The world of illustration and urban art mourns the loss of Amaia Arrazola, one of the most recognized and beloved creators of the contemporary Spanish scene. The illustrator from Vitoria, author of works such as Wabi Sabi or Totoro y yo, passed away this Wednesday in Barcelona at the age of 41, as confirmed to Efe by sources close to the visual artist.
Born in Vitoria in 1984, Arrazola was much more than an illustrator: her work explored beauty in the everyday, collective identity and the power of art as a tool for transformation. Her career, marked by a constant creative restlessness, led her to collaborate with international brands, cultural institutions and urban projects that today remain as a legacy of her talent and sensitivity.
From advertising to free art
Amaia Arrazola studied Advertising and Public Relations at the Complutense University of Madrid, a training that led her to work initially as an art director in the advertising sector. However, her true vocation has always been linked to drawing and visual narrative.
In 2010, she decided to turn her career around and moved to Barcelona, where she began her career as a freelance illustrator. Since then, her work has expanded into multiple fields: she has collaborated with brands such as Nike and Uniqlo, and has also carried out projects for institutions such as the University of Barcelona, the City Council of Barcelona and the Provincial Council of Vizcaya.
His style, recognizable by its colorful, friendly stroke and poetic look, allowed him to break barriers between commercial illustration and urban art, consolidating himself as one of the most versatile figures of his generation.
Wabi Sabi’: the turning point in his career
The big leap in his career came in 2018, with the publication of Wabi Sabi (Lunwerg Editores), a work that marked a before and after in his career.
The book was born after an artistic scholarship in Paradise Air, in Matsudo (Japan), where the artist lived an experience that changed her way of understanding art and life. Inspired by the Japanese philosophy that celebrates imperfection and ephemeral beauty, Arrazola captured in its pages an intimate reflection on the passage of time, fragility and acceptance.
The success of Wabi Sabi consolidated her as a singular voice within the Spanish illustrated panorama, and brought her closer to a wider public, sensitive to her combination of introspection and visual aesthetics.
The connection with Miyazaki’s universe
In 2022, Amaia Arrazola surprised again with Totoro y yo, also published by Lunwerg. In this work, the artist paid tribute to Japanese filmmaker Hayao Miyazaki and the Studio Ghibli universe, which had deeply influenced her artistic imagination.
With this book, Arrazola explored nostalgia, the connection with nature and tenderness as a form of resistance to the noise of the modern world. His approach to Japanese culture was not a simple homage, but another example of his constant curiosity and his ability to absorb diverse influences without losing his identity.
Urban art with soul: the murals that left their mark
In addition to her editorial work, Amaia Arrazola stood out as the author of large murals in public spaces, a facet that made her a reference in urban art with a social and human approach.
In December 2023, he presented one of his most celebrated works: a mural in the district of Gràcia (Barcelona), on the perimeter fence of the Abacería Market, where he lived. His goal, he explained then, was to “reflect the identity of Gràcia and beautify the surroundings of the works to generate expectation and illusion among the neighbors in view of the return of the market“.
In 2024, he collaborated with Cirque du Soleil creating a mural for the show Alegría, while in 2023 he won the competition for the Madrid City Council’s Sharing Walls program with his project Against Oblivion.
This last work, planned for the façade of the Pozo del Tío Raimundo Public Library in Vallecas, paid tribute to Las Sinsombrero, a group of women -poets, painters, philosophers and writers- who in the 1920s challenged gender roles and claimed their space in the history of art.
“I wanted to remember those women who walked without hats to be able to look the world in the face. Because art is also memory “, he explained in one of his interviews.
A feminine and courageous look
Amaia Arrazola’s work has always been marked by a feminist and vitalist outlook, celebrating imperfect beauty and the value of emotions. In titles such as El meteorito or Buenas noches, Simón, she knew how to connect with audiences of all ages with a disarming sincerity.
Her work for the children’s collection Pequeña & Grande (in which she illustrated the biography of Audrey Hepburn) also stood out for its ability to transmit inspiring references to new generations, especially girls.
Her artistic voice, close and deeply human, became a symbol of a new generation of creators who claim sensitivity as a transforming force.
