What made you decide to shift from traditional drawing to digital image making?

I started drawing digitally because I was seeing a lot of cool art ,others where making and it really intrigued me, but I think really the main reason I moved to drawing mostly digitally was because of how easy it is to draw anywhere. I just need my iPad, instead of a sketchbook, pencils, paint, etc, and I can draw on my lap and in the dark. I also love the idea of incorporating my drawing in other digital projects, which is something I want to start to do, to combine my love for drawing and for graphic design. 

The face and visual narratives are playing a part in your images, reminding me of Magritte or Dali? How does art influence your images?

Thank you! Thats a massive compliment to me as Magritte and Dali are two of my favourite artists. Although most of the portraits I’ve painted so far lean towards hyperrealism I’m really inspired by surrealism, and perhaps that’s what inspires my choice of images to paint, I.e. ones that seem more pensive and where the subject seem to be in deep subconscious thought. I also love collage, especially surrealistic and juxtaposing compositions, and that is something that has started to influence my drawings which I hope to develop. 

Where do you find your reference and have you considered commissioning photographers to support your outcome?

I usually go down rabbit holes of Instagram, hooping between magazine accounts and photographers, then I’ll search for their portfolio’s or websites online. When I see an image I like, I look to find who it’s by and then follow through that way, or I’ll check out who the makeup artist or stylist was in a particular shoot and explore their other work. I used to use Pinterest a lot, I still do somethings, but I’m trying to use other forms of inspiration so that I’m not limited to images that many other people most likely have also saved. 

I would definitely love to commission or collaborate with photographs to support the references behind my art, I think it would be awesome to art direct a shoot so I can contribute to the final vision and really personalise the images to my imagination. 

What is your process from beginning to end?

I create all my paintings using my iPad and Apple Pencil, in the app Procreate. I start off by choosing what I want to draw, this really depends on my mood at the time, so I’ll go through my saved photos or browse online, and pick something that resonates with how I’m feeling. I like to focus and spend more time on painting, and so I do often trace the main shapes of the photograph, to make sure it’s as true to the image as possible. Then I’ll just start, I use one brush for everything, going between putting down colours and blending them together. I tend to paint by sections rather then doing a base layer and adding colour on top. When I do come to add more details, I like to use the layer multiply blending mood on procreate with an inverted mask to darken some areas and add detail. I am constantly zooming out and in, rotating my canvas and looking at the reference photo to make sure it’s looking good as a whole. I also will sometimes start a piece then my mood chances and move onto another one, until I later go back to it.

What are you planning or working on at the moment? 

At the moment I go between doing graphic design work and painting, I’ve always just painted as a way to relax or even procrastinate, because I really enjoy it, but I’m currently working on seeing how I can merge the two together. I’m also teaching myself how to animate and use 3d programs so that is something I’m really excited about.

Do you think Hyperrealism or digital arts will play a big role in the creative industry today? How do you connect with other artists like yourself?

I definitely think digital arts will increasingly become a big part of the creative industry, as all aspects of our world moves more and more towards technology and into digital, so it just makes sense that the creative industry is doing the same. While I haven’t seen much of the digital work being hyper-realistic, in the 2d realm of it, I’m curious to see how that will evolve. That being said I think all forms of media and mix media are so important and precious, so non-digital art should also be preserved within the creative industry. 

Social media is a great way to connect to other artists, and that’s how I’ve come across so many talented people. For example through entering this competition in particular I’ve connected with the other participants and other artist who follow along, and who have inspired me greatly.

What has been your best way to communicate your vision?

I don’t think I’ve found or will find the best way to communicate my ‘vision’. I tend to just imagine what I want something to look like and along the way figure out how to get that out of my head and into the world. I’ve experimented with painting, embroidery, clay, paper models, paper mâché, collage, film, anything to build whatever it is that I’m thinking. And it usually doesn’t end up how I originally planned but I think that is something every creative goes through.

How did you hear about the awards? 

I heard about the awards through an Instagram story Joanna Arlington (@arliart) posted encouraging others to join the competition. Arli was an art and photography teacher at my secondary school, and although I wasn’t in her class I’d always come over to her for advice, and have followed and been inspired by her art since then. 

Any advice to other creative like you or coming through?

I think my biggest piece of advice is to just do it, make something, I think a lot of people might overthink or be hesitate to start something creative because they feel like they don’t know how or they want it to be perfect which stops them from getting their vision out there ( I need to take my own advice here too). 

When you don’t know how to even begin, just make a purposely bad or ugly version of what you want to do, to relieve the pressure off you and then with practice you’ll improve and pick up techniques that work for you. 

I also think that with digital arts and design it’s really important to look away from the screen and be inspired by the everyday things around us, because that way the final work will be more authentic and unique to you. 

Any tips or things you have learnt the hard way which could make it better for new creatives? 

I’m not sure this is so much a tip, but more of a reminder; you should enjoy what you’re making and it shouldn’t feel laborious or boring to you, and if it does then maybe you just need to explore different ways to create, that will keep you excited and in love with what you do.

Another thing is I think art shouldn’t be rushed, in particular with how I like to paint, I’ve sometimes started a piece and decided to go back and start again because I felt I was doing it too quickly that I missed the chance to observe the details in it.