We had the good fortune of connecting with Juan Camillo Garza and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Juan Camillo, why did you decide to pursue a creative path?
Pursue is maybe the wrong word here. I fell into a creative career the same way someone might fall into welding, or cooking, or anything else — there’s some chance encounter that introduces you to the trade and then you discover one of two things: you either have a knack for it or you have enough of a love to overcome not having a knack. I believe I fall into that second category. It wasn’t natural for me, but still, in a way, my love for creativity made my path inevitable. Every day, after so many jobs that I hated, I used to come home and work on creative projects to keep myself happy. Eventually it just made sense — instead of using creativity as a counterweight against despair, I needed to create full-time. And so I do.   

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
Well, firstly, I have the attention span of a fruit fly at a watermelon eating competition—that is, it’s short. Real short. And while I’d like to call myself a “multi-disciplinary artist” because it sounds sexy, the truth is I spend most of my days frantically racing between different mediums. I am frenzied. I am inspiration’s kite in shaky hands and I am always, always moving. And so, my process is kind of like a continuous tug-of-war between my child-like inspiration and my professional discipline. Yes, Juan, that would make a good song, but you’ve got deadlines, buddy. Chop chop.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
Is this question pre-covid? Post-covid? For the sake of keeping this interesting, we’ll say pre-covid. For grub, we’re going to Bahel on Buford highway. My god. Some of the most incredible Ethiopian food I’ve ever had in my entire life. And I have had a lot. Anyway, after our hypothetical guest has eaten their vegetarian platter and embarrassed themselves by crying tears of joy over lentils, we’ll both clean up and head over to Atlanta Vintage Books. Here, we’ll pick up a first-edition of an American classic and then head over to Oakland Cemetary. Oakland Cemetery, you see, is situated such that you can see historic Atlanta, old-head Atlanta, and new Atlanta, all with walking distance. It’s educational. It’s beautiful. It’s Atlanta. Oh, also, it’s walking distance from Mezcalitos—stop there, you won’t regret it. If you’ve never had mezcal or tacos you’re about to get an education, a buzz, and a full stomach. I could go on.  Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
Shout out to my father + mother. As a kid, it was my dad’s endless support for my creative endeavors that gave me the confidence to continually try new things. I mean, whatever I wanted to try, he was there, absolutely cheering me on. Even when it meant I was destroying the walls of my room with paint or playing music badly deep into the night. And my mom – it was my mother’s vocal love for books, and her willingness to provide me those books, that led me to discover a life-long relationship with words. Can’t thank them enough.

Website: www.juancamillogarza.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/juancamillogarza/
Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/juantwothreefour
Twitter: @JuanCamilloGarz
Youtube: youtube.com/user/Juandiegocamilo

Image Credits
All photos taken by Juan Camillo Garza.

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