#uzlolzu

[uzlolzu]

Hi uzlolzu! Your art is so unique and captivating you've been my favourite artist since I was a teenager! I've recently graduated uni now and have done some freelance jobs here and there and I'm wondering how someone goes about building a stable freelance career as an illustrator. Can you share how you started?

Hello and thank you! That’s flattering and I’m very happy to hear it.

I can! Or I will try. It’s a pretty tricky question to answer, because my path into this has been organic and, in a way, one of least resistance.

In short: I was born into it.

Not in an “I’m the chosen one” way, of course, but in that my parents are artists and designers. Both currently work as graphic designers and have worked with illustration in the past. My mum is also a tailor and my dad is a wood carver (my sister does wonderful ceramics and has an education in tailoring too). Art and design, and working in those fields, is a core pillar of my family life.

All of this was pretty convenient for me regarding pursuing a career in illustration; I’ve always had access to all digital and traditional materials I’ve ever needed to draw or paint or do any craft (my first tablet was a 1999 Wacom Intuos 1), I grew up in an environment that was encouraging even when nothing was said, AND I had my parents’ extensive professional network available to me as soon as I was old enough to work. That last part has probably been more important than my level of skill ever was. I was lucky. I hit the ground running. So I can’t really remember a time where design or art of some sort wasn’t already my “career” (in my mind, I had an art career when I was four). It took quite a few years before I understood that I could technically have other jobs.

That said, my first paid jobs were photo editing ones that I got through my parents, not illustration. They were touch-ups, extending, cropping, resizing, masking… Those things that Photoshop often can do on its own now (or at least streamline) but couldn’t when I started almost 20 years ago (though PS and I have been friends for almost 30). Eventually, I got to do small illustrations for the same publications I had edited photos for, as well as some others. These kinds of illustrations still constitute a large part of my work hours, though in greater numbers and larger batches. They aren’t the flashiest, but they pay well. I also still work with my parents often. We’re all self-employed, but it’s really a family business setup at the core.

Moving outside of my inherited network…: I got my table top RPG-jobs by becoming part of the Swedish indie and semi-indie TTRPG scenes, which aren’t very big. It was straightforward to be visible enough and many people had their own (often tiny) projects that needed illustrations. Some of them contacted me. I think a not insignificant portion of the Swedish TTRPG game designers know who I am now, but I started small. Role-playing is one of my biggest hobbies, so networking came naturally. In my experience, these are flashier pictures to make, but rarely pay well (with some glorious exceptions). Anyway: If you have a specific field you want to work in, get involved in that field. There’ll probably be more people who want illustrations than people who illustrate in it.

Then there’s the concept art. I worked as a concept artists for Ubisoft Massive for a few years, and got this job partly through the game developer school (The Game Assembly) that I went to and partly because of my skills, I guess. But TGA and its proximity to Massive was instrumental. Game art is the only profession I have a formal education in.

So, when I started “officially”, I was already in a pretty good situation for it. Another important factor in my case, I think, is that I’m comfortable with many illustrator-adjacent disciplines as well, since the “packaging” or context of an illustration has always interested me. I use Adobe Illustrator and InDesign every week. Sometimes I do design work (layouts, logotypes, powerpoint presentations, annual reports, diagrams…), and I often do the in-betweens (infographics. Icons, patterns, other kinds of logotypes…). I prefer illustration and the in-betweens, but being open to branching out has given me more clients and, as a result, the ability to choose more freely which jobs I accept.

Either way. It’s really helped me to know a little something about all parts of a project, planning phase to phinished product. It makes it easier to talk to everyone involved, whatever their position and profession – programmer or printer. I know how to make a book from start to finish. It’s neat.

And, as you can see, there’s a lot of luck involved here and even if I know when I started getting paid, I can’t really say when I started developing the skills and the network I needed. That’s been a life-long process. And, of the two, I think the network has been more important for landing jobs than the depth of any particular skill of mine (though the variety of them might have helped). The more people who know you, the easier it’ll be, and that number of people will grow with the number of jobs you do. And I might as well add that physical meetings have worked better for me than just online contact. It’s easier to remember someone you’ve met, even if it was just for a few seconds.

And to finish off, I’ll add a few work samples that differ from what I generally post on Tumblr, since the ability to work in many styles has also benefitted me:

(Don’t let the text in the yellow box fool you. It’s Swedish lorem ipsum.)

