Barbara Niño

Hey Barbara, thank you for joining me today. To start, I'd like to know a little bit about where you're from and what brought you to Leipzig and why you decided to settle here.

I’m a city girl. I grew up in Bogotá, a city with almost 11 million inhabitants, huge and located in the mountains. What brought me to Germany was curiosity—curiosity about how life could be in another context—and professional motivation for better opportunities.

What brought me to Leipzig, though, I still insist that it was Leipzig who chose me. I was looking for a place in Berlin, but it didn’t feel like it was flowing. Many creatives coming from outside of Germany have Berlin in their minds, but someone told me, “You’ll fit in Leipzig.” I tried looking for a room here, and it was easy. Within a couple of weeks, I found a place.

You're a graphic designer, and you're also involved in several collectives in the scene. How would you describe the work you're doing right now, both personally and with these collectives?

My involvement has been pretty organic—mixing my professional background with my passion for visual arts, which really moves my soul. Also, the sense of co-creating. This was actually the topic of my thesis because I came to Germany for a Master's. That’s been part of the world I want to inhabit. The question is, is it possible to create together—spaces where we’re active participants?

I also realized that part of my identity is connected to the feeling of community and working in a group. A friend once asked me, “How do you manage to be this social butterfly you totally are?” And the first thing that came to mind was, "I grew up in a pack." My family is big—my mother has six siblings, and my grandma had 10. When we had big family gatherings, there could be 100 people.

Somehow, because it’s family, you feel safe. Everyone does their own thing, but we’re all helping—whether eating, cooking, or helping each other. I think subconsciously, I was looking for that when I moved here. But being active in the creation of these spaces brings a lot of satisfaction.

So, you're involved in both the visual aspects of this, but also organizing events with the collectives?

Yeah, I wear many shoes. I think also out of curiosity—I like the idea of organizing experiences and then seeing if my assumptions come to reality. And when they do, seeing people enjoy what I envisioned or, actually, what we envisioned as a group is really gratifying.

Yes, spreading love and happiness through experience. It’s lovely. I’ve enjoyed those experiences that I’ve seen come true. So, as a designer, how would you describe your style? Does it reflect a specific vibe or take a more personal direction?

I think there are two parts to my style. First, design is a discipline that solves or approaches challenges. As a graphic designer, these challenges often relate to communication—visual communication. One of my styles is bringing co-creation into my creative process. I always invite clients or people I work with to create together. I try to bring participatory approaches into the creative process. Aesthetically, I try to bring color into my designs, which I believe is deeply connected to my cultural background, coming from Abya Yala.

What is Abya Yala?

Abya Yala is the decolonial name for the territories known as Latin America. Colors are part of our environment and ecosystems. That's one thing. I also use illustration to bring hints of humor or cuteness into my designs, to convey messages that can sometimes be complicated.

I work a lot with NGOs and organizations dealing with complex social or scientific topics. So how do you communicate that to a broader audience? Colors and illustrations make those topics more approachable.

You have a specific fascination with one creature. Can we talk about that? I’m curious about your love for cats and how they tie into your work and the new collective you founded recently.

Okay, let's talk about cats. I love cats, even though I’m really allergic to some of them. But just some of them.

When I was going through a hard breakup in 2015, a cat came into our lives. I was living with my mom and my sister, and we named him Percy Jackson. He was the ugliest kitten, honestly. But we took care of him, and I want to believe he saved my heart somehow. Going through this heartbreak and having his company—seeing him grow and develop this bond with me—was really special.

That’s when my fascination with cats began. It was also influenced by my best friend, who’s been a cat lover for years. One day, one of our friends gave me a sketchbook with a tiger on the cover. I thought, “I’m going to sketch cats.” It made sense. So I started sketching cats. When I began experimenting with street art, I didn’t want to overthink what to draw. I already had a notebook of cat sketches, so I decided to paint cats on the street.

And this motif is so cute! Your style is very distinct. I love hearing about it. It's one of the first things I think of when I think of you—kitties. And you’re always sending me cat gifs! And Percy Jackson, is he still around?

He’s still around!

I love that. Let’s talk about other inspirations. Are there other artists or creative movements that have influenced your work? How do they shape your process or ideas?

I grew up watching a lot of comics and animations, and that was a major source of inspiration. I spent a lot of hours watching different animation styles, especially during the 90s. I was also influenced by the anime wave that came from East Asia, and children's books were a huge part of my interest in illustration. Styles that play with imagination—imagining possible worlds—are an inspiration for me.

One specific artist I admire is Yuko Shimizu, an illustrator based in the US. She's very authentic, and listening to her talk about her process was inspiring. She spent years in an office job before deciding to follow her passion for illustration. Now, she’s doing covers for major magazines.

How do those inspirations influence your process when creating something?

Seeing other people's processes and daring to experiment has inspired me to do the same. I experiment with different techniques or go to places I haven’t been to, just to see if they can fit the needs of the project.

So you're really open to working with new processes?

Yeah, I am. And even though I try to find some standard processes to make things more sustainable, every project has its own soul. It might not necessarily need the same solutions or approaches as others. The way I approach the process can change, depending on the project.

