Inspiration

Expand your personal library of references and get to know the work of creatives from various disciplines.

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  • Draw Yourself: Illustrator Emma Hanquist Draws Her Career
    Illustration

    Draw Yourself: Illustrator Emma Hanquist Draws Her Career

    How did Emma Hanquist start drawing? Did you know she lives on an island with her family? Discover more about her in this edition of Draw Yourself Emma Hanquist has been working as a freelance illustrator for over ten years, during which time she has worked with clients such as Airbnb and Spotify and filled magazines, like Modern Psykologi, Scandinavian Traveler, and Natur & Kultur, with her illustrations. The Swedish illustrator, armed with a pencil, opens a window to a few of the key moments of her life and the way she understands her profession. From the day she began to illustrate to how she'll look when she's old, Hanquist shows her ability to create wonderful imagery in this Draw Yourself.

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  • The Illustrations That Represent Marcos Chin
    Illustration

    The Illustrations That Represent Marcos Chin

    Get to know iconic illustrator Marcos Chin through the pieces that define his art Marcos has worked for everyone from Google to Ford, Rolling Stone Magazine to The New York Times. But, he didn't grow up in such grand circumstances. Civil war forced his family to leave Mozambique, where he was born, in the mid-1970s. From a humble background, Marcos has been working since he was ten. "I've been paying most of my significant purchases on my own since I was a kid," he told The Illustration Department. "Back to school clothing, books and supplies, my undergraduate education, rent and now my mortgage." Don't miss the opportunity to knoe more about Marcos on his . Here is a collection of the works that took him from there to where he is now. The first big job: Lavalife After working for magazines for a while, his big commission came from an online dating agency, Lavalife: "Where singles click." The company blew up and gave him the platform so he could too. "This campaign lasted for about nine years and it afforded me a life that I never knew could be possible for an illustrator."

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  • Cinema to Watercolor: The Work of Alex Hillkurtz
    Illustration

    Cinema to Watercolor: The Work of Alex Hillkurtz

    Learn how this visual artist’s love of cinema inspired his painting Alex Hillkurtz (@alexhillkurtzart) is a storyboard artist and watercolor painter specialized in architectural motifs. Originally from England, he grew up in California, where he has worked on storyboards for films like Argo, Almost Famous, and Captain America: Winter Soldier. Alex says painting and drawing help us to live at a more relaxed pace by making us aware of our space and what surrounds us. Don’t miss his live chat on Domestika Live. Watch him create a sketch and see his process in action. Let’s learn more about how he developed his artistic style.

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  • Domestika Diaries: Joel Santana
    Illustration

    Domestika Diaries: Joel Santana

    Joel Santana, an illustrator specialized in character design, has a daily routine that helps him start the morning with more creative energy Staying active and creative, especially during times when you can't leave the house, can be difficult if you fall into certain routines. But thankfully there are always ways to reignite that creative spark and to get back on track. In this Domestika Diary, the concept artist and children's book illustrator Joel Santana (@themaddhattr) shares his routine and the daily rituals that help him start his morning off on the right foot so that he can stay focused throughout the day. Learn more in the video below:

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  • 10 Steps to Make a Self-Portrait Collage
    Teacher Illustration

    10 Steps to Make a Self-Portrait Collage

    Follow the steps below to create a unique collage with the materials you have at home I recently shared techniques and ideas to create collages at home with your family in a Domestika live chat. After the live chat, I received several beautiful portraits of the Domestika community. I decided to document the process of portrait collage as a photo tutorial to share with everyone. Read on as I explain how to create a portrait and give it a personal touch step-by-step: 1) Gather all materials We are going to use various types of paper, scissors, glue, and a mirror. We will not need pencils or markers. Best to keep them off the table. Now we need to look at ourselves in the mirror with affection. Remember that a self-portrait not only depicts us physically but also reveals something about us: what we feel, what we desire, what excites us and represents us.

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  • Designers Against Coronavirus
    Illustration

    Designers Against Coronavirus

    Learn more about the project that is engaging with people through images all over the world During these difficult times, the response of the international creative community of all industries has been amazing. Many illustrators and designers have created images to inform, express solidarity, and spread a sense of hope. CaroselloLab, the Italian agency specialized in brand building and designing, wants to make sure all this work does not fade away. Over the past few weeks, they have built Designers Against Coronavirus, DAC, a platform gathering this artwork and making it available to the public.

