By Cansu Peker

Nacho Frades is a digital painter whose luminous, minimalist works blend the spirit of classical painting with contemporary technology. He began drawing as a child, inspired by El Greco and endless museum visits, and went on to study with realist master Antonio López, who instilled in him the discipline to follow his own path. After years working in animated films, Frades shifted fully to digital painting in 2005, developing a body of work that feels both introspective and futuristic. His art has been exhibited internationally, from museums to billboards in Times Square, and is held in collections around the world.

A pioneer in the early days of cryptoart and NFTs, Frades embraced the medium not just for its innovation but for the strong creative community it fostered. He is a member of MoCDA and MOCA, and his series Five Unfinished Platonic Love Encounters for MoCDA remains one of his most personal projects. Beyond painting, Frades has published a book of meditations and often explores the crossover between writing and visual art, seeing both as ways to translate life’s mysteries into expression.

We asked Nacho about his art, creative process, and inspirations.

You’ve been creating for over three decades — do you remember the first time you felt that spark that art would be your path?

Very early, since I can remember I was always drawing, on paper, on walls, on bed sheets, doors… there is not a “moment” in which I decide to be a painter, it was a natural thing, I always have wanted to be a painter, but was in 1980, being 13 years old, when I realized it was possible and started to work seriously despite how hard it was.

Studying with Antonio López must have been formative. What’s one lesson from him that has stayed with you throughout your career?

The experience of working with Antonio Lopez was awesome, he’s a very kind person and dedicated a lot of time to me. I learnt a lot about painting techniques, and to hear him was a pleasure.

The main lesson I learnt from the master was to take painting seriously and follow my own path, no matter the circumstances. And that no master can teach you to feel the things that happens in life and turn it into an artwork.

You were also an early pioneer in cryptoart and NFTs. How did you first encounter this world, and what drew you in?

I entered this world because of creativity, at the beginning, (I started in 2020) it was fascinating to see new art everyday day on Twitter. It was a strong community and I have very good friends. The blockchain technology brings digital art a lot of possibilities, immutability, provenance, easy to trade, and so.

Can you tell us about some of your favorite pieces or a past or upcoming project? What makes them special to you?

The most special pieces, is the collection of artworks I did for the MoCDA Museum, it’s called “Five Unfinished Platonic Love Encounters” and are five artworks with two chairs on it, reflecting the feeling of not to have the loved person but love anyway in a platonic way.

Having shown your art everywhere from museums to Times Square, does the context of display change the way you think about your work?

Not in essence, but the context is always important, it’s not the same to see a work on a mobile than to see it in a huge billboard or in the “sacred” atmosphere of a Museum, a big size gives the work a “presence” it doesn’t has in a small format.

When I have shown my works on billboards and so, I have no had the opportunity to see it live, because of the location of them on different places around the world, I hope someday to see it live.

Thanks to Artcrush Gallery and Superchief Gallery for let me show my work worldwide.

You’ve also authored a book of meditations – what kind of an impact do you think writing has on your art practice?

Yes I have a meditations book published, and the inspiration usually comes from painting to writing, but I want to paint some of my writings, overall poems that I write but not publish. For me writing is to paint with words but with a stronger meaning than the ambiguity of the painted mystery.

What is a dream project you’d like to make one day?

I love books and always have been excited about the idea of to illustrate “One Hundred Years of Solitude” from Gabriel Garcia Marquez. It’s a crazy idea but I want to do it.

What is a profound childhood memory?

One of my first memories was playing with colored blocks of wood, doing imaginary buildings, and suddenly I saw the green block different, in that moment I realized color, still remember perfectly that green.

Other important moment in my childhood was to observe a portrait of El Greco, and realize it was not a face, but colored strokes. When I realized it, I was anxious to get Oil Paintings.

What is a fun fact about you?

When I was 13, I applied in a drawing contest in my city, and my work was refused because the jury said it was impossible for a kid to do that. I suffered a lot for this, but I think it boosted me to continue.