For example, with gatxs, the new initiative I’m working with, I asked myself, "What if I co-create with AI?" It was difficult to accept, but the tools are there, so what can we do with them? The mix of analog techniques and feeding the machine with specific purposes, then bringing it back to my process, transforming it, and getting feedback from other members of the group—this was definitely a new approach.

I want to discuss what you’re working on right now. How do your projects align with your goals of co-creating within a community? And also running SKIN Design Studio.

SKIN is the design studio I founded in 2021. It’s been my door to working full-time as a freelancer, which is definitely challenging, especially as a migrant woman. With SKIN, I wanted to put into practice all these ideas of co-creation and putting design in the service of ideas to reach people in a visually attractive way. SKIN also wants to connect designers and creatives back in Colombia with projects here in Germany. It’s a way of creating a bridge. It’s really interesting to think about how this can work—not just on a personal level, but also in terms of cross-border collaboration.

Recently, I’ve been working on two big projects: one is the flyer for the Migrant Council. The Migrant Council is a democratic body in each city in Germany that represents the voice of migrants. It’s a council where we, as migrants, can vote for someone to represent our voices in the city.

We’re crafting a flyer with information that’s relevant to migrants, making it visually attractive. My goal was to break the institutional communication that often feels boring or unapproachable. We’ll have translations in around 15 languages, and next year there will be elections.

So, migrants have representation in Leipzig, and we can vote for who represents us! That’s such important information.

Exactly. There’s a big gap between us and the institutions we deal with. We don’t always get this information. That’s why we’re proud to be part of this project.

Let’s talk more about Leipzig. You said earlier that you felt Leipzig called you here. Is there something about Leipzig that fuels your creativity?

There’s an energy in Leipzig, a feeling of it being a work in progress. For me, that’s inspiring because it gives the feeling that there’s room for creation. It’s not all established, and that’s something I feel comfortable with as a creative mind. The fact that you can do things here motivates me.

I like that you said it feels like a work in progress.

Not all places have that essence. I think it’s part of Leipzig’s historical background. It’s part of former East Germany, and for me, that’s interesting. I feel I’ve been able to be part of a community here and help build it.

Leipzig does have a lot of historical relevance, especially with revolutionary and cultural movements. There’s definitely something here that’s not tangible—the ethos.

And there’s graffiti on the streets! A city without graffiti makes me question: What’s wrong with you? Where are people expressing themselves?

That’s very true. Are there any hidden gems or spaces that you go to in Leipzig?

I feel like the spaces here have changed in the past year, or maybe how I feel in them has changed. One recent experience was when we organized the first party of gatxs at Duqo. It was a great collaboration, and it was nice to see how people who joined felt comfortable. There was an interesting flexibility in reacting to the atmosphere we were creating with the people. That was refreshing.

I’ve heard great things about Duqo, which was formerly Mujt. They seem to be doing a good job over there.

Yeah, so far, thumbs up. Approved by us.

Tell me more about gatxs and the other collectives you’re involved with.

I’ve been involved in various groups, but recently I’m active in two: one is the Yuca Kollektiv, which creates audio-visual pieces to challenge narratives told about migrants.

The other is gatxs. The purpose of gatxs is to create spaces of celebration—spaces where we can celebrate our bodies and existences through music and visual arts. It’s about giving ourselves spaces of joy while being conscious of the structural challenges we face as migrants, gender dissidents, or underrepresented people.

Yes, there’s a growing international population here, but it's still difficult to find spaces or events that represent that culture. What would make a difference in Leipzig, especially in terms of supporting artists, creatives, and organizers?

I think spaces and infrastructure are always difficult. For people who grew up here or are German, it’s easier to navigate. They have more trust in renting spaces, but it’s harder for others. Some spaces that were welcoming a year ago aren’t anymore. A space like Die Backerei, part of the Casa Haus project for BIPOC people, isn’t being used now. I hope something changes soon because it’s been a really important space for the community.

Yes, physical spaces are a huge obstacle. Cora Marin from Modos Dever mentioned the same thing in the previous conversation. And without space, you can’t create anything. What’s your hope for the future of the Leipzig creative scene?

I hope to see curiosity—curiosity to voice things that matter to us. It’s meaningful to speak to our community, but it’s also refreshing when someone more unexpected responds. Curiosity is a great motivator. If people come with a curious mindset, it can surprise them, and we’re really fun people. I think they’ll be glad to join us!

Yes, definitely more curiosity in the scene. That’s also been a theme in the previous conversations. It can feel isolated between different subcultural groups here.

Just be curious, get outside the bubble, and interconnect more.

I love that. Let’s hope! That was so lovely. Thank you so much for joining me.

Thank you for the invitation. I’m really glad about what eos archive is doing. It helps. It’s in people’s minds, and it’s becoming a reference for many. So thank you.

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This conversation for eos archive was hosted by the project's founder, Micky Arratoon. Micky looks forward to hosting more conversations with those who are shaping and redefining subculture in Leipzig, Berlin and beyond. Get in touch to say hello@eosarchive.app.