Yerb enthusiasts have been full of questions about the artist who designed our limited edition holiday thermos bundles, so we decided to sit down and ask him some questions. Meet Juan Molinet.
What’s your name and where can people find you on social media?
Juan Molinet, Instagram @molinetjuan
Where are you originally from and where do you call home?
I’m originally from San Miguel, a town in the suburbs of Buenos Aires. And I’m currently living in Berlin, Germany.
What were some of your early influences in your art and style?
My first influences as a kid was commercial mascots for sweets and cookies, as my grandfather was in the cookie and sweets wholesale business. He was the president of the cookie wholesalers association, (called M.A.G.Y.A, as in Spanish for magic, acronym for Mayoristas Asociados Galletitas y Afines). I used to spend a lot of time at my grandparents house when I was a kid, so I grew up seeing all those wrappings, brochures and packaging - full of colors and illustration, that’s why commercial graphics and mascots are a big influence in what I do. I love bold colors, impactful graphics and eye catching illustration.
Social media and "Fast everything" seem to be the norm; as an illustrator, how do you manage the time it takes to create a piece and the immediate expectations from consumers and brands alike?
I always aim to do the best job possible with the timeline at hand, and enjoy the process as much as I can. In my case, I love having projects with lots of time, it allows the ideas to mature, and evolve organically, but I have to be honest, I enjoy short-timeline projects as well. I started out in graphic design, in a studio where I had to learn to work at a fast speed, I think it’s a good challenge, makes the imagination work faster, and makes you very practical at the time of finding solutions. Having said this, in my personal projects, I’ve been taking more time to do what I do lately, trying to slow down and see things without the pressure to immediately post it, I think it’s good to resist the urge to seek the immediate social media validation, and give time for the work to grow.
Your illustrations seem to provide a soothing visual effect rooted in positivity. Do you think art helps make the world a better place?
In a way yes, but also I think it also reflects part of our own personality, and I consider myself quite an optimistic person. I hope it makes the world a better place, but in any case, if not that, at least it makes it more interesting in my view.
What is your favorite yerba mate recipe?
I normally just drink it amargo, water at 80º (Celsius) and yerba, normally a strong one. If I’m feeling fancy, I add some orange peel shavings or ginger, it gives it an extra boost for me, although my purist mate friends back home might have a word or two about this.
What would you tell the next generation who will read this and want to make art their main 9 to 5?
Just do what you love, draw, and don’t be afraid to show it, reach out, you’ll be surprised how generous fellow artists can be with knowledge. We all started from the same point, so there’s no shame if you are not where you want to be yet, there’s no destination, it’s a journey and that’s the fun part.
You never know where it’s going to end up. Sharing what we do is very important, it just take the right pair of eyes to see it, to be on your way to your next project or next assignment. The more you put yourself out there, there’s more chance to get noticed. And one last thing.
Never mind the likes on social media, just be yourself. We need more personal voices.
