Shakes, Cody Simpson, The Zibbz and brands like Hollister, American Revolution Vodka and Sicky Eyewear. Mariana thrives in a creative environments and is continually reinventing her work, learning new techniques and using different materials to create one-of-a-kind pieces that captivate and inspire.
The Basics:
Hometown: Mexico City, Mexico
Current city: Mexico City, Mexico
Alma mater: Fashion Institute of Technology
Degree: Advertising and Marketing Communications
Very first job: Extra for a Mexican Telenovela (Soap Opera)
Hustle: Visual Artist; Graphic Designer; Creative Director
The Interests:
Babe you admire and why?
First, Jessica Walsh, a designer/creative director. I absolutely love her design style, it’s so colorful, playful and weird in a good way. I love the way her mind works, but what I admire most is that she runs a successful creative agency. Less than 1% of all creative agencies are run by women when 70% of design students are women—those numbers are ridiculous! I’d love to run my own agency one day. Secondly, Barbara Corcoran. I recently read her book, Shark Tales, and if there’s a babe who’s hustled, it’s her. She built an empire all by herself—now go read her book or listen to one of the many podcasts about her.
Best way to de-stress?
Exercise. I don’t like running much, but when I’m stressed I like to hop on a treadmill and run fast—like, really fast. I also like boxing; I’ve been staying at my parents’ house and for some reason there’s a punching bag in the garage. Every once in a while when I feel anxious or stressed, I put the gloves on and just hit the bag; it helps so much! Also, playing or cuddling with my dogs is the best therapy.
Favorite artist, piece of art, or collection of all-time?
Andy Warhol
The Hustle:
Tell us about your hustle.
I’ve been creating since I was kid. I was the one everyone in school went to when they needed cool lettering or drawings for their significant other. But in Mexico, graphic design is known as the degree for girls with only one goal: getting married. After lasting two semesters in architecture school and then getting an Associates degree in guitar performance and music business, I enrolled at the Fashion Institute of Technology in NYC to study advertising and marketing communications. As part of the program, I had to take a couple of design courses and became hooked. I started designing logos and flyers for my friends bands and interned at a bunch of music companies and labels (Columbia Records, ATO Records, Q Department and CEG Presents). My roles were business-oriented, but I found ways to incorporate graphic design and creative direction into them as well. Every time they needed something design-related, I’d offer to help, and that’s how I started working with art directors and designers. After graduation, I got a job at an artist/brand management company called The Cell, owned by music producer Cisco Adler, where I had the opportunity to work with Cody Simpson, Hollister, Goody Grace, Sicky Eyewear, American Revolution Vodka, The Zibbz, Neff and many others. After my visa expired, I went back to Mexico and immersed myself solely in graphic design and art. I’ve since made and sold more than 100 pieces of art, opened my online store and have a decent amount of stable graphic design clients. I’m currently planning an interactive exhibition of my collection, Crap Art, where I’ll teach some of my trash repurposing techniques to kids and adults. I try to take it one day at a time.
Do you have any favorite projects or collaborations you’ve been a part of?
I loved doing the creative direction for all the music videos for The Zibbz. It’s a very long process that involves a lot of people, but seeing the end product is so rewarding. As for personal projects, my collection of prints, POST NO BILLS NYC, is my favorite. For a couple of weeks I walked around NYC looking for street art, scraps of posters and stickers that I could tear down and use.
Which mediums do you primarily work with? How have these evolved over time?
I love experimenting with different mediums. I get bored easily, so trying new stuff keeps things exciting. Nowadays, the medium I work with the most is acrylics, but it’s always mixed with other stuff such as screenprinting and collages. I’m also currently obsessed with resin.
When and where do you most enjoy creating; in what environment do you create your best work?
For art projects, I like working during the day with natural light. When it comes to design and music, my creativity sparks at night. I like my space to be all white, clean and clutterless, but I can basically work anywhere as long as I have my headphones on. Once I put them on, everything around me disappears and I can focus on what I’m doing better. I actually finished one of my songs on a plane; I already had the basic idea, but had been creatively blocked for weeks—until I opened the session on the plane. I named the song Up In The Air for that reason.
What’s your favorite or most impactful collection of art you’ve created? Do you have any notable stories or key takeaways you hope people take from it?
