About Natalia

Natalia Cardona is an award-winning illustrator & industrial designer based Portland Oregon. Originally from Colombia's coffee region, Natalia spent her childhood surrounded by lush forests, mighty mountains, and crystalline rivers. Nowadays, Natalia spends her time at her cozy studio designing everything from children books, cute felted products, repeat patterns and more. Natalia's work, translates her joyful connection with nature, whimsical flair, and inner child emotions, into poetic imagery of simple everyday occurrences​. A sunny stroll through the park, a quiet sunset, a wanderlust​ starry sky, are ever-present elements on her visual narratives and designs. Natalia obtained her Industrial Design B.F.A in 2015 and received her Illustration M.F.A from Savannah College of Art and Design in 2018. These two well-rounded disciplines allow her to move swiftly between the two-dimensional and three-dimensional realms of design and communication. She is currently interested in any collaborative & creative projects! Natalia is currently represented by the literary agency Writers​ House & illustration agency Illozoo.

My heart is a forest, a quiet and deep forest where my inner child runs through sunny meadow with awe.
Awards & Recognitions
Cheltenham Illustration Awards 2019.
Latin American Ilustración 8 (Chosen), 2019.
3x3 Magazine (Honorable Mention) Issue No.16 - Self Publishing, 2019.
3x3 Magazine (Honorable Mention) Issue No.16 - Comics, 2019.
Brightness Magazine, featured artist Issue No.12. 
Applied Arts Magazine Awards, 2018.
Red Dot Communication Design Award, 2018.
Latin American Ilustración 7 (Chosen), 2018.
Exhibitions & Publications
'Oceans & Currents: A marine Life Group Show' - Gallery Nucleus, CA July 2021.
'Salut!6' Group Exhibition - Gallery Nucleus, OR July 2021.
'Salut!5' Group Exhibition - Gallery Nucleus, OR July 2020.
'The Power in Numbers' Group Exhibition - Gallery Nucleus, CA January 2020.
'Tales of Unity' Cheltenham Illustration Awards Exhibition, Museum in The Park, UK 2019.
Río, Montaña y Cuidad, Solo Show, Salón Rialto, Pereira, 2019.
Exhibition Imagen Palabra Bogota 2019.
'Home', (Juried Exhibition) The Porch Gallery, Savannah, 2019.
'Kindred Spirits', Solo Show Oglethorpe Gallery, Savannah, 2018.
Exhibition Imagen Palabra Bogota 2016-2019.
Exhibition Imagen Palabra Medellin 2017.
Clients include: 
"Natalia is a collaborative, creative, and visionary illustrator and designer. She made each step of the book cover design process stress-free by providing smart, beautiful initial concepts and then iterating to incorporate feedback from the team. Each design round, Natalia thought of ideas to make the cover better that we had not thought of. She not only captured the vision of our illustration perfectly, she made smart and technically-savvy decisions when it came to typography, alignment, and information hierarchy. Her artistry and technical skill are among the best of any designer I have worked with in book publishing. She handled our demanding project with professionalism and ingenuity. I recommend her for any design or illustration job."
- Amanda Bondi, Stenhouse Production Editor, 2020.
↑Back to Top