Leticia Ortín

What do you wish you’d known now when you started your design course?

Just as we are taught engineering or medicine, I feel they should have taught us in high school, or even before, what graphic design is and what the role of design is in our society. It is more important than one might think, and it isn't so socially widespread and understood. (How the relationship between this field and the human being works.)

What originally lead you in to design, and how has that changed - what do you want to do/are doing now?

I entered the world of design because of art. When I still didn't understand the concept of graphic design very well, I understood that it was linked to art, and this is something that interested me a lot when I was choosing my university career. So I chose a mixed career and little by little I started to understand graphic design and I got hooked. / These days, design is my trade and my hobby. I work as a freelance graphic designer and I dedicate part of my free time to my own projects. I am quite restless and I like to explore graphic solutions with my own proposals... I would love to grow as a professional and be able to collaborate with designers that allow me to learn and enjoy the process of working together.

Any hot tips for getting ahead at uni?

To realize that university is only a small stage which we have to make the most of, choose well on which subjects to work on, ones that we are passionate about (photography, illustration, typography, editorial, branding, feminism, social issues ...). I also think that here it's important to try to create an opinion of what good design really is, always with a base of studies and many hours spent in the library.

What do you love about the design scene in your city and what companies are on your dream list to work or collaborate with?

I love the value that Barcelona gives to design. I think that surrounding yourself with a creative environment helps you to create new and interesting things. Every day you have many different events related to the design.

These are a few studios I would really like to work with or to collaborate, in Barcelona: Clase, offset Studio, Play and Type, Querida, Oficina de disseny, Córdoba y Canillas; and out of Barcelona: Caterina Bianchini Studio, Oh Babushka, Demande Spéciale, Semiotik Design Agency, The Rodina.