My story
Hi! I'm Inês.
I was raised by two artists, a Maestro and a dancer, and I never lacked art supplies. I grew up drawing and painting, often gifted colouring books, pens, and pencils. I would draw people, cartoon characters, flowers, and even clothes. It was my favourite activity.
6 year old Inês
I was also surrounded by a deep love for animals. Many strays ended up at my home as loving pets, and even the less desirable ones were accepted and cared for, like the hamster my grandmother feared, yet cared for anyway. There was only one animal that was never welcomed: birds.
My sister has ornithophobia, an irrational fear of birds, so even though I had opportunities to have my own parakeet, I was never allowed, because my sister would leave home. And although I once saved a baby sparrow, birds remained the one thing my sister feared most... and that's that.
When it came time to choose what I would do in life, art was the obvious choice. But it wasn't painting or drawing; it was music. In a turn of events (and a very long story for another time), I went to study sound, TV, and photo at an all-arts high school. It was fun, but I couldn't see myself doing it for the rest of my life. So I decided to go back to my childhood and apply for fashion design. I didn't get in. Not even close! Another turn on the road, and I ended up studying Design, focusing on Graphic Design.
For over a decade, I worked as a graphic designer, mostly for sports and event companies. I didn't enjoy it, nor did I feel particularly good at it. It was just my job. So when COVID-19 closed us all indoors and there were no events to be made, I found myself with a lot of time on my hands, and I reverted to doing what I've always enjoyed: drawing.
I would draw all day, a hobby I had picked up again the previous year, but only barely. Now I had all the time in the world. I remember feeling bad for just drawing all day while my husband's job continued as normal. But alas, I married well, and when I told him how much I loved it, how I wished I could do that all day, every day, he told me I could.
Many different kinds of drawings I did during COVID-19
My husband was the one encouraging me, telling me that drawing could be a job, and if I loved it, I should try to make it one. So I drew. Sports events came back, and I was doing both things at once. And in 2023, I took a leap of faith and dedicated myself to drawing full time.
Little did I know that when drawing is your job, and you're a one-woman show, you spend so much time doing other things too: bookkeeping, marketing, content, planning. But still, I enjoy it. Because it's my bookkeeping, my marketing, my content. It's my business.
Now, as a mother of two small kids and an art entrepreneur, time is quite limited, and yet I choose to dedicate my free time to my business and my art. I try to instil the love of art and nature in my kids, and I try to find better and more efficient ways to reach clients and partners.
This website is a bit of both things combined. It's a store and a portfolio. It's a window for my art, which I gladly share with you all.