Catholic artist Archives - The Simple Catholic

Editor’s Note: Matthew Chicoine interviewed Fabiola Garza via phone call on April 23rd, 2025. Some of the questions have been rearranged and edited to provide the best reader experience without losing any integrity of the answers given.

Tell me a little about your faith journey.

I was born a cradle Catholic and come from a pretty strong Catholic family in general. I actually only went to one year at a Catholic school due to my family moving a lot. I lived in Mexico, Columbia, and Istanbul. I always thought you lived faith on your own and wasn’t aware of youth groups.

In college I started dating a Protestant Evangelical and this gave my dad some pause. He gave me some Scott Hahn books to read. His language is accessible and added depth to helping me understand my faith. I eventually got involved in youth groups in Boston.

What got you interested in art?

I was an artistic kid, always loved drawing. I loved animated movies as a kid and my main interest was to work for Disney. I was absolutely mesmerized by the art of animation. Art was a thing I was good at and understood. I loved creating characters and creating stories.

How did you get started with Disney?

After college, I worked several jobs including a video game and toy company. Finally, I found a job at Disney Creative Group. We did the art for all the merchandise that goes out to retail stores. I worked in that division for ten years.

How does your Catholic faith inform your approach to character design, especially when working on secular projects at Disney?

I only designed one character at Disney. I always like putting myself in a place of prayer before work. But with Mickey, you just draw Mickey. Thankfully, I was never put in a position to have to worry about having the work on a project that would conflict with my conscience.

Could you share how creating “The Story of Saint John Paul II” differed from your other artistic projects, both technically and spiritually?

The great part of doing saint stories is you get to delve into their stories. You can’t help but be changed by learning about their stories and writing. When I am creating saint stories, I ask the Saint for intercession and how they would be presented and in the best way for children. It’s really interesting and wonderful to bring the saints along in the process.

The saints are not dead, they are alive!

My portrayal of the Saint is only a glimpse of their amazing life. It’s like a movie. You can only capture an aspect to bring children to understand the saints more as they grow. I do try to approach the creation of the saint story like a movie.

Are there specific Catholic artistic traditions or sacred art styles that have influenced your personal work?

Growing up, I never really looked at artwork as being separate from religious and non-religious art. To me anything that is beautiful is of God. That’s my view on art. Sometimes we as Catholics feel forced to love certain religious art over others.

For instance, I love Da Vinci and the Renaissance. I don’t compartmentize art, I don’t feel like putting a wall between my work and the Holy Spirit. I think a truly Catholic person is going to make truly Catholic art without it being thematically religious. It is important for me to never confuse my work with what I am doing spiritually. You could be a terrible person and do spiritual/religious work.

The Lord cares about your heart. It can be a temptation when you are working in a Catholic sphere.

Art nouveau is a style I love. The most famous artist is Alphonse Mucha in this movement. He has a mastery of anatomy and these beautiful romantic shapes. It reminds me a lot of the elven architecture in the Lord of the Rings. It is very dreamy and has a magical soft quality. It is based on natural shapes. This movement preceded Art Deco which has more harsh/rigid lines and shapes. It has more structure and architecture.

How has working in the entertainment industry shaped your perspective on creating media that resonates with Catholic audiences?

I think you need to make beautiful things. Catholic audiences are also looking for quality and good stories made with care and time. A lot of Catholic audiences are tired of entertainment media that isn’t up to par with the rest of the industry.

We want to create things that are good and beautiful. Nothing can substitute for a good story. You can have all the money in the world and technology, but it needs a good story.

What advice would you give to young Catholic artists who want to pursue careers in mainstream creative industries while staying true to their faith?

I think it is important to have a faith community. When I moved to Orlando I plugged myself into the local Catholic community. You aren’t meant to live out your faith alone. Your community keeps you accountable.

Is there a particular saint or biblical figure whose story you’d love to bring to life through your art in the future?

So many, I have a whole list! I can tell you one that didn’t make it into the princesses of Heaven. I really want to make a story and art for Hildegard of Bingen. She was so smart and was so cool. She’s definitely one saint that I would love to portray.

Do you have a saint quote?

During my tough “hell” year, before work I prayed the prayer (The Mission of My Life) by Saint Cardinal Henry Newman.

Where can my audience learn more about your work?

Instagram: Fabiolagarzacreates

Website: Fabiolagarza.com

About Fabiola:

Fabiola Garza is the author and illustrator of the children’s book best-seller Princesses of Heaven: The Flowers. She worked as a character artist at the Walt Disney Company for over a decade. Her other work includes A Boy Who Became Pope: The Story of Saint John Paul II, Pixar/Disney’s Little Golden Book Coco, and the cover of A Portrait of Walt Disney World: 50 Years of the Most Magical Place on Earth. Fabiola has lived all over the world. Born in Mexico City she eventually settled in Orlando, Florida. She loves fairytales, London Fog lattes and France.