[s-pyder]

🕷️uzlolzu🕷️

[xhakhal]

Me and @uzlolzu​ made our own ORIGINAL CLOSED SPEICES (do not steal). They are called Sirrklis (one sirrkli, two sirrkles, three or more sirrklis) and here are the numbered and signed original nineteen. ADOPT THEM! Get original art sent to your mailbox - break the 4th wall! Only here can you get super original round content! Be there - or be square!

$5 for a lonely sirrkli! $7 for the duos! (Look closely - #3, Rulli & Bolli, is a unique COLLAB!)

Add $1 for shipping YOUR ORIGINAL SIRRKLI to you in Sweden, $5 for international!

Email stressboll@gmail.com or tumblr msg me to adopt and get payment info!

And remember! Closed! Do not steal! NO FAN CHARACTERS ALLOWED.

The following picture is a serving suggestion. Frames and mats not included in list price.

....

Okay but seriously.

Me and @uzlolzu​ grew up on Deviantart, and late last night we thought about different dA trends through the ages, and our pet peeves with some of them. And then we made some cute commentary and splashed paint all over the living room, making quality original content. You’ll probably get the most out of these if you know Swedish but I hope they’re at least cute to the rest of you too!

[evanebon]

- 5/15/2018 So I had only doodled 4 faces when I went to bed at like 2am... Doodling is really fun when your tired and feel like drawing. I ended up just scrolling through @uzlolzu’s art tag for a while a attempting to redraw his stuff but not really caring if it turned out different if it looked ok

[zannyblogging]

Man...I have felt like utter shite today. So began drawing my feelings via Cain (left) of how I’ve felt tonight after feeling a little, less shite, but still shite.

I then of course had to draw his twin? Other self? the cocky version of him Anthony (right) because why not. I should draw these pair more often, I forgot how fun they are to draw. 

Commissions are open HERE

Webcomic | Nuzlocke | Twitter | FA

Patreon | Donate | Commission | DA

[strangebiology]

My edit of this skeleton by 17th-Century Anatomist Govert Bindloo. It's just some wings and scapulas without a lot of interesting detail. Luckily scapula kind of just float on the rib cage so they don't need to connect that much, but I definitely could have put more effort into squeezing them in. Maybe with more wings, one would need layers of scapuli, or very small ones, to all fit.

My edit of Satan Arousing the Rebel Angels by William Blake, an illustration from Paradise Lost. I added the six wings and gave him a total of 8 pecs, one her arm/wing, but as predicted, they just kind of look like abs.

Note, that the two artists I mentioned are here on Tumblr! @uzlolzu created Thoughts on Wings and @squidlife-crisis created the gif. Go show them some appreciation! The latter also did a whole book on angel anatomy, Angelus Vincens (physical copy) or here on Kofi.

There is also a fun-looking book called The Resurrectionist involving a fictional anatomist who creates a "Grey's Anatomy of Mythical Beasts."

My vid on (an interpretation of) the anatomy of seraphim angels. Check the reblog for notes and links.

[aeroknot]

I was just coming by to say how much I loved your Beluga Inuk Merwarrior!! She’s amazing and it’s absolutely wonderful to see new designs like her amongst the various other Merfolk!! Well done indeed :)

THANK YOU for such kind words! no shade to other artists but yes i felt there was a void in the genre, and tho the words ‘ecstatic’ and ‘overjoyed’ still don’t totally convey my feelings they’re close to describing the thrill it is to see her design so enthusiastically received, and perhaps finding herself a slightly influential place amongst other merfolk out there :)

and hehe, merwarrior! yes! and grandmerma, mermatriarch, grannymaid, inuk eldermerm! so many people are interpreting so many aspects and expressing curiosity and relating to her in their unique ways and that is the dream for an artist inching into character design

and i want to take a minute to say i’m very grateful for all the feedback i’ve received from Indigenous bloggers! i hold your comments in high regard and it is humbling and rewarding to be able to offer something that makes you smile!

[lammergeared]

uzlolzu replied to your post “How do people even find my blog”

I don't play WoW, but I'm _pretty_ sure I found you through a reblog from daggmar? A friend recommended them to me some time ago, so I browsed the blog for a while, found your stuff, cried a little because it's so nice and followed... I think? Sounds about right.

