Erika Chapman
A r t  D i c t a t o r

Erika Martin del Campo's arrival, December 9, 1969, was barely a ding in Mexico City's ever growing population. Her first seven years were a blur of eye popping color everywhere she looked, from the colorful house exteriors, the markets, the local art, to the native costumes. This colorful influence would set her on a path to creativity that she could not escape even when she was detoured.

Once she crossed the border to the land of white walls and political conservatism she promptly set to work coloring, drawing and finally painting her new world in the image of her native home. As a child she took classes at the Corcoran School of the Arts, in high school she continued to be influenced by the abundent art in the Washington DC area, and at The College of William and Mary she minored in Fine Arts. When her parents became concerned that they were going to be supporting a starving artist for the rest of their lives, she settled happily into Graphic Design.

She has been a designer for 14 years at numerous agencies (big and small), a stint in a corporate marketing department, and many years now as a freelancer. Graphic Design has allowed her to use her complete box of crayons, and deliver a smart, creative, product that works for both the client and it's audience.

Color and creativity are the life-blood of this mexican-american that somehow ended up in North Carolina! When she's not working as the Design Engineer at The Marketing Machine, she can be found playing with her two children (Maya and Gabe), traveling, drinking wine, salsa dancing, or painting yet another wall in her house.

Photo credit: Aaron Price