"Practice,Try Different Styles"

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1. Tell us more about your background and journey.

I am a zoology graduate. But after graduation I didn't want to continue the stream and was clueless about what to do next. I always loved art and I've been drawing since childhood. But I never thought about the possibility of building a career out of it.

Then I got married and I had my baby. I had plenty of time to think by then and finally I understood that art is something I could never leave. So I started painting on traditional mediums.

But I still felt something missing. Then I tried digital art and viola..! My heart said 'this is it' at once! And thats how I started doing digital art and Illustrations.

2. When did you decide you wanted to be an painter/illustrator?

I decided to pursue art one and a half years ago. I was pregnant and had lot of time with me. So i tried different things and finally found painting to be my passion.

3. Is it a financially stable career?

Talking about freelancing, the income is not quit stable until you build a definite reputation on your field. Some days your hands are full and other days you may not have much works.

But I think you can build a stable income by strategically planning a proper business out of it. Like creating and selling your own products, starting a blog or YouTube channel, creating a tutorial/course and so on. There are a lot of possibilities if you think about it seriously.

4. Who is your favourite illustrator and why?

My favourite illustrator is Peijin Yang. Her illustrations are simply beautiful. Each of them effortlessly tells a story and are visually calming. I totally love her style.

5. Where do you get inspired from to create art?

Most of my arts are inspired from the pictures I see online. From Instagram and Pinterest mostly. Whenever I see a beautiful picture, I will save it and use it as reference while drawing later.

6. What does your typical day look like?

I don't have a typical day. Because I have a toddler and she is the one who plans my day. Lol. Jokes apart, my days are pretty casual. Until noon, I will be busy doing household chores and looking after the baby. Then its nap time for the baby and thats when I draw. I do my social media posting and engaging in the evening.

7. What piece of advice would you like to give to future aspiring illustrators?

Practice. Try different styles. You won't know what works for you until you try it. Be aware of the marketing side of the art. Nobody really talks about it. But it is important to survive among the exceeding competition.

8. Which is your favourite book and why?

My current favourite book is Sapiens by Yuval Noah Harari. I love it because I am really interested in human history and this book covers every aspect of it in a very simple and digestible way. It's a must read.

- Shana Yasmin, Illustrator

- Interviewed by Shilpy Sharan