OTIS COLLEGE OF ART AND DESIGN
Yaritza is a Los Angeles-based creative who grew up in the Bay Area, in the small town of East Palo Alto, right at the heart of Silicon Valley. She has a BA in Media and Cultural Studies from the University of California, Riverside, and is completing her BFA in Communication Arts from Otis College of Art and Design. In her free time, she photographs vernacular types (doodles, graffiti, murals, signs, etc) around her neighborhood or watches films on the “Hidden Gems” category through Netflix. As a designer, she is passionate about visual sustainability and learning about BIPOC designers like W.E.B. Du Bois, Mona Chalabi, and Charles “Chaz”Bojorquez. She loves reinvention, which is why she enjoys creating expressive type and personalized identity systems. Her goal is to produce work that highlights the value of marginalized communities.
WHAT MAKES YOU FEEL INSPIRED?
I gravitate towards street culture, film, and music, it’s all about the story and how it makes people feel. But I am a huge fan of Kelli Anderson, James Jean, and Maria Medem, you will most likely find me on their social media during my free time.
IF THERE WERE NO BARRIERS AND CONSTRAINTS, WHAT PROJECT WOULD YOU WANT TO WORK ON?
I would like to create a graphic novel of short stories that highlight women in design. It would be an alternative to traditional bureaucratic history books in school. The book would have an illustrated short story on the designer, about how they discovered their craft. It would also include a short biography and portfolio of their work.
WHAT ARE YOU READING/LISTENING TO/WATCHING?
I am currently listening to a TED & PRX podcast titled “How to Be a Better Human,” and “Balance ton quoi,” a song by Angèle, a Belgian singer-songwriter. I am watching Blown Away and the Final Table on Netflix, as for reading — Fun Home by Allison Bechdel.
