BTVF: Who is Mariamma Merandon?
MM: I’m a 31-year-old micro-entrepreneur in graphic design and communication, a tetraplegic following a horse riding accident at 21. I hold a degree in sports management with a focus on events and communication, a Master’s in sports management with a focus on sports and territories, and a Master’s I in Marketing & Sales, all acquired at UFR STAPS and IAE in Brest, Brittany. Despite my disability, I live life to the fullest with my various passions: sports, which I was very active in before my accident, and now I play wheelchair football and boccia. Drawing and comics, self-taught, have been a passion since childhood, and I’m lucky to be able to draw using my digital tablet and the phalanx of my finger. Music, with over 12 years of conservatory training in violin and self-taught skills in piano, guitar, and clarinet. And finally, my latest passions: cinema, IT, and travel—I’m a true globetrotter with over a dozen countries visited.
BTVF: Drawing is now at the heart of your life. How do you approach your various projects?
MM: I’m lucky to have a diverse range of graphic and event projects. This is largely due to my high standards and perfectionism. Despite all the excitement and opportunities that came from my small comic strip about baseball that I published on Twitter, my motto is to keep my feet on the ground! For me, these projects are an opportunity to demonstrate my skills. It’s a rewarding recognition that acknowledges the work and effort put in to overcome the fatigue associated with my disability. But it’s also an excellent showcase to dispel all the prejudices surrounding disability. Let me explain: despite our difficult condition, it’s not a barrier to our projects and ambitions. I may be disabled, but I have just as many skills as an able-bodied person.
BTVF: Sports are also a central interest for you. What do you feel when capturing sports moments?
MM: Capturing sports moments allows me to maintain a connection with my life before the accident, as I was a very active athlete both in leisure and competition. My sports studies training taught me the different internal logics of sports and the segmentation of gestures, both theoretically and practically. I draw on all this knowledge, combined with my drawing skills and evolving standards, to create lively and detailed works.
BTVF: Recently, you’ve developed a passion for drawing baseball. How did you approach this sport that you knew little about?
MM: To contextualize my desire to draw baseball, you should know that I’ve been passionate about it since 2008. How? You’ll laugh… it’s thanks to a Japanese animated series: Major, which introduced me to the sport in a fun way. Since then, I’ve been a true enthusiast. To give you an idea, I’m currently subscribed to MLB TV to follow live matches from the Major League Baseball. Like with all sports, I only watch live! Suffice it to say that I sleep very little at night because of the time difference… haha…
As for the desire to draw this sport, it didn’t come recently. Before evolving in my graphic style and attention to detail, I didn’t create works that satisfied me enough to share publicly. It’s very important to me that the works I produce meet my standards so that I’m convinced of their credibility to everyone. I admit, it’s a bit Spartan way of thinking…
BTVF: What can we wish for you?
MM: Many things… haha… Concretely, I would dream of collaborating with entities like the French Baseball and Softball Federation or even directly with MLB and its European or Japanese affiliates… nothing less! And as I’m passionate about sports in general, one of my Holy Grails would be to collaborate with the Organizing Committee of the Paris 2024 Games, a professional project I’ve nurtured since college… then the diversity of my interests allows me to explore markets such as culture in general: music, travel, e-sports (video games), history, etc. I’m versatile to the extreme…
To conclude this portrait, I wanted to thank you infinitely for the interest you’ve shown me through this interview, and you can find all my work on my website, which I created from A to Z, below.
