Who are you, and what is it that you do?
My name is Edwin Carl Capalla. I am freelance graphic designer based in Iloilo, Philippines.

How did you get into design / illustration?
My interest in graphic design started when I was taking a class on web design. I suddenly fell in love with the craft. I looked at these web pages as if they were canvases which different people from all around the world can interact on. I pursued this career for about a year and I realized I preferred designing the websites to coding them. I ended up seeing it as more of a chore rather than something I could do full-time. After that I started to look into logo design and branding and I liked the idea of condensing a big organization and all of their values and personality into one logo and visual language.

I found that creating logos was much easier than creating a whole website, and after half a year I started to feel stale and wanted more of a challenge. One day I’d been scrolling through Instagram and I found out a guy who was creating a poster every day for a year. His name was Vasjen Kastro and his series was called “baugasm” for anyone who’s interested. It intrigued me, it was the challenge I’d been looking for. So one day I decided to take it on myself, take it as an exercise to widen and explore other mediums and techniques and also familiarize myself with different programs used for design. Since I started this series I have gained a lot of experience and learned countless techniques I would have never imagined myself doing before. I have met a lot of great people who have said my art has inspired them throughout their day or consider me as one of their inspirations. One of the best compliments I have received however, was when one person said that one of the posters I made reminded them of one person who they cherished in their life –  which meant I was not only visually stimulating them but it was stimulating for their emotions as well.

Is there anything you struggle with when you work?
The biggest challenge for me with this series is what I can do tomorrow that will exceed my previous post or just having to create something that I can be pleased with. My tiny city is not something a lot of people would consider the best but luckily I like this tiny city and the people here as well. A couple of people who I appreciate are my family, Elbert, Ervin, Bep-Bep, Emman, my mom Carolyn, my dad Edwin, I wish you could see me now and my yeobo Abbie Gail. I would like to say thank you each one of you, continue to be amazing. Without you guys creating a poster everyday would surely be difficult.

What do you want to become in future, what is your biggest dream?
My dream right now would be to one day own a design studio and be my own boss. Somewhere around Singapore would be ideal for me. I’ve heard there are a lot of creative studious there and I think me being able to go head on head with those world class studios would be a challenge yet at the same time exhilarating. The future is something that’s really scary for me. When I started out doing graphic I mostly joined contests, doing free work for friends and hoping someone would notice my work but as right now I am happy with what I have achieved. All I wanted was to get one foot in the door into the world of design and for people to notice my work, doing this interview right now proves that someone has noticed me and I am truly grateful.

Do you have a motto?
When you love something don’t do it half-assed, try to learn everything about it. Half-assing it would be an insult to those who have devoted their lives to a specific career. My last motto would be “never stop grinding”, even if you think that the world will never notice you or when other people think that you won’t make it, prove them wrong. Make your life a success story.

 

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Interviewed by Anja Korošec; Illustrations: Edwin Carl Capalla