Meet The Artist Behind Elmhurst's Snapchat Selfies

If you’ve ever used Snapchat, you know one of the best features of the image messaging app is using and discovering new geofilters.

Geofilters are localized graphic designs that can be placed on top of photos taken in Snapchat. They’re tied to specific places, and they can offer users a glimpse into the personality of a neighborhood, village or city.

If you think Snapchat has hired a dedicated team of graphic designers to investigate and illustrate cities around the world to make geofilters, you’re wrong. Geofilters are mostly created by local artists on their own time. Their designs have to pass Snapchat’s approval process before they can be slid onto your snap.

We’ve tracked down a few of these unsung artists to ask about the secrets behind making geofilters for a top mobile app company. Fabian Vasquez is just one of the artists behind the designs in front of your selfies.

Name: Fabian A. Vasquez
Age: 21
Hometown: Lyons
Geofilter: Elmhurst
Design experience: Graphic design student in Elmhurst

1. What made you want to create a Snapchat geofilter?
I really liked the idea of a geofilter. I love going to Chicago and being able to use a Chicago geofilter, and I think it’s cool to show off where you are. One night I pitched the idea to my friends and they loved it, and I created one.

More in this series:

• Meet The Artist Behind Woodridge and Lisle’s Snapchat Selfies
• Meet The Artist Behind La Grange and Hinsdale’s Snapchat Selfies
• Meet The Artist Behind Glen Ellyn’s Snapchat Selfies
• Meet An Artist Behind Naperville’s Snapchat Selfies

2. What was the process like for submitting your design?
I Googled “how to make a geofilter” and got sent to the Snapchat webpage. I looked up the process and designed the filter following their specifications. They ask you a couple questions as to why you want to place a geofilter. I answered those and submitted. I got a confirmation email, but it didn’t say around what time will it be processed. I waited and nothing, so like around three months later, I got an email saying that my geofilter had been published.

3. What inspired your geofilter design?

I didn’t really know how it worked and what would be a cool design. So I decided to put “Elmhurst” in the Elmhurst College color scheme.

4. What was it like to see your geofilter come to life on Snapchat?
It was awesome! I designed it, but it didn’t really hit me that many people were going to use it until I saw a lot of my Snapchat friends using it and uploading their reactions using the geofilter.

5. Has being a geofilter artist come with any fame or fortune?
Haha, no. Only my closest friends know that I made it. It’s weird that many people don’t know who makes these geofilters. Like, there’s an actual person who designed theses. But I love seeing people use my geofilter, and it makes me smile.

6. How does it feel to know people in the community are putting your artwork on their selfies?
At the beginning, I was curious if people were going to like it, but as people started to use it, I felt a pride as to what I had created. I love where I go to school and the place it’s in, and I’m glad people in Elmhurst are using the geofilter to share that. Now if only Kim Kardashian would come to Elmhurst to use my filter for one of her famous selfies, haha.

Images courtesy of Fabian Vasquez. Know anyone else who has created local Snapchat geofilters? Email morgan.searles@patch.com.