So tell us a bit about yourself, what you do, and why you chose it.
Hello hello! I’m ZSO, a moniker that sort of adopted me about 5 years ago. I’m an illustrator and designer based in New York City. I have a small studio where I work on a variety of types of projects, from fine art for exhibitions to more traditional graphic design and advertising work. My first love is art, and one day I hope to devote my entire schedule to drawing.
Would you say that being based where you are strongly influences your work?
I think New York has a big influence texturally. It’s very grungy and very dirty which very much contributes to its rich character, and I try and incorporate those elements into my work. Initially I think my color palette was extremely bright and neon, maybe as sort of a rebellion against the dirt and the grunge, but I think lately I’ve been really embracing it’s age and history and darkness more. In the last 6 months even I think things have taken a more serious turn and muted turn. I’ve always been very inspired by fashion, which is so much more concentrated here, but I think overall I’m more interested in the fantasy of living in urban environment. My girls are tough but sometimes sad and jaded. I think I always sort of envision my girls living in Blade Runner.
“It’s difficult to narrow inspiration down to a small list–I feel more like it’s more of a collection of stimuli from my everyday life like songs I hear, dreams I have, colors I find on the street or in a cafe or in the grain of an antique, people I meet, photographs, magazines, books, stories–everything!”
So how long have you been illustrating?
I’ve been drawing ever since I was very small and it has always been my main interest in life. I didn’t really figure out my style and process until about 5 years ago, which is still an ongoing process. I’ve also always had to split my time between commercial design work and drawing, so I think I still have a long way to go with my illustration in my eyes. I’m trying to take personal sabbaticals to do nothing but drawing in the near future.
You’ve inspired a lot of young illustrators/designers, (like us!) what or who inspires you? For what particular reason?
There is no greater inspiration for me than nature herself for me. And all the artists who I truly love also seem to deal with very organic forms and nature based imagery. It’s difficult to narrow inspiration down to a small list–I feel more like it’s more of a collection of stimuli from my everyday life like songs I hear, dreams I have, colors I find on the street or in a cafe or in the grain of an antique, people I meet, photographs, magazines, books, stories–everything! I hope to always be working on building my personal mental library of images, design, and culture.
How do you create your images, and what techniques do you use?
Everything is hand drawn with a mix of pencil and ink and then I use watercolor for texture and tone. All final images are rendered digitally. I scan and work in Photoshop for the rest of the process. I use a lot of textured from around NYC which I collect on my digital camera. Overall my process is mostly experimentation, and I try to keep sketching at a minimum.
“For a long time I put a lot of pressure on myself to try and create some unique style for myself and I overthought it to death. I wasn’t having any fun. At some point I said to myself that I just had to stop looking at others and comparing myself to their work and success. I just let go for a moment.”
You have a really beautiful, unique style, how would you describe that, and how did you come to it?
For a long time I put a lot of pressure on myself to try and create some unique style for myself and I overthought it to death. I wasn’t having any fun. I was never happy with anything I made. At some point I said to myself that I just had to stop looking at others and comparing myself to their work and success. I just let go for a moment. I picked up a couple reference images of girls and just recreated them in my own way as loosely and naturally as I could. As soon as I allowed myself failure and experimentation I started making things that felt like me. Nothing is every perfect and I had to accept that in order to move forward and try to grow. I still have to consciosly try and go into every piece understanding that it may fail. You have to stop trying to influence your own handwriting.
Any interesting projects you’ve been working on lately?
I’ve started a large series called 100 Girls which is just simply 100 portraits of strange invented ladies. I’ve been wanting an opportunity and excuse to produce a large body of work for some time. By limiting the subject matter I’m hoping to be able to focus more on form and process and treat this as a self exploration project. I’ve taken this cue from artists like JP Thurlow and Zak Smith who have also done similar projects drawing 100 of things. I’m also trying to work on a line of fabric products like scarves which are very nature based. At the end of 2011 and 2012 I have a couple group gallery shows and fairs.
Whats next for you, and do you have anything big planned this year? Where do you see yourself going?
My biggest upcoming adventure is heading out to Auckland at the end of this month to speak at the We Can Create conference where I’ll also be having a small exhibition of the first 10 of the 100 Girls alongside some amazing local artists. I’m headed to Paris right after just to recharge–to take in the city, do some personal drawing, and get inspired. I’m seeing lots of bread, wine, and cheese in my future! My biggest hopes and dreams are just to be able to continue to do what I love and to try and live a balanced and happy life with the people I care about. Simple is good.
