Answers I received from Jasmin Franko:
Dear Jasmin, in your work the combination of pencil drawing with Surrealistic approach gives extraordinary look. I would like to make sure that I percept and understand the visual image in a correct way or close to the original thoughts of yours.
In this composition http://www.artunika.com/illustration-people-surrealism-light-bulb-jasmin-franko
did you actually mean to depict the opposition of two antagonist types in human nature, e.g. positivity and negativity persisting in every person? One is creative another is destructive? Is the bulb instead of head symbolises Enlightenment?
| Your perception is great. It’s a struggle between productivity and anti productivity. Although I have to tell you, that most of my work comes spontaneously, and therefore is not always specific ideas I thought before I started sketching, but throughout the process. |
Do you find pencil drawings in demand in your professional experience?
| Not at all. I see more and more galleries and art conventions having drawings these years in Denmark. But overall pencil drawings fill less in the business. |
Most of your compositions are black and white and made by pencil. Is that for emphasising complex ideas by using the simple media of pencil or to highlight your professional skills with pencil?
| It is definitely just to be simple. For myself and nobody else. I’ve used pencil since I was 5 years old, so obviously that is where I feel at home. Also, of course – I really really like working with a sharp dried out media. |
Why did you choose Surrealism as the style of representing your ideas?
| I did not choose. I would say, that Dali convinced me in an early age. And my uncle always drew very dark surrealistic pictures, so from there I sort of got caught. But I also simply just love the world you enter and vanish in throughout the process. (whether it’s symbolism, surrealism or whatever labels we can find). Just letting your subconsciousness play with wicked ideas and forget about the real world. |
Do you reflect your own emotions and thoughts or do the ideas usually come from the client; and you just have to make it in certain way as you told?
| I don’t have clients. If people buy, they take what I have already. And yes, I guess my thoughts direct the compositions. In all kinds of ways. Through emotions and feelings, external thoughts about life, it could be anything – If I see something on the street that I don’t seem to be able to forget – I draw it out, differently. Hope you can use my answers (: If you have more – you can write me. And if you want to view a bigger collection of my work you can add me on facebook And check out my sketchbook. (: BR Jasmin! |
Answers received from Jovan Djordjevic:
Looking through your amazing work I spotted that you work in the style that similar to Pop Art and Constructivism or a bit of both.
I wonder is that because you find these styles more representational compare to other existing styles and in terms of what?
| Hi Olga, It’s not so much as emulating any particular style. Like anyone who has pursued a vocation in the Visual Arts, it’s very likely that I have absorbed and been influenced by many pieces of work, interests, styles and languages. These are inevitably synthesised and reconstituted as my own interpretations – either in answering commercial briefs or work of a personal nature. Admittedly, my work tends toward the representational rather than abstract. A majority of my commercial output is in creating imagery that supplements text: my strengths lay in being able to come up with visual solutions to abstract conceptual problems – thus producing images that are representational are more likely to be comprehended than something which is seen as abstract and therefore not immediately obvious. |
Working in this industry at the beginning of your career did you find difficult to promote your own ideas or style?
| I have never been one to promote style over content. I would rather use a completely new medium than struggle with a style, which people assume is characteristic of me, yet is totally inappropriate for a specific brief. However, when you mention the word ideas, that is a totally different ball game! People tend to get in touch with me for a very simple reason – the fact that they have no ideas! They use my skills to interpolate text, in such a way that they no longer need to worry about content and hand over and trust me with the responsibility of creating images for them. Essentially, I have always prided my self as being able and capable of being a ‘turd polisher’!! |
Who has priority to choose the style for representing the idea the customer or the artist?
| On the whole, I’d say that the customer / commissioner has chosen an artist / practitioner for their known skills and more than likely, their reputed style. However, if the brief is open, then it would be foolish to insist that an artist works in a specific style if there is a much more appropriate way / technique / method available in providing an alternative solution. An artist is in a very strong position to (re)educate a commissioner: more often than not the commissioner has very little visual awareness (I find that their forte is as wordsmiths and not imagery)! |
Jovan, this work is very interesting in terms of transformation from monkey to the human (Michael Jackson), but also very controversial in terms of meaning. Some people might find it offensive.
http://theillustratorsagency.com/jovan-djordjevic/jovans-going-underground/attachment/jovan
Is this composition reflects your personal emotions and thoughts or this idea driven by client?
