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KDU Member Feature: Son interviews Nelson Balaban / XTRABOLD from Curitiba, Brazil

Posted on June 14, 2008
Filed Under Brazil | 5 Comments

[SON] Hello Nelson, please state your name and what you do.

[Nelson Balaban] Hi, I’m Nelson Balaban, 19 years old graphic artist from Brazil. I produce both colorful and moody illustrative artworks for international and local clients, sort of. Never thought I’d become a professional, I learned everything by myself while messing out with tools like Photoshop and Illustrator.

[S] What benefits does this global community afford you?

[NB] The global community gives me the opportunity to interact with like-minded professionals and students, get feedback from them and the best part: collaborate with them. It’s always good to mix up different ideas and styles, the result tends to be provoking, complex, thoughtful.

[S] Tell me things that are unique about the scenes in Brazil?

[NB] Really hard to tell. There’s a huge variety of styles, influenced by a vast universe of creations and creators from all over the globe that when mixed up – or even emulated by the artists – they come with so much originality that it’s not really “realized” or recognized by the community. In my field, it may be tough to find a job where you’re not actually forced to work within parameters set by people from Europe or even North America. Clichés. Things in Brazil tend to be very unique – but they go out from the country as soon as they get discovered by outsiders. Just like I said, it takes time for the public to realize how original it is, how unique it is in a global point of view. We got a very strong culture that can’t be found anywhere else, and as a big country, some regions don’t breed great talents in determined fields.. and it’s even more tricky when you don’t have access to the outside world. Things are unique here by the braveness of our people, the concept is always intricate in some aspects. Urban intervention is wacky, just as the government and taxes are.

[S] What do you do offline?

[NB] I barely find myself at home when I’m not working in front of my mac.. just when we set up some kind of a movie session with our girls and other friends – we grab some beer, entertaining movies and pizzas, the rest… well you know. I used to practice skateboarding but I got some projects and budgets that are taking me some good time lately. We (me and my friends) club at the weekends and tend to have a very hungover Sunday as usual – normally spent laid down on the grass, drinking fresh water. Though, I got to manage household affairs, as well as car-driving classes. Will attend my last year at school then move to London in 2009 for university. Plans may change, but they’re standing up for a good while thus far.

[S] Whats next for Nelson and Xtrabold?

[NB] Well, as a wealthy and brave boy I’ll let the future take me wherever it wants to take me to. As said above, plans may change, I wish I could know what comes next but I don’t even know what I’m going to eat tomorrow. Like the wise old man said, “keep running”, that’s what I do. I’m freelancing for 3 years now and as soon as I get in a university – in London – things are supposed to get even better on the professional. I just wish to get involved with projects where I’ll be able to develop my abilities and expand my knowledge. I earned much more than I thought I would some years ago, the thing I used to do for fun has become my profession and now I’m definitely fallen in love with it.

XTRABOLD

interview by: son

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