Thank you for sharing!

Editor’s Note: Matthew Chicoine interviewed Joshua Masterson via phone call on August 5th, 2024. Some of the questions have been rearranged and edited to provide the best reader experience without losing any integrity of the answers given.

How did you get into drawing cartoons?

I have been drawing my since I was little. Mainly drawing cartoons. My dad and my grandma are both artists. My dad specifically, taught me how to draw cartoons when I was around six years old.

Which artists/cartoonists do you model your style after?

Yes, definitely! It’s multiple people I drew inspiration from. One of the big ones is Norman Rockwell. His artwork was day-to-day life and there was so much detail in his work. For cartoon-work, I am specifically inspired by Bil Keane (The Family Circus), Charles M. Schulz (Peanuts), and Dean Young (Blondie).

My grandma was always telling me: “you can do cartoons! You would be a great cartoonist!” So she was that inspiration for me to pursue cartoons beyond a mere hobby. She also enjoyed reading the Family Circus cartoon and her love of that cartoon led me to being drawn to Keane’s work.

Who are your patrons saints you look to for inspiration?

The number one is Saint Therese of Lisieux. She’s been my favorite saint since I was 8 years old. I read her biography (children’s version). What stuck out to me in her story was that it was the first time I was able to relate to a saint. She was an ordinary person. There were details about her life that shared her struggles and it just seemed like she was a normal person. From that moment on, I wanted to be a saint like her.

Describe your cartoon creation process.

A lot of it is looking at my day-to-day life. Artists paint or draw what they see around them. I’m looking at life around me. I’m involved enough at my parish (altar serving, volunteering). I’ll obviously exaggerate some goofy situations but the cartoons are ultimately rooted in my experiences and my parish life.

How do you balance humor and reverence when creating cartoons about religious themes?

This comic strip and comics are typically funny. While this comic has a premise of being funny (i.e. Sunday funnies). I want this comic to show “Catholic life”. Just like in a regular life there’s times we spend in prayer (more serious) and other times we have fun and enjoy time with others. Sometimes I feel the need to bring a more serious and prayerful element to the comics. So I made up a character (Cordelia) who helps to bring that seriousness to the comic. She was an inspiration from God and came from my heart.

The nice thing about developing characters is readers can associate with them and know what to expect. Cordelia was that character who I created to help bring my readers to gaze upon the glory of God.

What has been the most challenging aspect of maintaining a consistent output of Catholic-themed cartoons?

The main challenge I’d say would be more practical things like writer’s block. On a more spiritual level this comic I like to consider it as God’s cartoon, but sometimes I can get my pride mixed in when looking at the metrics/numbers of views. My own ego can be a challenge sometimes. I know that God can still make good come from this.

Have you ever received pushback or criticism for your work, and if so, how do you handle it?

Actually one of the many blessings, the general audience is wholesome. So it’s rare to see negative comments. In the rare cases I have made a joke that didn’t go over well, my audience let me know and I’ve looked at the feedback I get and that steered my content to mirror that family/parish life focus.

Are there any particular Bible stories or Catholic teachings that you find especially inspiring or conducive to cartoon representation?

Saint Therese is a huge inspiration to me, again with the character of Cordelia I implement a lot of her philosophy and childlike faith. I have a tough time comprehending the writings of Saint Thomas Aquinas, but I can easily understand the Little Flower’s teachings.

For the Bible, I do try to incorporate various Bible verses and the psalms into the comics.

What is your favorite comic strip you drew?

This one was special to me as I grew up praying the Rosary together with my family.

What place does art have in passing on the Gospel in the 21st century?

I’d say it has a huge importance. Growing up in the 21st century, I have grown up with comics and I think that with social media it’s much easier to share art. Art is really powerful, a picture is worth a thousand words. All these ways of sharing art make it important to put good, beautiful art out to inspire people and draw them closer to God.

Thank you for taking time to chat about the faith and your cartoons.

Absolutely, it was a pleasure! God bless.

About The Catholic Cartoonist (Joshua Masterson):

My name is Josh Masterson and I’m the fifth of ten kids and was homeschooled. At my parish, I altar serve as often as I can at the Mass and also help train the new servers. Serving at Mass, helping out at the parish, and interacting with our priests have all served as my inspiration for making comics that show the beauty of daily Catholic life at a small parish. I have been drawing cartoons my whole life and so decided that this was a great opportunity to share the beauty and truth of the Faith through this obscure medium. I hope to continue drawing Catholic comics to bring joy and truth to the world.