Pilar García Ferrer, better known as PilsFerrer, is an architect with an overflowing creativity that she channels through illustration and collage. Her works reflect a unique universe of color and imagination where architecture and female figures merge perfectly with elements of nature, such as animals or vegetables, and with the gastronomy that Pilar enjoys so much. We interviewed her in her home studio in Madrid, where she talks about the success of her present and professional future.
Who is "PilsFerrer"?
I am an architect and I work as an architect doing interior design projects of houses, and then I am an illustrator and I am specialized in the collage technique.
What is creativity for you?
Einstein said that creativity is intelligence having fun, and I identify a lot with this phrase. I started doing these kinds of illustrations for fun. For me, creativity is turning a situation or a world upside down and creating different universes. Also, finding the way that different pieces fit together like in a collage. For example, I have an image of a turtle and an artichoke in my head, and in the end, the pieces will fit together and make sense.
Do you consider yourself an architect who makes collages or an artist who makes architectural projects?
This is very difficult to answer. For now, I can't give up either of the two worlds, but I would define myself as an architect who makes collages.
How did collage come into your life?
During my college career, I took photos of the models of the buildings, digitized them, and with Photoshop, I added textures, characters, different elements such as a giant watermelon, for example, and thus began my first collages.
What is it about collage that other artistic techniques don't have?
I would love to do sculpture or oil painting, but I started with collage, which in the end encompasses everything because it is a technique that allows mixing textures, flowers, stones, etc. It is a technique that encompasses many techniques in the same work. Although most of the ones I do are digital, I am working on some analog works that allow me to capture much better those different three-dimensional textures.
In 2015, you traveled to Peru for a year to continue your architectural studies. What did that trip mean for you on a personal, creative, and professional level?
On a personal level, I was leaving my golden cage and arriving in Peru without knowing anyone there. I landed in a new world, in a new culture, and I had to find a life for myself, which, on a personal level, already represented an important change. On a professional level, I focused on cooperation projects that I could not have done in Spain, and, on a creative level, every weekend I went on a trip to different places to be in contact with the nature of the country, and that connection with nature is always very present in my collages.
What are your main sources of inspiration?
Women, gastronomy, nature, animals, architecture, and travel would be my main pillars when it comes to inspiring me to create my collages.
And in relation to the influence of great artists or painters?
I really like the collages that were made during the avant-garde artistic movement, even though the first collages were found in ancient China, where it was a method used to correct flaws or errors in original works. But it is not until the avant-garde and the futurist movement that they begin to make intentional collages.
How would you describe your creative process from the idea you visualize until you turn it into a unique collage?
There are two paths: one, in the visualization, and the other, in the creation of a collage. There are two paths: one, in which a brand asks me for an illustration that defines the philosophy of the company itself, for example. Then I start sketching the idea, I take notes in a notebook, I review those sketches, and when I have the idea landed, I start looking for photographs that fit with this composition.
The other way is to see a photo that inspires me a lot, and then I add elements to convey a feeling. Sometimes I create the image, and other times the image finds me.
How would you define your style?
I like to mix the black and white that brings a retro style with a spark of color because I really like contrasts. Yes, it is true that in some of my collages there is a retro feel, but most of them I would include in a colorful comic style.
What do you intend to express through your works? What do they convey?
What I look for is the impact on the viewer. That, suddenly, he sees a collage in which it seems that nothing is happening, and when he sees it again, he stares at it and says: "Wow, it's not a turtle, it's a tortoise". And that connection with the viewer is what I always try to achieve, that surprise effect.
What are your clients looking for in one of your collages?
Well, they are also looking for that surprise. Many customers buy my collages to give as a gift and surprise them with that very gift. The average age of my clients is mainly between 35 and 45 years old. They also buy many collages for wedding gifts and people who do not want to hang pictures from Ikea in their living rooms, but also not 3,000€ pictures.
