Madrid, January 17th, 2024

Currently based in Madrid, María Vargas is a freelance UI designer and art director from Argentina. She studied graphic design and has had a strong influence of the Japanese culture, which is still visible on her personal work. She believes on the importance of a good communication and transparency and enjoys working with talented people.

In an interview with TIA, María described her day-to-day work in Madrid and highlighted the importance of avoiding technology from limiting her creativity. She also listed the things needed to successfully working remotely with a team and explained how she manages her time when working at two projects simultaneously.

To kick things off, what would you recommend doing to someone visiting for the first time?

As someone who’s “new” to Madrid (2 years and a couple of months since I moved from Argentina) I would say walk Madrid if you have enough time. Besides touristic places, there are neighbourhoods like Hispanoamérica or the Arturo Soria Avenue that are worth exploring.

Imagine we’re taking a journey through the streets of your childhood in Argentina. What sights, sounds, or experiences from those days do you remember fondly, and
how do they connect to your current work?

I remember the joy of spending some time with my mum, who had to work super hard to take care of my 2 siblings and myself. Her perseverance helped to shape the person and professional I am today.

Also, anime and the Japanese culture were a big part of my childhood (same as nowadays). As a kid, I loved illustrating my favourite anime characters and create my own designs. Although I’ve stopped illustrating, I am sure there is a correlation between that “creative phase as a child” and having studied Graphic Design years later.

Nowadays, you’ll find Japanese touches on my personal work.

Can you describe how a typical workday looks like for you?

I’m not an early bird, but the mate cocido helps a lot to turn-on my brain (it’s like a tea bag made of yerba mate). If it’s sunny, somehow my mood automatically goes up which also helps – thanks, Sun.

Depending on what project I’m working on, I usually check my emails and think how far I need to go that day – what needs to be finished, what needs to get started, deliveries, etc.

After spending the day working (meaning designing/exploring/conceptualizing/ researching/cleaning up my files/creating guides for my dev friends/mocking up an animation/etc) and usually having a couple of meetings, I’d like to say that I close the laptop… but there are many things that I enjoy doing on the internet. So, I usually spend some more time navigating the virtual world or working on personal projects, unless I have other “real life” plans.

What are your main focuses at the moment?

My career and making sure to have all my stuff well-organized before April, when my family comes to visit Madrid and me for the first time!

As someone who has worked with notable brands, what tips would you recommend to clients for streamlining the communication and coordination between their vision and your approach?

Since I’m the “expert”, it’s up to me to make things clear from the beginning. I know what I need to kick off the designs and I like to use time efficiently. So, on the visual side: Creative spectrums and ask for visual references. On the conceptual side: Clear Q&A’s and understanding their goals and wishes and technical limitations.

All these are key for me to start designing, deliver the work the client wishes to see and avoid having many feedback rounds. Transparency from both sides helps a lot too.

What do you feel are the keys to success when working remotely with a team?

Good communication to build trust and willingness to face the remote work challenges. I personally don’t mind if you’re the funniest or coolest person… I just hope to receive the same professionalism that I give.

Slack / EOD emails / meetings – we have everything to make remote work successful (and it was proven it works)!

How do you balance creativity and technical proficiency?

I try to avoid technology from limiting my creativity. There’s always a way: learning, asking for help or even AI (on concept phases). When talking with clients though, I’m 100% transparent with the work I can’t do or goes beyond my expertise.

As of now, I love to learn and discover lil features on the go about the tools I use every day, like Figma or Photoshop. Then, as I think animation and UI Design are very good friends, I try to improve my After Effect skills to bring to life the work (and help developers if needed). As a plus, I started learning Blender because I was curious about the “3D mindset” but made a pause and I really have to go back at it.

How do you ensure a user-friendly and intuitive design in your projects?

UX and UI Design go hand in hand. My expertise is UI Design but I’ve been working on the field for 10 years+, so part of my process is to constantly think about User Experience. But always pushing hard to avoid any creative limitations.

What are some of your favorite CSS features or techniques that you believe every web designer should know?

I believe learning the foundations of Graphic Design is one of the strongest tools to become a great Web Designer. Typography, hierarchy, use of space – they’re key. Never skip the basics!

How do you manage your time and prioritize tasks when working on multiple projects simultaneously?

I try so hard to avoid working on 2 projects simultaneously. If I do it’s because:

– The 2nd project is a creative one that excites me;

– I’m sure I will be able to deliver all the designs in time and with the best quality.

I won’t lie: in situations like that I usually work late, especially in the early phases where I keep going until I like what’s in the screen (100% not a role model).

In the end though, I find it rewarding because I’m doing what I love and someone else trusted me to do the exciting work!

Can you walk us through your portfolio and highlight a project that you are particularly proud of?

During the agency years at Media.Monks, I was in charge of the UI Design phases of the 4 Riot Games sites that were successfully delivered + a 5th one that is not live ((https://www.paix-design.com/project/riot-games-sites).). Riot was a dream client to me since I’ve been a League of Legends player for more than 10 years. I am super grateful to have experienced that level of joy at work.

As a freelancer, I would say having SONY PlayStation as a direct client was totally mind-blowing. Sadly, I can’t go into further detail for now, but here are a couple of PSrelated personal explorations I did in the past 🙂

When looking at the technological landscape today, what makes you think “wow”?

As a UI Designer it’s impossible not to answer “AI”. Although it is something that has been around for years, in the last 2-3 it has become something much more tangible for most of us and it’s crazy.

In my field though, I’m not super excited about visual AI tools as I feel they’re slowly pushing the designers towards creating very generic work. In my humble opinion, it’s great to use them as a tool (if necessary) during the concept phases, but after that let’s get our creative hands dirrrrty.

Which aspect of your work puts a smile on your face?

Meeting and working alongside tons of talented people. Creative freedom, a creative brief, a client excited about creativity and pushing boundaries. Gaming-related projects. Being able to work on things that constantly grow my curiosity. Receiving happy/positive feedback 🙂

Are you interested in global issues? If so, which one and why?

Food. We eat many things that are “culturally okay” but in reality, are making us sick. Many years ago, advertisements said it was good for your health to smoke a cigarette a day (or more). Sounds familiar?

Sadly, the Food and Health businesses won’t give up, so it’s on us to find the balance.

What do you like doing in your free time?

From time to time, I like playing games (PS or LoL mostly), reading manga/comic books or just spending some very chill time at home with my partner Martín and my 16-year-old cat Minerva.

Again, I think walking Madrid is a great plan so it’s part of my weekends. And sometimes design for fun 🙂

Which unusual skill do you pride yourself in having?

I play taiko (Japanese drums). If you happen to be in Madrid during a Japanese event, you might catch me performing.

Thanks María!

• Follow María on social media:

Website

LinkedIn

Instagram

CreativityFreelancingUI / UX DesignUser Experience