Am.............................flattered

[arkt-nehrim-archive]

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH

https://www.deviantart.com/uzlolzu/art/Thoughts-on-Wings-180464319

https://www.deviantart.com/blue-hearts/art/Winged-People-Anatomy-Muscles-495419088

https://www.deviantart.com/blue-hearts/art/Winged-People-Anatomy-Bone-Structure-390427501

[uzlolzu]

I'm probably missing something obvious but I noticed where you'd mentioned having a patreon and I can't find a link to it anywhere? (I'm on mobile)

Ah, sorry. I'm bad at remembering links.

Here you go. I'm uzlolzu pretty much everywhere, really.

[gavinosbornedrors]

Wednesday Update

Bird wing anatomy practice from earlier in the month. I had to draw bird wings in a certain pose for a project I’ve been hacking away at, and then realized I did not know how to properly draw bird wings. So I stopped that and did these over a few days.

Here are tutorials/anatomy breakdowns I found really helpful:

Tiamate on DeviantArt.

Alithographica.

Uzlolzu on DeviantArt.

Also I referred to submori_521′s art a lot - they draw really, really good wings. Like hot damn.

[sambadgerowart]

Really proud of these cuties. =w=  Saw a post by @uzlolzu and really liked some of the exaggerated hairstyles, so I wanted to try.

Also, I’ve just been really needing to draw cute girls. ;w;

[xhakhal]

So I just had surgery and now I’m recovering. It’s going all right I think!

[evanebon]

- 4/05/2018

So I exercised more yesterday than any other day this year. I played a little over 6 hours of Dance Dance Revolution (2 three hour sessions)… so I’m sore now

[zannyblogging]

I'd love to hear about your artistic inspirations! What inspired you to draw as a child? How has your style changed from the until now?

What got me started drawing as a child was actually my school teacher.

I was like 3? I have no idea why she sat me down at the end of class before break but she did and showed me a book with a boy riding the back of an elephant and said “Draw this Jenny.”

So I grabbed a pencil and some paper and began drawing it, not tracing: didn’t realise that was an option but didn’t do it.

Anyway I began drawing, and break ended, but I didn’t notice, the teacher tried to tell me to come back to class and I can finish the picture later, but…I ignored her. She tried for like 5 minutes apparently until she had to go get the head master in to get him to make me stop drawing.

apparently they tried for like 10 extra minutes but…I didn’t notice them? I was too busy drawing, so he told her to let me be and to teach the others.

Once I finished the drawing I showed her and apparently the school was so damn impressed, I ended up in the fucking newspaper.

But this is where things start getting a little…Sad. I began drawing like all the time, whenever I could, so much so that…My teachers weren’t teaching me anything. Even when I tried to learn they would tell me to go to the back of the class and to just draw.

So because of that I couldn’t read, write or do maths until I was 13.

Another thing that helped fuel my creativity and art was a British show called Art Attack hosted by Neil Buchanan

I watched this damn show RELIGIOUSLY, so much so that…Neil taught us how to make flip book animations!

And he taught us that animation was a job adults could do. So from the age of like 4-5 I was set. “I want to be an animator.”

The amount of times I had to explain what an animator was to my teachers and other adults when I was like 4-7 was stupid lol.

But seriously, I mainly just copied drawings up until I was 10, then I began experimenting and trying to draw original stuff, but it wasn’t by much at all, it wasn’t actually until I met @uzlolzu through some Dragonball fanart she did, and we became friends that she began kicking my arse, in a good way, to start drawing more original content and creations, even if they were fanarts, so long as they weren’t copied from pre-existing pieces, y’know?

I was enthralled by anime because of how pretty it looked and the stories were over arching plots, but also because, the first anime (That I realised was anime) I fell in love with was Pokemon, we received the anime first in England before the games, and I saw the first episode. My granddad began getting me ANYTHING Pokémon related, keychains, cards, the games WHICH I DIDN’T KNOW WERE A THING.

So because of my Granddad too I fell in love with the style and, yeah I began drawing anime first, along with @uzlolzu‘s help with trying to well not make it look sucky lmao.

I owe a fucking lot to @uzlolzu, my granddad, Neil Buchanan and my teacher from school like. You wouldn’t bloody believe how much I owe these people so much.

Hell if I ever do get a job in the animation industry, I really want to send a letter to Neil Buchanan explaining all of this and thanking him from the bottom of my heart.

Sorry I rambled, I just…

I just love everyone who ever pushed me to do my art and I love those folks so much for being essentially the pivotal points in my artistic life.

I owe them everything and more.

Thank you.

[bitch-gripe-complain]

Swan wings for you. Based the design off your icon

I traced it from the wing diagram by uzlolzu

I should have wings and be able to kill people w them