Samji - Inspiration Can Come Up From Anything and Everything (Illustrator From India)

Well, making a career out of art is a challenging move in itself because it might take quite some time to have a name for yourself. And Illustration is just a subcategory in the vast field of art. I guess I am fortunate to be able to secure myself financially through this platform and I’m grateful for it.

1. Tell us more about your background and journey.

My name is Samji and I’m originally from Kerala, India. Talking about my career, it was a roller coaster ride! I began my venture into the creative field through animation. It was not a particularly successful stint and I had to eventually do a few odd jobs to keep myself afloat. Those were testing times. Then I took up BFA in Applied Arts as a degree course, although I had to drop out from that course in my third year due to some personal reasons, putting a full stop to my formal education.

I went on to try freelance graphic designing but it really wasn’t my cup of tea either– it was only for the sake of earning money. But somewhere in the middle of it all, I had opportunity to do an illustration and absolutely loved the process of it. It also led me to the realization that just because you know to draw doesn’t mean you can become an illustrator. Fortunately, I was lucky enough to switch my career and become an illustrator. Since then, I have been solely working on illustrations alone, without deviating into any other avenues.

2. When did you decide you wanted to be an illustrator?

The realization that I could earn my livelihood by doing what I love and know how to do it made me take up this decision.

3. Where do you get inspired from to create art?

To be honest, I don’t have a specific answer to this question. Inspiration can come up from anything and everything. Sometimes, we might get inspired by something we see everyday when we see it in a particular setting or in a particular way. Although artworks obviously inspire me, seeing artists who are enthusiastic about their work and who keep improving themselves inspire me as well.

4. Is it a financially stable career?

6. What piece of advice would you like to give to future aspiring illustrators?

I myself is still in the learning curve and I believe I do have experiences to collect so I’m not sure if it’s right for me to give a generic advice to a huge community. One thing I’ve noticed though, is that most of the beginners tend to prefer focusing on one particular style than being clear with the basics - which might end up in them missing many other aspects. I think one should get the fundamentals right and try to get a clear understanding of it before being concerned about style.

7. How do you overcome challenges and recover from setbacks?

There are many challenges in the art field, the most common of them being overcoming art block. It’s not possible for someone to be creative all the time and I try to accept this fact. I try to take a break when I think I need one. Earlier, I was not willing to accept this and often faced burnout.

A mistake I did was that even when I did take breaks, it was solely physical. Mentally, I would still think about work that made the art block linger for longer. This approach has worked with regards to my personal projects. As for client work, I try to tackle it by pushing myself by thinking of the satisfaction I get by completing the project.

8. If not this, what would you be doing?

That’s an interesting question.

In the past, I used to be a jack of all trades just to survive. It is a question mark for myself as to what would I be if not this.

9. Which is your favourite book/show and why?

I’m not really an avid reader but I do try here and there to read. The last book I read was Cloud Atlas but it was quite difficult for me to finish it so I looked up for the movie version and finished watching it. I found it interesting because if it’s theme of how an individual can influence another and how we all are connected to each other. As for shows, I don’t often have time to watch. I should probably get better at organising my time so that I can find space for shows as well.