Artist Spotlight: Distortedd
Anhia Zaira Santana aka Distortedd is a Philly-born visual artist, illustrator and animator. She creates her own original characters as well as twists on pop culture fixtures and has showcased her talents not only digitally, but is also known for live painting. She has worked with brands like Reebok, Mattel, Spotify, Foot Locker, Champs, Mountain Dew, adidas and Nike and produced music videos for notable musicians worldwide. Check out what she had to say.
Tell us about how you got started in the arts.
I always loved drawing as a kid. It kind of naturally unfolded as I got older and focused on it more.
You’ve worked on some amazing collaborations this year, including Reebok and Mattel. Can you tell us about your latest collab with Foot Locker?
My latest collab with Foot Locker is an exclusive drop for the 12 Days of Greatness campaign. I’m excited to be a part of it, I had fun working on it as well. It’s basically a Distortedd perspective on the love for basketball and the culture.
Are there any specific influences related to your work?
My work is definitely inspired by many things. I would say the main specific influences are anime and Lisa Frank. I love psychedelic art, it’s cool.
What’s the weirdest source of inspiration for you?
The weirdest source of inspiration to me is the human anatomy. I love creating art that involves skulls, eyeballs, bones; so all those kinds of things inside of us that we can’t really see.
What do you listen to in the studio?
Honestly, what I listen to depends on what vibration I’m on that day. I listen to Tame Impala, STRFKR, Toro y Moi, MF DOOM; that’s just a small portion...there’s so many to name.
What’s the most challenging part of your day to day?
The most challenging part of my day is telling myself to stop and get some rest. Once I start working on a project I enjoy, I don’t know how and when to stop.
What can we look forward to from you in 2021?
Honestly, there is magic in not knowing. I don’t like planning, I like going with the flow. But I will say more Distortedd projects, products and collabs.
Swing on over here to check out Distortedd’s work.
