Tran Nguyen is an illustrator from Georgia, USA, althought she is originally from Vietnam. I found her work amazing and inspiring in many ways, so i decided to interview her.
I decided not to translate it to portuguese, because it would certainly lose the true meaning of everything:
1- Since when is illustration a part of your life? In your childhood you liked to draw?
Like any kid, the only projects I really enjoyed in grade school were the creative ones, whether it was drawing stick figures or painting those Thanksgiving turkey hands. I didn't seriously get into illustration until I enrolled at SCAD, where I began to thoroughly explore the principles and intricacies of art, in all kinds of forms.
2- How do you describe yourself? Where does your creativity comes from?
In simplest term, I'm fortunate, optimistic, and empathetic. I think most of my creative juice comes from the people I come across everyday. My mind has a weird way of interpreting life stories/experiences/situations and synthesizing them into extraordinarily bizarre, dream-like visuals.
3 - I found out that one of your inspirations was the famous Japanese director Hayao Miyazaki. In which ways does he inspire you, besides the obvious facts?
So many aspects of his work influence me -- his odd creature designs, well-developed protagonists, and sublime environments. Most importantly, I think it was his heart-felt storylines that inspired me to do more with my visuals than just entertain. It made me realize that it's crucial to attach deep motives in the concepts of my work.
4 - You have asian traces. Where does your family come from?
My family and I are from Can Tho, Vietnam, the poorer part of the country that is. We moved to the States in 1990 with no money, clothes, or food and now, with the hard work/dedication of my parents, I have everything I would ever need or want.
5 - How do you see illustration right now? Do you think it has grown since the last 10 years?
I think illustration is constantly growing and shrinking -- when certain illustration markets close down, there's always new ones deriving from or replacing it.
6- What's your opinion about Portugal?
I hear Portugal is an exotic country. Everyone that I've met from your country is impeccably handsome/beautiful. And if I'm getting my FIFA teams right, you guys did pretty darn well in the 2010 World Cup. Top 10, right?
7- You work on a field that is very competitive. How do you deal with pressure?
The wisest thing I (as well as anyone else) can do for myself is to have a realistic/confident outlook when dealing with pressure. I've trained myself be aware that not every project is going to be a success. Having a strong, optimistic mentality when approaching the industry is imperative to prosper.
8- Your work has visual creative metaphors. How do you explain the use of that? You draw a simple face, but then you introduce some metaphoric aspects that make your drawings something amazing. Where did you get that influences?
I use the abstract shapes and symbols to help embed the content’s general tone. Sometimes, the haphazard of patterns help create an ambiguous void for the figures to be cast into. Other times, they're used to represent certain emotions. The Masters in the Art Nouveau period was a great influence in using those elements -- a huge inspiration, in fact.
9 - Your work is filled with "things" from nature, such as trees, the moon, etc. Why do you use them so frequently?
Just like the abstract shapes, they also help convey the ethereal undertones. They are precious aspects that harmonizes my overall visual. Every element has a function that interdependently contributes and supports the painting's main idea.
10- I must say that i love your "how cloudy is untamed psyche". How do you explain the rectangles? Why are they coloured? What does the girl represent?
The figure symbolizes an unidentifiable but particular person that we viscerally associate her with. As she glances at the viewer, rectangular structures begin to "overcast" her mind. This impairs her ability to act and think rationally, thus "clouds" it. As for the gold, it's used to convey the shape's abrupt personality. It clashes with the rest of the image, which in turns, reflects the figure's discomfort.
You can check her magnificent work here:
Sem comentários:
Enviar um comentário