Natalia Rojas is a self-taught artist and illustrator from Colombia living in Tampa, Florida. She specializes in highly detailed and realistic graphite and colored pencil drawings. She loves to create portraits of people, pets, and wildlife as well as meaningful pieces that could be anything from a portrait of a loved one to a special item or a still life. She is well known for creating extremely detailed portraits of birds for the award-winning board game Wingspan. The game is centered on environmental science, specifically on birds and their habitats.
The Science Department recently put together a unique opportunity for students in all three divisions at MICDS. Paul Zahller, Upper School Science Teacher, and students conducted a virtual interview with Rojas. In the interview, Rojas discusses her research and creative approach to drawing, focusing on how she uses the impact of nature on the specific bird’s biological characteristics. She cheerfully answered a variety of questions from students of all ages, including “What is your creative process?” to “What is your research process or approach to drawing a new bird?”
Sarah Garner, Lower School Visual Arts Teacher, was instrumental in the creation and editing of the video interview below, allowing even more people to learn from Rojas.
“The passion and enthusiasm displayed by all of the STEM students and Ms. Rojas has been an inspiration to me,” said Zahller.
Many thanks to Natalia Rojas for spending so much time with our students!
(Learn more about the Wingspan board game.)