I would say Crap Art, which is an ongoing collection made out of “crap” or objects that I have no use for (or not as easy to recycle: CDs, cassette tapes, fabric scraps, buttons, cables, phone cases, single socks, and more recently, old face masks). Crap Art is inspired by the hope of a more sustainable future. I want to raise awareness about all the trash that we generate daily, and I’m not talking just about plastic bottles or food containers—that’s just the tip of the iceberg. I’m also talking about that new case you just bought for your phone just because it’s cute—but it’s going to end up in the trash one day, you know? I know living a completely waste-free life is not realistic, but I want to encourage people to think twice when purchasing, and to reuse and recycle.
What notable experiences have you had as a visual designer and creative director? How have these experiences impacted your career?
A couple of years ago when I was working at a creative management company, my boss handed me a bunch of money to throw a collaborative event between Hollister and Cody Simpson. I wasn’t given a theme or anything, just the venue (The Roxy L.A.), so I had to come up with the rest. After a mild anxiety attack, I built a small team and got to work. I had a month to plan it and book everything, and I ended up doing the creative direction, graphic design and production. It was a very stressful month but I learned a lot. It definitely pushed my limits, but I now have a lot of knowledge that I wouldn’t have otherwise, and I know what I’m capable of.
How has being a woman impacted your professional experiences? What can we collectively do to support and empower women in your industry today?
My parents never encouraged traditional gender roles; I played with dolls but also had Hot Wheels and remote control cars. My dad always had me help him fix things, so I know how to work in electrical, woodworking, drywall—you name it. It’s especially frustrating when men don’t trust me with things I’m capable of doing. For instance, I like building my own canvases, and every time I go to a home improvement store, I get treated as if I didn’t know what I’m doing—especially in Mexico. As women we should be supporting each other instead of competing against each other. Be nice to each other—it’s as simple as that. You don’t have to like everyone, but just be nice. It goes a long way.
What’s one thing you’re proud to have accomplished in your career thus far?
Finding “my thing.” It took me a while to find my path, but now I’m 100% sure that I’m on the right one. I love what I do and it doesn’t really feel like work. That was always the goal, even though I didn’t know it back then.
How do you balance creating with the administrative upkeep of being a freelancer? Do you have any tips for fellow babes looking to break out on their own?
Organization is key. I keep a notebook where I write my weekly and daily to-do lists. Seeing what I have to do on paper helps me a lot, and crossing each item off is so satisfying. I also love spreadsheets; I have one for projects, another one for expenses and one for my art prices and sales. I started freelancing while I still had a day job, so that helped a lot because I didn’t rely solely on my income as an artist/freelance designer. Once I had a couple of steady clients, I was able to freelance full-time and sell my art. I still struggle sometimes and miss having a steady income every month, but I’m able to do what I love and not what other people want me to do, so it’s totally worth it.
Are you involved with any other careers, side projects or organizations? If so, how do you balance this alongside your day-to-day responsibilities?
I love music. I play guitar and piano and I also produce—it’s more of a hobby, but it’s another outlet for my creativity. I don’t get the chance to do it as often as I want because my art and design projects take most of my time, but if I have an idea in mind, I try to make time to make it happen. I also try to incorporate music into my art projects. For my POST NO BILLS NYC print collection, I did a video of the process and I made a song specifically for it. Also if a client needs a video to promote a brand or product, instead of looking for copyright-free music, I just make it myself.
Who are some women in your field that you look to for inspiration?
Paula Scher, Jessica Walsh, Lisa Congdon, Gemma Yin Taylor, Jade Purple Brown, Rachel Ryle and Petra Eriksson.
How do you rest + recharge?
Netflix and podcasts. Every once in a while, I take a day off and do nothing but watch movies and TV and not think about anything. The next day, I’m usually super active and clear-minded. During the week when I feel blocked or need to rest, I lie down and listen to a podcast. My favorites are any true crime podcast, How I Built This, Song Exploder and Tape Notes.
Career and/or life advice for other babes (both inside and outside of your industry?)
We live in a wonderful time where we have all the information literally in our hands. If you don’t know something, Google it. If you want to learn something new, find an online course. If you want to know how to hang a shelf, go to YouTube. Before we had to ask other people (usually men) how to do stuff; now we can do it on our own!
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