Carteles y signos graficos urbanos

MARTA GRANADOS, A LANGUAGE OF HER OWN Xavier Bermudez It is all too often that art and graphic design critics neglect a fundamental element when discussing the work of artists and designers: the profound and intimate motivations of these individuals to produce their work, along with the context in which such incentives emerge. The work of Marta Granados is not subordinated to the needs of her clients. Marta only produces work that is consistent with the ideas and objectives of communication that derive from her relationship with the client. Although it is said that the practice of the graphic designer depends exclusively upon contractual transactions, it is also true that certain visual artists of Marta Granados' caliber are sought out because they agree ideologically with their clients and are considered assets to challenging projects. The primary theme of Marta's work is intimately related to her native country, Colombia; there is no one who expresses better than her the contradictions contained by the great wealth and cultural traditions of Latin America. As opposed to European artists for whom color is a secondary visual code, Marta Granados seeks out an equilibrium between the chromatic force of her work and the written message, allowing one to imagine a visual language that is more abstract than literary language and that endows the written message with a heartfelt and personal emotion that expresses her commitment to the ideas articulated by her posters. For Marta, it is not the client that is primary, but rather a demand that is socially necessary, and it is to this that she dedicates her greatest efforts. This accounts for the transcendence and usefulness her designs, which are very much hers but contain a collective element as well.