The best of two worlds

The image for the 2011 La Mercè festival, the work of the artist and illustrator Catalina Estrada, depicts the purest essence of Barcelona and yet it is filled, at the same time, with the colours, light and life of South America. And that is because, if a work of art is inevitably marked by the personality of its creator, then the poster for this year's La Mercè festival and its various applications exude the soul and experiences of its author.

Born in Colombia, she has been living and working in Barcelona since 1999. And this city has been the launch pad for a spectacular career in the world of art and design which has led her to work for the most prestigious international brands and to create posters for international organisations too such as UNICEF. Her work feeds on what she has seen with her eyes. And it is for this reason that her creations are filled with floral and animal motifs that recall the iconographic universe of South America, a world of images that she has managed to link perfectly with the traditions of Barcelona, such as the city's festive firework displays and bestiary, which fascinate her. She still recalls with delight the day that the fire dragons and beasts passed by her house and she saw for the first time, from her balcony, the pure image of the festival.

The creator, who in 2008 designed the handkerchief for the Mercè, was delighted to have the opportunity to create the visual symbol of this year's festival. So she started to peruse the history of the La Mercè posters and, from among the least featured, she pulled out the colours and icons of the festival that are depicted in her poster. Then came the various applications of the basic image and, with these, the domes of Saint Petersburg and the human figures that, swinging from a trapeze or running along the city's streets, encapsulate the thousand and one faces of a festival filled with circus, sports, dragons, fireworks and music that she finds so fascinating.

You might find Catalina at a concert or tucked away in a corner of the old city in Barcelona, in a place where there are no cars and which can be reached on foot or by bicycle, as she particularly values the relaxed lifestyle of a city that is big but tailored to its citizens. She came to Barcelona from Paris. She intended to stay for a few weeks and, more than twelve years later, she is still here. Twelve happy years in which she has remained entrapped by a city with a special magnetic power for attracting the best talent.