Texas-based illustrator, Alexandria Canchola, captures everyday life in vivid colors. Having earned a bachelor’s degree in Government and Journalism from the University of Texas at Austin and an MFA in 2D Design from the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, her work (much like her background) is grounded in narrative.
“I love color, I love type, I love stories,” she summarized effectively in an interview with Ballpitmag. Through visual storytelling, her work explores universal and often unresolved themes that have preoccupied mankind since the very beginning. Her choice of color and composition serves to further enhance her visual messages.
“The aesthetic choices found in the illustration work: flat areas of color, simplification of forms and figures, a bold and vibrant color palette, and a playfulness with perspective,” says Canchola, adding that color is oftentimes used to document human experiences by connecting narrative and emotion.
“There’s something about each one of us that lends ourselves to a story,” she says. “My intent is to blur the distinctions between our perceptions of reality and our creations within it. The color palettes used to subvert the viewer’s idea of emotion; centering on themes such as loneliness, solitude, and voyeurism and showcasing these emotions in the bright powerful hues in which we feel them.” In other words: her work is meant to be explored – a visual universe that’s both messy and appealing, much like raw human emotion.
