Today we’d like to introduce you to Batsheba Castro Martinez.
Hi Batsheba, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
I was born in West Hollywood, California, to two Mexican immigrants from the state of Oaxaca. We moved to Webb City, Missouri, when I was 9, so I feel more Midwestern than anything else. From a young age, I was interested in all things creative. In high school, I had ambitions to go into fashion design, but ultimately that didn’t pan out. Coincidentally, around the same time my grandfather had had a stroke so instead of staying in the States, I took the opportunity to go lend a hand in Oaxaca City, Mexico, where they live. I took drawing and painting classes during those 6 months—trying to figure out what I wanted to go into.
After, I came back to MO to work and proceeded to go to community college and took painting and graphic design courses while completing my Associate’s for General Studies. After learning the basics—Photoshop and Illustrator—I felt like the graphic design was the direction I wanted to go into. Once I had completed my degree there, I tranferred to Missouri State University’s Art + Design Program, in Springfield, Missouri, where I dual-majored in Graphic Design and Illustration. While at MSU, I was nominated and selected to study at the Jan Matejko Academy of Fine Arts in Krakow, Poland, for the final semester of my undergrad in the Spring of 2019. Because of the difference in academic calendars, my transcripts weren’t received until mid-summer, meaning I had to wait to graduate in Fall 2019.
If you remember, it was before the world was flipped over on its head due to COVID-19. I had planned to move to Kansas City a few months after graduation, but as companies were firing, not hiring at the time, I postponed my plans. As the world pivoted to virtual meetings and conferences, so did I. I attended as many virtual conferences and networking events as possible and joined a few volunteer opportunities—such as AIGA KC and Babes Helpin’ Babes. I was also fortunate to have had enough connections that led to freelance clients, one of those being VMLY&R. That freelance work led me to a full-time position with VMLY&R as a Sr. User Experience Designer—I’ve been there for over a year now.
Can you talk to us about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
I think COVID was probably the biggest hindrance to entering the workforce. But it was also a chance to get creative in how I connected with people. As someone struggles with social anxiety and who wasn’t the most outgoing, it was honestly more accessible to me to connect with people virtually rather than being too shy at a conference/networking event.
In general, I struggle with mental health and have Lupus, which means that my immune system likes to attack tissues—even the good ones. My Lupus is a milder disease, primarily causing joint pain, discoid scaring, sun sensitivity, and hair loss. It has periods of more intensity, but thankfully it seems less active right now. In the more active parts of the disease, the joint pain in my hands made making things painful and left me avoiding projects and creating art for myself in general. I’m currently trying to reconnect with the maker part of my creativity by taking a handbuilding ceramics class at Belger Arts. Just started, but so far I’m enjoying it.
I’m also Mexican American and queer, which has brought about its own sets of fascinating obstacles on a personal level and growing up in Webb City, MO. But my identities themselves have only worked to help me gain confidence and strength in myself—particularly as an adult. Especially since moving to KC, the community here is so encouraging and really wants to see people succeed. And I’ve met some really great people who I am lucky enough to call friends and allies.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar, what can you tell them about what you do?
My main gig is User Experience design, which means that I take the end user and business requirements into consideration at every stage of the design process. And because I work for VML, I’ve had the change to work a variety of clients. Some of the clients I’ve worked with include United Rentals, Myriad Genetics and Driscoll’s (briefly).
Apart from the UX work with VML, I still take on other creative projects. They primarily focus on illustration, a muscle I don’t get to flex in my current full-time role. I was part of this cool concept of a risograph poster called COGRID-19, which brought together 19 artists from KC, each contributing to a shared grid. The poster was sold to raise money for the Kansas City Regional COVID-19 Response and Recovery Fund. The project started with Philadelphia but has expanded to KC (facilitated by AIGA KC) and 9 other cities.
Most recently, I was one of five artists collaborating with Ripple Glass to bring about community art bins. I’ve never created a piece that was for something so massive in size and impact, so it was truly rewarding to be part of something bigger in the community. I am really big on community—especially in the creative industry. As a first-generation Mexican American and very queer, I’d love to help foster a culture where people like me get to feel comfortable taking up space and get to grow in their fields. As much as I love the creative community because I get to be creative and get paid to do it, we still have work to do. The last census AIGA did, with designers, showed that only 15.7% of the respondents identified as LGBTQIA+ and only 9% were Hispanic/Latine. That percentage is slightly higher for Asian-American designers at 9.5% and lower for Black designers at 4.9%. So that really drives me to be more involved and learn more from my peers so that we move those numbers in the future.
Do you have any memories from childhood that you can share with us?
I’ve been visiting my family in Oaxaca City in Mexico since I was an itty bitty baby, so those trips, in general, are some of my favorite memories. In particular, Oaxaca has such a rich history of art and traditional practices that seeped into my heart. I may not have been born in Oaxaca, but I feel deeply connected to that earth. And if you’re a foodie, I recommend going to Oaxaca and take a cooking class. You won’t regret it. My favorite memories are watching my grandma roast bread, nuts, and other ingredients to prepare mole so we could bring it back to the States and some to enjoy after.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.batsevamakes.com/
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/BatsevaMakes
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