MANILA, Philippines - Brooklyn-based freelance illustrator Monica Ramos is known for her watercolor renditions of furry animals, comfort food and, erm, naked people. Born and raised in the Philippines, she graduated from Parsons The New School for Design last year and has won awards from American Illustration, Society of Illustrators and 3x3 Illustraion Annual. Her work has appeared in an impressive roster of publications, including The New York Times, Lucky Peach, Pulp Magazine, Rookie Mag and Oh Comely! Here, she talks to us about rainy days and antiques and what they had to do with our logo for this month.
YSTYLE: Which projects do you feel you are most known for, or received a lot of exposure?
MONICA RAMOS: I have this one series called “Comfort Food,†that’s gotten around the Internet. They are all paintings of food I love with little people lounging around in it. My favorite is the one of a stack of waffles with people bathing in the syrup.
When you hear “YStyle,†what kind of images or ideas does your mind conjure up?
Young, stylish individuals.
What was your concept for the new YStyle logo?
August makes me think of the heavy rains, so I drew people trying to get through the flooding with umbrellas or whatever else they had.
Were you listening to music while you were designing it? What song? On purpose or on shuffle?
I was listening to Antiques Roadshow. It’s a show where people bring in their valuables to have them appraised. I like seeing the little old ladies’ reactions when they find out a vase they got at a yard sale is worth $20,000.
Who/what inspires your art?
I really admire the Japanese’s aesthetic and enjoy painting food. It’s hard to pinpoint specifics because everything affects your work. Every person, place, crush, kiss, snack, story, website and bike ride that makes up your memories and personality are mashed up in your head and come out one way or another on the page.
Who/what inspires your personal fashion sense?
It’s a mix of my mom and loose, loose clothes.
Half the year is almost over. How did you did you spend the first half?
HUSTLING!
What upcoming projects do you have?
I did a bunch of spots for the next issue of Lucky Peach!
In case our readers would like to check out your work, do you have an online website/portfolio?
Yes, my portfolio is monramos.com and my blog is monicatramos.tumblr.com.