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  • 3 Museums Offering 2000 Art Books
    Art

    3 Museums Offering 2000 Art Books

    Learn about free use of art books to awaken your creativity If you are looking for inspiring content on fine art, art criticism, theory, or art history, the following resources will interest you. Three museums are letting you download and read thousands of books covering all of the above areas, as well as monographic studies on schools of thought, movements, and artists of all different eras and regions. Find out about the collections available in three large New York museums and some of their most significant treasures free to consult right now. The Metropolitan Museum of Art The Met has collected around 1,700 art books from across the world. You will be able to consult the contents table to check if any particular book has what you need to research. Each book also indicates any award or press review received and includes links to related work and areas of interest. You can download the books for you to keep or read them online here.

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  • What is a Graphic Designer?
    Design

    What is a Graphic Designer?

    Renowned designer Sagi Haviv reflects on the three essential characteristics of a modern designer Sagi Haviv (@sagi) is a partner and designer for the famous branding and design studio, Chermayeff & Geismar & Haviv. The Animal Planet, US Open and Conservation International logos are among Haviv’s biggest designs. This influential and legendary designer has launched a course on Domestika focused on how to develop your own voice as a designer. Here are his thoughts on what exactly a graphic designer is. A designer must be multi-skilled You might think the work of a designer consists of simply organizing certain elements on the computer so that they are pleasant to the eye. However, Haviv asserts that a good designer must master a series of skills. They should understand drawing and typography, computers and clients, and resolve numerous problems, among other things. Their most important skill, however, is to be able to keep coming up with new ideas. This is the heart of their work: creativity.

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  • Don’t Miss: BBC Culture in Quarantine
    Art

    Don’t Miss: BBC Culture in Quarantine

    The BBC's Culture in Quarantine is delivering a new program of art and culture to Brits at home In challenging times, art and culture have the power to unite, inspire reflection, and offer solace. Since museums, theaters, cinemas and other cultural venues across Britain closed their doors in March as a result of the national lockdown, the BBC has been collaborating with organizations and individuals–from the Tate Modern and the Royal Shakespeare to writer Margaret Atwood and scholar Mary Beard–to deliver an eclectic mix of art and culture to the public at home. The BBC’s Culture in Quarantine Festival grants access to shuttered exhibitions and performances, festivals which have turned virtual, as well as new work, offering a rich program available to consume via the BBC: online, on television, or over the radio. "It’s important during this period that we maintain access not just to news and information, but to the arts and culture. For many people, they are a valuable part of their lives and a way of stimulating imagination, thought, and escapism. It’s a vital part of who we are as individuals and part of our identity as a nation,” said Director-General Tony Hall. Here, we pick some of the highlights from the program that are sure to not only entertain but inspire.

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  • 5 Procreate Timelapses to Inspire Your Illustration and Lettering Projects
    Illustration

    5 Procreate Timelapses to Inspire Your Illustration and Lettering Projects

    Observe, enjoy and learn with these time-lapses on illustration and digital lettering A timelapse is a video that compresses many hours or days into just a few seconds or minutes. It is ideal for sharing creative processes related to illustration, design or lettering. Aware of this fact, Procreate added a function that allows you to record your work process, save it as a video file and easily share it on YouTube, Facebook or Instagram. At Domestika we love observing and learning from the best professionals and these timelapses have become the perfect way to discover their way of working. On the Domestika YouTube channel, you will find a playlist with exclusive timelapses made by a range of artists. Here, we recommend just five by some of the professionals who teach courses on our platform: Creating Characters From Scratch, with Microbians (@microbians) Gabriel Suchowolski, better known as Microbians, is a creative and art director specializing in character design. In this speed painting, he shows how to create an attractive character composition in Procreate, from the skeleton and the first sketch to the work of light and shadow, application of color and gradients, and the variation of lines.

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  • Share Your Sketchbook with the Community
    Teacher Domestika

    Share Your Sketchbook with the Community

    Stimulate your creativity and share your work Creativity does not belong to a select few. We all have the potential to create and it is very important to foster that power since in doing so we are developing our imagination, intellectual curiosity, self-esteem, ability to solve problems, and many other things. Many people use a sketchbook to dump the ideas that spring into their minds, and it becomes their little treasure. We invite you to show us your creativity in this initiative: share your favorite page from your sketchbook, regardless of the technique used: it can be doodles, sketches, collage, photographs, lettering, illustrations, as long as it’s important for you and you want to share it.