Mine is an exclusive art, as I make limited and signed editions of all my works, but they are affordable for people who are entering the art world. Many people ask me to extend a series because it is already finished, but I prefer to stay true to the value of exclusivity that my works have.
Your works are made through digital techniques, and now you want to broaden your horizons again and try new analog techniques. What can analog contribute to your work?
My analog collages are unique pieces that I sell in exhibitions, and they are the ones that I am most embarrassed to sell, to be honest. The difference with the digital is mainly the three-dimensionality. I love to stain my hands, to be able to touch, to be able to sew, to be able to make a more artisanal process: pick some flowers, dry them, incorporate them into the work.
It is a more long-term and delicate process. It also brings me a lot of peace and calm to physically create something with my hands. The difficulty also lies in the fact that, in this case, there is no "Ctrl+Z" to undo a mistake. It's more risky.
What other projects do you have in the future?
I'm working on the packaging of some perfumes, designing some illustrations for a watch brand, or the cover of a book about the world in 2030, among other projects.
If PilsFerrer were a collage, how would you imagine it? With what elements would you transmit your essence and personality in collage format?
It would probably look like my body with a collage. Surely you would see my body with the head of an animal, probably a giraffe, which I love. And full of flowers and fuchsia pink tones. And maybe the title would be "The artist's gaze."
What does luxury mean to you?
Luxury to me is to be comfortable and well taken care of. It doesn't need to be expensive. To feel at home thanks to a product or a service that has quality and makes me feel comfortable.
For example, when a brand writes me to order a collage, I usually take into account the values of the brand, although it is true that most of those who ask me for something are quite close to me. I also like to support small brands, although I have also worked for big brands such as El Corte Inglés.
Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
I'm delegating more and more of the logistics part of e-commerce, and I'm more focused on designing. My idea would be to continue doing collaborations with important, luxurious, and quality brands as I have been doing so far, and to be able to continue combining collages and my career as an illustrator with my work as an architect, because I really like it.
What does traveling mean to you?
For me, traveling is always learning. Getting to know first-hand places, cultures, people, and enriching myself a lot. Trying, gossiping, and having different experiences. I love to travel to areas where tourists do not go and delve into the underbelly of a particular destination.
Traveling is also very much related to gastronomy or practicing extreme sports in other countries. But I also like to take a trip to relax and disconnect. There are some trips in which there are a few days that I do not stop and other days in which I rest and do nothing, reading and in the spa of the hotel.
What parallels do you find between the design of a custom trip and a custom collage?
I think there is a super parallelism between the design of a custom trip and that of a custom collage. I think there is a super close parallel. I also make custom collages for private clients. To do that, I first need to know their dreams, their tastes, what makes them smile, what their favorite memories are, just like with a custom trip. And, in the same way that I look for the surprise effect in my works, I think this is also important in a tailor-made trip.
If you had to make a collage about the world of travel, or traveling, what would it be like? What would be your inspiration?
If I had to make a collage right now I would do it about Berlin, which is a city where I have spent a month and a half for three summers because a friend of mine lives there and it is a city that brings me a lot of memories and has many resources and many elements to make a collage in a pop style.
A destination that you would never get tired of repeating...
Berlin in summer, Peru, Paris, or Australia. And Vietnam, which was the first trip I took with my husband when we were engaged.
An unforgettable trip...
New Zealand is one of the most impressive trips I've done. It is pure nature with breathtaking landscapes that I found very unique. I had been in Iceland shortly before, and New Zealand seemed to me like a bigger version of Iceland.
A trip to forget ...
A trip to Sierra Nevada that I did with some friends to ski, where it snowed every day, and the organization was a bit of a disaster.
Your dream trip...
I can't wait to go to Africa, where I've never been. I would love to go to Rwanda to see gorillas, to South Africa, to Egypt, to Ivory Coast, and also to Japan.
Your next trip...
I want to go to Argentina or South Africa and go skiing, because I have been two years without being able to do so because of the pandemic.
