Hello My Name Is: Yubia

Name: Yubia
City/Country: From Bilbao (Basque country) / Living in Barcelona, Spain.
When did you start writing? I started painting at the end of 2002.

What’s graffiti for you? It’s something that makes me feel free, it allows me to keep my mind blank, to just enjoy the moment and forget the problems of the routine. It’s also like a part of me, I actually think I would be another, completely different person if I didn’t have painting.

Influences? I have always been influenced by the people I have around me. Obviously I try to have my own personal touch but I think the people remain in the memory. All the things we have loved and we express them in our stuff in some way.

Tell us about your city, how is life and graffiti there? Barcelona is a crazy city with a fast rhythm for everything, it’s a city full of tourists, which is sometimes fun but it can also be excessive. It’s a city where the graffiti is completely illegal, but in turn the city council provides legal walls to try to please and shut us up in some way, to keep “the beautiful status” of a cultural and modern city. In spite of this I love to live here.

What keeps you still writing? I love it.

What first made you interested in graffiti and how did you end up on that track? Since I was a child I loved to draw. I spent every weekend at my grandparents in a small town on the outskirts of Bilbao and that’s where I have the earliest memories of seeing murals and appreciating them. After, at school, my best friends older brother painted I became more interested in the scene and I started sketching. It wasn’t until a couple of years later that i dared to go to a wall. I didn’t have anyone to take me and I was too nervous to go alone, until finally I found my courage.

What trends are you seeing now in the graffiti world that you don’t like? The truth is that I don’t really care about trends, I don’t think there’s anything wrong with them. They are what they are, something that changes over time in all areas. Sometimes I’m part of them if I find them fun.

What do you do when you’re not painting? I love to draw, it relaxes me a lot. Obviously work, but also riding my bike, partying, cooking and eating.

How would you describe your style? Happy.

Can you remember the first piece you did? Yes, of course, it was a tiny piece. In the beginning I painted really small, now I sometimes wonder how I could make them so small!

Future plans? Travel.

Do you adapt your pieces and tags to the spot/surface? Sometimes.

What are the best and worst aspects of graffiti? The best aspect for me is that I’ve met a lot of people, who nowadays are really important in my life, Also all the experiences and adventures that I have lived, even the bad ones. The worst aspects… I don’t think there are too many, but I either try to not think about them or take the good from them.

Who do you paint for? For myself.

What writers have inspired you? Most of the writers around me.

Can you ever feel tired of graffiti? I don’t think so, but I don’t know.

What do you hope people will think and feel when they see your stuff? I don’t know, I guess that some people love it and others hate it. It’s something not really important to me but I accept all the constructive criticism if someone wants to tell me what they feel about my stuff, and it’s true, fine, “Everyone has their own taste” 

FIVE FAVORITES
Spray Paint: Montana Colors
City: Barcelona
Markers/pens: Uni Paint PX-30
Surface: Any wall and shutters
Cap: Pocket Cap

Website: yubia.tumblr.com 
Instagram: @yu_yubs 
Tumblr: ma-petitemort.tumblr.com