Vanessa Torrez artistic passion showed up late. As a teenager, she thought she was going to be an engineer and took classes to throughout high school. She adored tattoos and thought of inking skin for a living until her mother guided her elsewhere. Torrez dabbled in a few fields before her mother intervened with an idea. “My mom was very educated, and said, ‘No, you’re going go to college,’” Torrez recalls.
This maternal nudge towards higher education would prove transformative for Torrez. As a first-generation college student herself, her mother understood the value of formal education in honing raw talent. She steered her daughter towards graphic design, a field that would allow Torrez to channel her artistic abilities through the rigorous pacing of an academic setting.
At CSU Pueblo, Torrez discovered a place where she could truly be herself while developing her skills. “Since it was like a small school, it wasn’t so overwhelming,” Torrez reflects. “I wasn’t away from family, so I could focus fully on my studies without being homesick.” This comfortable environment became the perfect incubator for her budding talent.
It was within the walls of CSU Pueblo that Torrez’s artistic journey took an enriching turn. “I had no idea what graphic design was straight out of high school,” she admits. But as she delved into her courses, she found herself drawn into a world of digital creativity she hadn’t known existed.
One pivotal discovery came through an elective course in oil painting. “I was never into oil painting either until I took a course at CSU Pueblo,” Torrez says. “It was just one of my electives, but actually it’s what got me passionate about oil painting.” This serendipitous encounter with the new medium played a keen role in her artistic career, complementing her digital work and opening doors to the world of Lowrider art.
As Torrez progressed through her studies, she found herself excelling in ways she hadn’t anticipated. “I feel like college really helped me in every aspect, even my hobbies.” She grew up lowriding with her father in Colorado. “He’s been big on it since I was a baby,” she said, “I was in the car seat in the back of his lowrider bouncing around.”
Beyond her digital design work, Torrez has made a name for herself in the Lowrider community, a passion she inherited from her father. Her talent in this realm has not gone unnoticed. Torrez was selected as one of the featured artists for the “Best In Low” exhibit at the Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles, where her custom-painted hood will be on display for a year.
Torrez’s work in the Lowrider art scene is particularly significant given the cultural importance and artistic complexity of this form. Custom paint jobs in Lowrider culture are more than just decoration; they’re a form of storytelling and personal expression. Murals on these vehicles can cost upwards of $20,000 to $30,000, reflecting the immense skill and time investment required. As Torrez explains, “These custom pieces define the vehicles at hand. Much like tattoos, makeup, or hairstyle, these decor elements of personalization are what make each car unique.”
The stories behind these murals can be deeply personal and emotionally charged. Some are statement pieces, others are meant to be taken literally, while some are a collection of ideas that came to mind. In many ways, these murals are similar to tattoos – but for cars – carrying profound meaning for their owners.
As a Hispanic woman in predominantly male fields, Torrez acknowledges the challenges she faces. “I’m kind of breaking the barriers for a lot of women. Not only just women, but women of color,” she states proudly. “I feel like I’ve already made like a lot of strides in both fields, you know, design and the Lowrider art. So I feel like, you know, I’m kind of paving the way for other women to do the same.”
Graduating in 2015, Torrez wasted no time in pursuing her dreams. Just two weeks after commencement, she secured an internship with Disney in California, marking the beginning of her westward journey. After a brief return to Colorado, she made the bold decision to move to Los Angeles permanently in 2018. “I went out there with like $600. I had no idea what I was doing, but you know, I had a degree and I said, I’m just going to land a job, you know, wherever I can,” Torrez shares, highlighting her determination.
The transition wasn’t easy. Torrez worked multiple jobs, including teaching paint and sip classes and doing DoorDash deliveries, to make ends meet. “It wasn’t always like, oh, I just landed the job of my dreams right after college. It’s like, no, there was a struggle for a while,” she admits.
Her perseverance paid off. Today, Torrez works at an ad agency in the Los Angeles area, creating digital marketing materials for entertainment giants like Disney, Netflix, Hulu, and HBO. Her most recent triumph? Collaborating on the poster design for the internationally acclaimed “Deadpool” franchise. “We started in January and it was a six-month project,” Torrez explains. “We did the posters, we did the bus wraps. We did a lot of international work too. One of my posters was chosen for the Olympics, for the tennis region out in France.”
From a young artist with tattoo dreams to a successful graphic designer making waves in Hollywood and the automotive art world, Vanessa Torrez’s journey is a testament to the power of education, perseverance, and staying true to one’s artistic passions. Her story serves as an inspiration to aspiring artists, proving that with talent, determination, and a strong educational foundation, it’s possible to turn creative dreams into a successful career spanning diverse artistic realms.
