Today we’d like to introduce you to Adhemas Batista.
Hi Adhemas, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
I started my self-taught career back in 1996, at 15 years old, when I was still living in Brazil. I loved making drawings, reading the comics, and getting inspired by anime and graffiti as a kid. My parents came from the north of Brazil looking for a better life in the big metropolis, and growing up in a poor suburb on the east side of São Paulo; I had to start early.
At age 24, I had already started and closed my agency, got married, and had my second child, when I launched the website of Havaianas’ brand and got exposed to the world via blogs and magazines, winning awards and having proposals to move overseas, ending up in Los Angeles in November of 2006.
Since then, I have been living in LA and love it! I’ve got two more kids, became an American citizen last year, and we live down in the Valley; Today, I work for Deutsch LA, an advertising agency leading the design team, and work on my artistic projects whenever I can find some spare time.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey have been a fairly smooth road?
It’s never easy without many resources coming from the back door. I had to figure out a lot on my own, overcome financial obstacles, learn a different language and culture from my native tongue and adapt my work habits. — Culturally is a shock; being an immigrant in America is complicated; In my first week, I came back from work crying many times. It’s hard. I had to give some steps back before I could move forward again. It takes time, practice, and perseverance. Eventually, I got the gist of how things work, and I made progress again.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I am a visual designer and digital artist specializing in brand identity design, brand visual systems, art direction for campaigns, motion graphics animations, 3D look & feel, design strategy, and digital experiences. My work is colorful and bold, with vibrant color palettes and organic and geometric forms inspired by culture and graffiti. I am proud of combining colors and bringing them to life in eye-grabbing ways; I believe this sets me apart from others. — My work has been exposed throughout my 25+ year career, but I don’t favor one particular baby; I have many projects I feel proud I was able to participate in.
Can you tell us more about what you were like growing up?
Every little kid in Brazil dreams of becoming a football (soccer) superstar; I wasn’t different; I wanted to be a player, but I never had the skills, and I loved to make drawings. My parents are very religious, so I had trouble drawing comic characters that felt too aggressive, muscular, or “devil-like-ish.” I never really had much support to make drawings, besides my older brother, who was the only one who noticed my skills and allowed me to start in graphic design by lending me his old computer. He used to work on company mounting computers and he scored one making some trades. — All of this sounds sad, but it’s a story of success in my POV. Most of my school friends didn’t make it as far as I did. Some lost their lives to drugs and crime. My parents are very humble people, my father worked on civil construction for his whole life, as a jack of all trades, doing plumbing and painting houses. My mom is a housewife who didn’t make it to third grade. They did their best to keep us out of the streets and I thank them always for being strong and strict because I grow up to be a father and give my children a good life in America.
Contact Info:
- Email: [email protected]
- Website: www.adhemas.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/adhemas/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/adhemas
Image Credits
Adhemas Batista
