{local markets} :: gennebra

hello lovely friends, how are you doing? first of all, i wish to thank all of you that left the sweetest comments on my last {post}, i still hadn’t the time to answer all of your comments, because yesterday was kind of a confusing day. there is the risk of loosing everything i have done so far concerning photography… and so much more in my life, and if on one hand i think of that as an opportunity to start all over again, on the other i loose every record of my life in the past 5 years, which is heart-breaking. i had to end up the day in the best of ways, so mr twiggs grabbed me and we went for a sushi dinner and the movies (with popcorn!). today is another day and i want to introduce you to someone. his name is joão (yes, a male guest)!  i found joão in a very surprising way, through etsy. i saw something from him, opened his shop and i felt quite surprised when i noticed that he was portuguese. i had to bring him in!

can you tell us something about yourself? hello! my name is joão rodrigues. i’m graduated in graphic design and working as illustrator and designer freelancer. i live in a small town in portugal, very quiet and near of the atlantic ocean with my girlfriend and my studio.  my childhood was spent in a small village in the interior of portugal, i was always connected to nature, this is part of me and all this is reflected in my work.

how did gennebra started? during college, i always worked with the computer, graphic design, web design, multimedia, motion graphics… everything became very digital, all for the screen, without tactability, texture, smell, i needed to create something to escape from it all, i need to feel that i am producing something real, working with real tools. all started here, i’ve found the various printing techniques with which i’m currently working.

what inspires you? nature! i look for vintage books, stories, picture books and mostly about animals. i create my imaginary around these images and my reality. i like to draw and paint the nature, animals, humans and their stories.

what advice can you give to the small business owners in our country? the internet is always a good bet because we have a much larger market. but i believe that when you do what you love the most and what you believe, working hard with happiness is the most important thing.

what do you think would be helpful for those small business in our country? the market in portugal is very small, it’s not easy to survive as a freelancer in graphic design or illustrator, especially running against the tide! maybe it would be helpful to create more markets, exhibitions, initiatives, investing in new artists… i feel that this is changing for something better, because there are many new portuguese artists and designers starting with some very interesting work, and that’s what makes this move forward!

quite original, don’t you think? i loved the details of these drawings, as i always do when i find this kind of work! but most of all, i am always really happy to share these kind of portuguese artists, because it is something different from the handmade mood that we are used to seeing. not that those aren’t talented as well, please do not take this in the wrong way. i just wished that for a moment, people stopped thinking that portuguese artists are not as valuable as foreign ones. sometimes we are the worst in appreciating our own talent! so, you can explore more of joão’s work on his {website}, {etsy shop}… and say hello for him, please!

images: gennebra via etsy (click on each image for further details)

what is {local markets}? a community dedicated to the very best portuguese talented & independent artists that strive for an original work and exquisitely executed handmade design & photography. once a week, there will be a special feature for these artists, to spread the word about their talent, to introduce you to new & fresh work. {local markets} is an original feature from {a place for twiggs}.