Aisha Lopez
The combination of talent, determination and support usually pay off, but not as quickly as they did in the case of Aisha Lopez. A twenty-year-old fashion illustrator that also had luck on her side.
Aisha was that friend you were jealous of. The one that was good at everything. You would congratulate them because you were genuinely happy for them, but after the 100th time of hearing about another achievement, you were seriously contemplating replacing them with Freddie the Failure.
Originally born in the city of Cebu, Philippines, Aisha was exposed to two very different cultures early on in life. At the tender age of three, she was plucked from what she knew as home via an eighteen-hour life altering plane journey.
Of course, as we all know, bored toddlers with no supervision tap into a world lost to the older generation, and it wasn't any different for Aisha. "I had gotten my hands on a red pen and found myself with no paper. So I elected to use myself as a canvas. When my mum woke up, she found red scribbles all along my arms and legs!"
With the seeds sown all that was needed was a partner in crime to propel her in the right creative direction. "Her name was Steffi Tindaan," says Aisha. "Although I'd always had an inclination towards art, she really sparked it to become something more." The two would spend endless hours in school comparing Pokémon drawings and other imaginative creatures. "I always admired her proficiency in art. I guess that was my fuel to keep practicing."
In fact it was through a guilty pleasure that she perfected her intricate illustrative skills, because in the 6th grade, Aisha avidly persuade the world of anything anime. "I used to draw anime, watch anime, and eventually go to anime conventions - where you dress up like characters from shows." This phase in turn, perfected the quality of her line drawings, which are incredibly important for an illustrator. "There was a point where I forced myself to draw entirely in pen so I could lessen my mistakes, train myself to get it right the first time, or work with whatever lines I might have accidentally made," she explains. "It's funny to think that such a hobby would lead me to get to where I am now!"
So where is right now? Right now is studying at the Fashion Institute of Technology. "It started with a phone call from my dad asking if I wanted to take classes there." The first class being Urbanwear Design and from then on she would take a fashion class every semester until she graduated from high school. "When I went in for the FIT interview, my interviewer turned out to be my professor from my first Urbanwear class. She recognised me from my drawings and told me I'd improved. I saw this as a good sign, and it was. I received my acceptance letter that spring."
However, this determination and fiery tenacity was not born overnight. Aisha knows the value of sacrifice and hard work after observing her parents trials, "We brought you here to America so that you could have a better life than us." Is what she grew up hearing from her mother, and it stayed firmly lodged in her memory bank as she continues to go from strength to strength. Having interned with New York based designer Jacqueline Langheim - known for her skill of making latex look classy and sophisticated - Aisha had a summer full of drawing, constructing and latex parties. "I would go with her to fashion parties decked out in latex high waisted skirts and bras," remembers Aisha. " Once I attended a party wearing a pony balloon animal which I silver sharpied to look like a zebra as a hairpiece!"
Juggling her studies with a part-time job at Forever 21 Aisha is always drawing. In the past month she has received commissions for illustrations, stop motion videos for Youtube bands and most recently has been taken on as a designer for street wear label MuffinMilk - and that's just on the record. Having illustrated the 'Shopping List' section of ACCENT - Aisha is a definite one to watch.