| This presented itself as an opportunity to complete a project that I had in mind for quite a while! The piece of work is called ‘Jumbochickenbaseballs’ (an anagram – I hasten to add). The idea was to create something reasonably ‘contentious’, though without malice or offence. My plan was to create an image that I had, with visions of – going ‘viral’ (naïve as I was at the time). Having moved out of London about x7 years ago and out of the commercial thrum, my illustration / art work has changed and been tempered by circumstances and certainly by the fluctuating economy. No longer ccould I rely on being able to phone a potential client and arrange an appointment there and then. These days everyone prefers email introductions with links to web url’s. I soon realised that in order to remain a contender within Illustration, I had to amend my marketing approach and concluded that Social Media, was the most apt way of progressing (also by far the most economical way – as all the communication methods are free, readily available and shared with commissioners). I was approached by Art Below to create a piece of work to appear both at a gallery off Exit 9 in Charring X Station, to be displayed on platforms at Blackfriars Bridge Underground and to be eventually exhibited at the Hospital Club in Endell Street, London. I have always been intrigued by physiognomy and ‘photo-fit’ imagery (including much rawer work created during the early 80’s). I decided that I would pursue ‘Jumbochickenbaseballs’, a permutation of morphs combining the face of Michael Jackson, with his beloved chimp pet/friend??? Bubbles (you may want to check Bubbles’s profile via Wikipedia [yes seriously!!]). Eventually I devised around x20 permutations combining components of their faces. Though the resulting images are maybe a little disturbing, there is no element that can be misinterpreted as racist or offensive. My original plan was to create a set of ‘faux postage’ stamps using these individual morphs; though I was eventually persuaded by Art Below to create a poster 1000mm x 1400mm. The main objective has always remained that this work should showcase my interests, skills and conceptual acumen as an artist and illustrator. At the same time I also wanted for the image to be sufficiently ‘contentious’, to the extent that it would be the ‘talk’ of the show and hopefully create some sort of media buzz - that would permeate Social Media, to the extent that the limited edition set of stamps I had created would be much sought after. However, my Social Media skills had not yet been sufficiently honed, i.e. naievely I had not set in place a sufficiently developed Social Media strategy, which could exploit the controversial nature of the final image!! |
How would you describe and motivate the idea of the Evolution represented in the picture?
| Evolution plays no part in this work. It is purely a depiction of x2 recognisable character faces and all the permutations that can be achieved (5x5=25 more maths than art!) – thus creating an element of mystery. You will also notice, that the work has no direct mention of either Michael Jackson nor Bubbles, save for the anagram. The only evolution is purely the fact that it has taken me over x30 years to move forward from my initial visual investigations and original project. *PS – if you’d like a sheet of the resulting faux stamps? You’ll need to indicate a postal address as to where you’d like me to send them. I hope my answers suffice for your research requirement? - Good Luck
Jovan Djordjevic. |
I am so exited today, as I received the set of stamps designed by artist Jovan Djorjevic!See pictures below:
 | This is the envelope |
Answers received from the collage artist Sandhi Schimmel Gold
Dear Sandhi,I know that Cubomania and Inimage are some of the techniques of collage, generally speaking.
My questions to you are:
In terms of preparation to complete your work do you see the image in your mind as a whole piece or it is a serendipity that you discover while creating the piece of art?
| Both I have an idea in mind - of how I want to put the image on canvas - but often, something that is on my mind changes something - the colour palette, or a theme. The Impulse is the Action! |
What drives you to create the female face images? Is it something to do with concept of Feminism? If it is yes, then which aspect of this concept you represent in your pictures?
| My image is often about society’s version of beauty. I cut up images sent via advertising [beauty shots, etc.] and use them to create another version. What makes someone beautiful and someone else NOT? We accept images the media promotes as beauty over the internal... I am interested in female faces - shapes, planes, eye contact. Always have been. Left to my own devices, I will always choose a female subject. |
The style of Pop Art in your work is obvious to me and it communicates well with created images! Have you ever tried different styles before or this style is the one that has been successful from the beginning of your career?
The images you see are just my natural response. I grew up in the Warhol era, but I am not copying anyone... I appreciate all types of art, but can’t seem to wrap my mind around landscape, still life...abstract art. I have done nearly every type of art and/or craft during my life - drawing, painting [oils, acrylic] sculpture, needlework, store displays, handbag design, jewellery, ceramics, mosaics, etc. I have found that I am most attracted to saturated colour - I find that in tile, glass, yarn and paper. I hope people respond in a positive way to my work - as it is, I don’t try to change my style or technique to please others.
How long approximately takes creating the mosaic image? To me it is a massive work to do!
| Many, many hours - there are so many steps to take. I would say a minimum of 80 hours. |
What is more enjoyable and inspires you most the physical process of creating the image, imagining the final outcome or seeing the final result of the whole process?
| The process is very tedious and time consuming and can be frustrating. However, it is the only way to achieve the goal of the finished product. There is really something about having my hands on the work - and touching each piece over and over. I feel like I am really having a relationship with the work in every moment. |
Answers received from
Andrzej Dudzinski
Dear Andrzej, in this illustration
http://andrzejdudzinski.com/illustration.ilustracje.php?img=31
The negative and positive spaces of the composition are used wisely. Is the idea of integrating one into another driven by certain rules of illustration, by client’s suggestion or by own imagination?
- Own imagination (as usual) - I don't think I've ever had a commission where the client would interfere that far as composition.
How could you describe the style of your work? Sometimes I think it is Constructivism and sometimes it looks like Surrealism to me. Is that because you find these styles more representational rather than other styles? If yes or no then why is it? Have you ever worked in any different styles?
- Actually none of the above - you may trace some influences of both styles as I certainly responded to them over the years while developing my individual approach - which I hope I posess. I'm also quite at ease in the Abstract.
In this picture:
http://andrzejdudzinski.com/illustration.ilustracje.php?img=19
Are the abstract forms and the spectre of colours chosen to reflect your personal thoughts and emotions or to induce other viewer to indicate and give the explanation for what they see in the picture? How would you explain this picture?
- As I tend to work emotionally rather than pre-planning the work in detail, it all happens on a more subconscious level - I guess I simply respond to my less controlled impulses.
The picture in question was in fact a commission from Health magazine to illustrate a piece on mental illnesses. I tried to depict the inner and outer worlds of an affected person, showing how what transpires inside the head affects the world around.