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  • Three Watercolor Timelapses to Boost Your Creativity
    Illustration

    Three Watercolor Timelapses to Boost Your Creativity

    Discover different watercolor techniques in these speed painting videos Watercolor is one of the oldest illustration mediums. Almost everyone who has ever been interested in drawing and painting has practiced it. By diluting pigments in water, it is possible to create stains of enormous depth and beauty, which have been part of our cultural heritage for millennia. We share these three timelapses that will allow you to discover the work process of great creatives, or simply relax and enjoy the care and affection that they put into their strokes. Timelapse: Illustrating with Watercolor and Procreate, by Naranjalidad

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  • Four Initiatives to Get Your Creative Juices Flowing
    Art

    Four Initiatives to Get Your Creative Juices Flowing

    If you’re experiencing creator’s block during quarantine, here are four initiatives to get your juices flowing Most creatives would agree that the best source of inspiration is to go out into the world and make observations, so what happens when you are stuck staring at the same four walls every day? If you’re experiencing creator’s block during lockdown, know that you are not alone. It’s OK to not be at the top of your game right now. This is a challenging time. So, first things first: give yourself a break. Being housebound will affect everyone in different ways–perhaps you are dealing with increased anxiety, feeling lethargic, and/or struggling to concentrate on work. You don’t have to be productive right now. But if you are itching to create and are not sure where to start, look to the creative community for support and inspiration. Right now, lots of brands and organizations are reaching out to their followers and the wider creative community to unite artists and inspire them to get started on different creative projects by setting fun tasks and launching competitions. So if you’re stuck for ideas, here are four initiatives that are sure to get your creative juices flowing.

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  • The Greatest Albums Covers By The Man Who Defined The Jazz Look
    Illustration

    The Greatest Albums Covers By The Man Who Defined The Jazz Look

    David Stone Martin is the album cover artist who defined how jazz looked for the greats for Astaire, Coltrane, Fitzgerald, and dozens of other jazz greats He’s the only artist who worked with Fred Astaire, John Coltrane, Ella Fitzgerald, Duke Ellington, Charlie Parker, and many more jazz greats without ever recording as much as a ditty. You might now know David Stone Martin’s name, but he made it onto the cover of Time Magazine eight times. Nowadays, record collectors scour stores searching for his work, not to listen to it, but to see it. Martin is perhaps the most iconic designer of jazz record sleeves of all time. His signature hand-sketched graphics, with just one or two bright colors, epitomized the sharp energy and spontaneity of the world of jazz.

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  • Learn with the Domestika Live series while you #StayAtHome
    Teacher Domestika

    Learn with the Domestika Live series while you #StayAtHome

    Get to know the creatives that will share their expertise on Domestika Live We invite you to watch our Facebook Live series, Domestika Live, where creatives from different backgrounds will share their secrets and answer your questions. Keep learning while you discover more about Domestika teachers and other members of the creative community. You can watch the talks here. All past episodes are available here. Come and join us!

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  • Stefan Sagmeister: 7 Key Works on Graphic Design
    Design

    Stefan Sagmeister: 7 Key Works on Graphic Design

    Learn about the legendary graphic designer through the defining moments of his career Born in Austria, Stefan Sagmeister is one of the most respected graphic designers of the world. Known by his distinct sense of humor and unique perspective on art, design, type, and illustration – his award-winning projects span from personal art to branding and music album covers, as well as striking and complex pieces that don’t fit into a specific discipline. Make sure to catch here his exclusive Domestika Live session next Thursday 9 April at 13:00 hrs (CT). Stefan will be telling us about how he started as a designer and the highlights of his career that have led him to where he is today. You can also watch the recording at any time here. Now, learn more about this iconic designer with some of the key moments in his career.

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  • Domestika Talks: Rodrigo Corral
    Design

    Domestika Talks: Rodrigo Corral

    Watch this talk by Rodrigo Corral, one of the greatest book cover designers of recent decades What makes a great book cover designer? Is it best to bring your own style to the design or should you focus entirely on communicating the concept of the book you're working on, removing yourself from the equation? Perhaps the trick is to strike a balance between the two. Rodrigo Corral (@rodrigocorral_) answers these questions and more. Corral–creative director of the publishing house Farrar, Straus and Giroux and head of his own studio–took the stage at the most recent edition of Copa Domestika Colombia to talk about the core ideas behind his work. Watch his talk in the following video:

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  • What is an Art Toy?
    Craft

    What is an Art Toy?

    Is it a toy? Is it art? What does it represent? Who determines its price? Luasio López answers your questions For many, the charm of an art toy derives from the difficulty of defining it. For Luaiso López (@luaiso_lopez), Spanish graphic designer and illustrator, it’s about understanding their essence: their figurative characters used in exhibitions, events, and collected by private collectors. To understand their nature, Luaiso shares part of the history of these iconic objects that–regardless of their shape, price or the value attributed to them personally–are becoming known to the minds and tastes of millions of people around the world.

