Bringing Art to Life: Shycheeks Gifs

By on 2017/03/21

This is the era of immediacy. We receive loads of information in a matter of seconds, spoiling our patience levels, testing our attention and focus on what we see and read throughout our day. We no longer have time/want to watch 30 seconds adverts, we “skip” them, and traditional newspapers have their days counted. How can we get the interest of readers, as communicators and sellers? The return of the animated Gif files is a consequence of this viral impatience. Spanish artist Sara HP “Shycheeks” have used her creativity to create beautiful (rather than the usual ‘funny’) gifs that people want to stare at. 

The Creative Post: When and why did you start drawing?

Shycheeks: As Puño says, the right question would be “how and why I didn’t stop doing it?” Because we all draw as children; some of us continue as we grow up while others don’t. I usually blame my older brother, because he let me borrow his comic books and recommended me some great tv shows. I could spend hours looking at those books, looking at their different drawing styles and copying what I liked to then to create my own characters. We were three siblings, and we had many sticker albums and children books that also influenced me in my future career.

T.C.P.: Where do you find inspiration?

Shycheeks: I spend a lot of time watching tv series and movies, apart from reading comic books and fiction. I like discovering stories and then imagine scenes and situations, those casual moments that shape up the characters from a story.

T.C.P.: Who are your biggest influencers?

Shycheeks: Apart from the previously mentioned, I pay attention to the current trends with digital technology, and although I love the classical stories, I also enjoy modern stories like Steven Universe or Harry Potter. Some artists I am following at the moment are Isabelle Arsenault, Sara Kipin and Jess Taylor

T.C.P.: Could you explain about your creative process?

Shycheeks: After one or two days of coming up with ideas on what to draw, I find an idea and composition that I would like to do and look for reference images if needed, things like flowers or antique clothing. Then I draw mock-ups directly on the computer; very simple sketches at first for the base and composition, then an over layer with something closer to the final stage where I tweak dimensions and perspective. Once I have everything clear and set, I line it up and add flat colours. Then I delete some of the lines and change colours, add shadows and texture…If I am happy with the result I upload a Gif with the process step by step for everyone to see. I enjoy seeing the process by other artists so I want to share my own and hope you all like it!

 

With memes and social media, gif has come back to Internet. For me it is a way to bring my illustrations to life and for everyone to see them without getting too annoying.


T.C.P.: Traditional/Digital. At what extend does technology help you you’re your work? What digital tools do you use to create your artworks and how do you use Social Media to get your work out there?

Shycheeks: I studied Fine Arts in Valencia, Spain, where I learnt the classic methodology of Art: drawing, painting and sculpting… At the same time, I learnt on the digital method on the side, and I spent hours at home practising. At the last year of my studies this knowledge came very useful for my illustration work and my first commissioned projects. I love drawing and painting, but more for my personal work. I never like scanning much, so I had to print or animate images to get the best results. I use Photoshop to draw and animate. They do amazing brushes and improve their tools constantly, so you can get very close to real results without having to go through paper.

T.C.P.: Why we like Gifs? What makes them so attractive?

Shycheeks: With memes and social media, gif has come back to Internet. For me it is a why to put an illustrated scene in context. Wind, rain, the sound of a train or a gentle bird flutter. I am not an animator, I only do simple animations in a loop. For me it is a way to bring my illustrations to life and for everyone to see them without getting too annoying. I love the idea of digital moving images, like the magical portraits in Harry Potter movies! My greatest influences on this were Rebecca Mock y Boulet Corp

T.C.P.: What has been your most challenging project so far?

Shycheeks: Last summer I did more than 70 small portrait illustrations for a cultural entity calendar. When I was enjoying making one and adding detail I had to move to the next one, otherwise I wouldn’t have made it for the deadline. It was a bit frustrating on that end! They gave me old photos for the portraits, but for some people they couldn’t get real photos so they gave me images of portrait paintings or sculptures as reference. It was a bit intense but it gave me a lot of practice on portrait illustration.

T.C.P.: What are the biggest challenges for anyone who wants to make a living as an Illustrator?

Shycheeks: Everytime I talk to someone who works as Illustrator or Animator we bring the budget issue up. It is not ideal to have a price list for the work we do as the difficulty of a project can vary everytime, but not everyone understands this. You are also your worst enemy, because when you start you are afraid of putting your prices high and then as you get more experience you don’t want to increase your fees as you might loose clients. If you are unsure about pricing ask an expert or an association of illustrators.

Last summer I did more than 70 small portrait illustrations for a client’s calendar. When I was enjoying making one and adding detail I had to move to the next one, otherwise I wouldn’t have made it for the deadline.

T.C.P.: What are you current/future projects?

I’ve been thinking of launching an online shop with my original prints for a long time. In February I have been doing a course by Etsy on how to start your shop and make your sales. So I have been photographing my work and soon I will be uploading my work. I hope to have lots to show this year! Also I am in negotiations to produce the artwork for a digital book cover and also for a patisserie brand.

T.C.P.: What advice would you give to our readers wanting to work as Illustrators?

Shycheeks: I would say do not get too comfortable with their work and start sharing it in social media, including their process. It is very interesting to follow someone’s creative process. Also, if you are waiting to be pleased with your own work one day…that day will never come! Once you are happy with some of your work build a portfolio online to show clients and agencies. If you are unsure about something, ask a professional. Most of them have time and are usually helpful.

 

See more  Shycheeks work at:

www.shycheeks.net

instagram.com/shycheeks/

 

 

 

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