When Viviane Valenta’s not designing web sites and cell apps, she’s feeding her ardour for digital illustration and operating her personal net store. Whether or not she’s making stickers or turning characters from well-known work into cats, she’s on a mission to unfold pleasure along with her designs. We’re delighted to share her story with you.

How would you describe your career?

It depends upon what I’m engaged on. Each product design and illustration fulfill completely different inventive wants for me — though generally they neatly mix and complement one another. Like when I’m bringing an internet product to life with customized illustrations or after I take into consideration methods to make my paintings work properly as bodily merchandise.

Inform us extra about your background in design. Have you ever all the time been concerned in each illustration and product design?

I come from an extended lineage of Viennese artists. So it was all the time clear to me that I’d find yourself working in a inventive career. I went to the identical honored artwork college that my household visited, which was reasonably conventional, so product design and net design weren’t actually coated.

Afterwards I obtained a job as a graphic designer at Vienna’s largest movie show, which impressed me to go additional and transfer to Munich. There, I labored on illustrations for the well-known German YouTube channel for science communication, Kurzgesagt. After absorbing all of the information and abilities, I made a decision to maneuver on to the fast-paced world of small startups the place one will get to do and discover every thing. I feel founding a enterprise based mostly alone designs matches properly into this story.

How did you get into illustration? And the way would you describe your fashion?

It has all the time been an enormous a part of my life. After college, I’d sit down and sketch out brand and font concepts with my grandmother, who was a proficient artist. I then obtained into the entire Japanese pattern briefly — earlier than it turned mainstream — and was fascinated with manga and anime. I feel it nonetheless reveals! I mix this stylistic method with clear vectors, summary shapes, and a colour palette that’s each vivid and pastel, all to assist folks join with the ‘kawaii’ ingredient of my artwork.

Do you discover that your expertise as a product designer informs your work as an illustrator? If that’s the case, how?

Sure, completely! As a product designer, I’m continuously involved with how my work reads and if it communicates properly. When designing digital merchandise, we accomplish this by giving customers visible clues and lowering muddle in an effort to focus — not essentially cut back — cognitive load. I feel it’s no coincidence that I ended up with a really minimalistic fashion that eases its viewers into the topic earlier than revealing extra nuance. Similar to in product design, protecting illustrations easy is actually fairly a problem and takes many iterations and suggestions.

Similar to in product design, protecting illustrations easy is actually fairly a problem and takes many iterations and suggestions.

You’ve recreated a number of well-known work as cute prints, like Johannes Vermeer’s Woman with a Pearl Earring and Gustav Klimt’s The Kiss. What impressed this pattern in your designs?

I like these work, particularly The Kiss! And naturally, they’ve been re-interpreted many occasions however most of them have been both pop artwork collages or too sensible for my style. I additionally wished so as to add a component of ‘Entfremdung’ (English: alienation) that will work with my cute fashion — therefore the cats. I’m additionally experimenting with extra instructional content material. I feel artwork is the right car for that as a result of it helps our mind anchor the information in a novel expertise.

What are a few of the challenges to recreating these well-known artworks?

I attempt to distill the paintings into its important options. In a way, I find yourself having to reverse-engineer (or reverse-imagine) the guiding image of the unique creators, which is troublesome. It typically helps to learn up on the artist’s biography and the circumstances of creation to get me within the mindset to see these items. However on the finish of the day, I nonetheless have my very own interpretation and I’ve to make that come via.

How would you describe the method behind your artwork, sticker, and pin illustrations?

In contrast to many artists, my course of typically begins instantly in Sketch — no pen or paper. It’s so quick and fluid that I can get my ideas out effortlessly. I sometimes find yourself with a number of variations in a single Sketch doc after which choose the very best. If I’m working with a theme like a vacation, season or present pattern I additionally typically come ready with some concepts.

How does Sketch allow you to in your illustration course of?

When working as a product designer for startups I grew disillusioned with Adobe Illustrator so I researched options like Sketch, Adobe XD and Figma. Sketch instantly gained me over with its intuitive UI and construction. I used to be in a position to shortly switch all my designs and have become an inner evangelist in my firm.

In contrast to many artists, my course of typically begins instantly in Sketch — no pen or paper. It’s so quick and fluid that I can get my ideas out effortlessly.

What are a few of your favourite options in Sketch, and why?

That must be the Vector software, which continues to amaze me. With the ability to transfer and alter shapes after you divide or merge them is sort of the productiveness booster. A detailed second would merely be the default shortcuts — very straightforward to get into. And this shortlist wouldn’t be full in fact with out Symbols, that are surprisingly helpful for illustrations, too.

What’s one piece of recommendation you’d give younger illustrators and designers beginning their careers at the moment?

Many occasions fellow artists have requested me how I discovered my fashion – in actuality it’s one thing that usually develops over time. Persistence and apply are the names of the sport and so long as you keep it up and get to like the method, your fashion will come to you naturally. I additionally discovered it vital to look outwards — so speak to different artists and check out completely different instruments and artwork types. All the time decide the elements you most like and keep humble. If you happen to really feel caught, you might have three choices: take a break, strive one thing you’re not conversant in, or do some straightforward consolation drawing.

Many occasions fellow artists have requested me how I discovered my fashion – in actuality it’s one thing that usually develops over time […] So long as you keep it up and get to like the method, your fashion will come to you naturally.

Of all of the illustrations you’ve made to this point, which one is your favourite and why?

As a Viennese, The Kiss by Gustav Klimt is presently my favourite illustration. Its expression of ardour and devotion captivated me and took numerous time to get proper. I discovered that the lady within the portray is supposed to be a provider of affection and wonder all coated in flowers. A principle that basically intrigued me is that Klimt tried to seize the second when the legendary Orpheus misplaced his love, Eurydice, eternally.

To wrap up, are there another well-known artworks you’d like to recreate quickly?

Sure, it’s an ongoing sequence and I’m presently engaged on a couple of extra like The Final Supper, The Beginning Of Venus, and Ophelia. And there are additionally some works from Picasso’s Blue Interval to look out for!

Need to sustain with Viviane’s designs? Comply with her on Dribbble, Instagram and Twitter!