Artist Spotlight #3: Molly Mendoza
Molly Mendoza. Image copyright © Dani Townsend 2020.
Artist Spotlight
Welcome to the third in my short blogs series ‘Artist Spotlight’ and this one is a little bit different - it’s about an artist I came to know about through one specific piece of work.
Molly Mendoza
Molly Mendoza is originally from Chicago in the States, and is an illustrator, muralist, and comic book creator. Reading about her it’s obvious that she was always destined to be an artist; in fact, she can clearly remember her first ever drawing of a turtle when she was only of nursery age. She studied at the Pacific Northwest College of Art, and now lives in Portland, Oregon with her cat called Doodle!
Skip
I first came across Molly’s book ‘Skip’, in a small bookshop in Portobello, Edinburgh. Her colourful expressive style really stood out, and the hardback version of the book caught my eye on the shelf. The coral tones and subtle deboss – the impeccable finish as to now be expected from No Brow Press, was more than enough to make it stand out against hundreds of others on the shelves. I own way too many books by this publisher, I cannot recommend them enough!
Image copyright © Molly Mendoza.
Molly’s unique story and style had me hooked, and it has since inspired various ideas and projects in my own practice. In fact, I know I love this book, as I accidentally bought it twice, from the same bookshop. To be fair to me, the hardback and paperback versions of the story look very different, so it wasn’t too obvious, and I’m more than happy to have more of her art in the house and two copies of this fantastic story.
Other Work
Of course, Molly has completed a range of amazing artwork over and above the graphic novel I love so much, including painting murals and undertaking editorial work, teaching students, and creating unique one-off pieces of art. Her client list is weighty, including Adobe, The New York Times, and Wired amongst others.
Images copyright © Molly Mendoza.
Spotlight
Molly does one thing incredibly well via a huge range of channels, and that’s communicating relationships. How we interact and connect are at the route of her stories and artwork in any form. If you haven’t seen, read or consumed Molly’s work in any way, do yourself a favour and check it out!
Where Can You Find Molly?
Website: About — Molly Mendoza
Instagram: Molly Mendoza (@msmollym) • Instagram photos and videos
Twitter: Molly Mendoza (@thisismollym) / Twitter