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  • Five 3D Designers and Artists Recommended by the Domestika Community
    Design

    Five 3D Designers and Artists Recommended by the Domestika Community

    We asked the Domestika community on Instagram who their favorite 3D artists were A few days ago, we asked the community to help us find their favorite 3D artists and designers. Below, we present a list of the most popular names: you’ll find experts in character creation and masters of VFX, as well as unique styles and new ways of using 3D. Eva Cremers (@evacremers) The Dutch illustrator Eva Cremers has worked with clients such as Apple, The New York Times and Pull & Bear, but has stayed true to her own style: friendly, colorful, big-eyed characters, a reinterpretation of classic cartoons. Cremers works in a unique way on the skins of her little monsters, sometimes playing with their hair and sometimes applying soft textures that remind us of the plasticine of our childhood.

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  • OrigamiSimulator: The Simulator That Will Teach You to Become an Origami Master
    Craft

    OrigamiSimulator: The Simulator That Will Teach You to Become an Origami Master

    This paper simulator allows you to follow, step by step, the procedure of creating any origami object When it originated in China in the first or second century, those who practiced it could never have imagined the heights this noble art would reach, much less how technology would help its development. We are not talking about types of folds, much less qualities of paper, something that, of course, will have changed a lot over time, but projects like OrigamiSimulator, a platform that, thanks to technology, is capable of becoming the most patient and meticulous teacher when teaching us to create all kinds of sculptures with paper, from the simplest to the most intricate.

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  • Domestika Talks: Santiago Carrasquilla
    Design

    Domestika Talks: Santiago Carrasquilla

    Santiago Carrasquilla, the visual artist, designer, and animator, talks about the most important stories and projects of his successful career Santiago Carrasquilla is a designer, entertainer, and audiovisual producer born in Bucaramanga (Colombia) and currently living in the United States. After his graduation, he worked for Sagmeister & Walsh for three years as a designer, first, and then as art director. In the following talk, recorded during Copa Domestika Colombia, Carrasquilla talks about his successful career, leading to one of the projects he is most proud of: his recent collaboration with Thom Yorke creating music loops for Spotify.

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  • What is Molecular Typography?
    Typography, Calligraphy and Lettering

    What is Molecular Typography?

    An unexpected perspective on letters as living beings Molecular typography is the study of letters from a radically new perspective. In molecular typography, letters are considered molecules and have certain physical and chemical properties. All characters are formed from seven basic atomic blocks called typtoms. When these are combined, letters, numbers, and punctuation are formed, just as in chemistry different simple elements can form complex molecules.

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  • 5 Instagram Accounts Sharing Food Styling Inspiration
    Photography

    5 Instagram Accounts Sharing Food Styling Inspiration

    Espacio Crudo shares some of their favorite food photographers’ Instagram accounts Over recent years, new artists working in food styling and food photography have been emerging and proving that a love of food really does develop through the eyes. If you have some experience in photography, this is a discipline that will interest you: there is a growing demand for photographers who can capture products so that they look as delicious as they taste.

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  • Vector Icons on Hand Washing and Hygiene #Stayathome
    Teacher Design

    Vector Icons on Hand Washing and Hygiene #Stayathome

    Iconfinder gives away over 300 vector icons on hand washing and hygiene measures Iconfinder is a website specialized in vector icons, formed by an international team of designers based in Copenhagen, Denmark. It brought together a group of designers to generate a pack of over 300 Covid-19 related free icons. You will find packages with topics such as hand washing, hygiene recommendations and social distancing.

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  • Free Icons that Redefine Professional Women
    Design

    Free Icons that Redefine Professional Women

    Download these free icons from Noun Project that promote equality and the fair representation of women “Visual language has the power to give form, reinforce and change our perceptions of the world,” says Sofya Polyakov, CEO and co-founder of Noun Project (@nounproject). That is why her company launched a collection of more than 60 free-to-use icons that represent women in design, arts, technology and other professional fields.

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  • The art from the Everything but the Kitschen Sync Exhibition
    Teacher Art

    The art from the Everything but the Kitschen Sync Exhibition

    Meet the participating artists from this annual exhibition in Los Angeles Established in 1986 La Luz de Jesus Gallery is the brainchild of entrepreneur and art collector Billy Shire, considered primarily responsible for fostering a new school of California art and prompting JUXTAPOZ Magazine to dub him “the Peggy Guggenheim of Lowbrow.” La Luz De Jesus Gallery presents its annual juried group exhibition, Everything but the Kitschen Sync. This gigantic, no-theme show features works from some of the freshest and most relevant artists working today.

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