Ana Leovy paints empowered characters in a celebration of diversity and equality

Mexican artist Ana Leovy, despite her accomplished portfolio, only came to her chosen medium later in her creative career. Having majored in graphic design, and working as a designer for many years after, she switched track and moved towards a more artistic endeavour. Now, through imagery created with gouache and acrylic, Ana celebrations women and diversity, creating empowered and bold characters.

“I chose to dive into art because it offers me a creative freedom I didn’t have in areas such as graphic design,” Ana explains of her career change. And while representing women is at the heart of her work, Ana’s use and exploration of materials is also paramount to her process. “I am constantly experimenting with different materials; at the moment I enjoy the playfulness of acrylics,” she tells us, “it is exciting to use materials that dry fast because it allows me to create in a quicker speed. I appreciate that because it prevents me from being too critical and perfectionist.”

In order to find the subjects she portrays, Ana “can spend hours browsing through Pinterest and Instagram,” but “I try keeping it balanced and search for inspiration in the real world as well,” she explains. “When I am feeling stuck on a project I enjoy going for a walk or to a coffee shop where I can see different colours, faces and places,” Ana says, “I try carrying a sketchbook with me everywhere I go, you never know when inspiration might come.”

Pulling in these mundane inspirations, Ana creates emboldened characters, composing groups of diverse women with tropical elements. “I play with the disruption of the human form to reveal my view on both internal and external beauty,” she adds.

In one piece, titled Sisters, Ana chose to depict notions of family and friendship between women. Not based on one specific group, it instead represents the “love bonds between women and how we are stronger together” in an allegorical sense. This approach typifies that of Ana’s work which holistically allows her to “support relevant causes such as empowerment, diversity and equality,” through endearing, colourful and bold paintings.