Trickster happily continues its illustrator series. This time, dive into the world of Hmmm Studio's creative force, Helene Vetik. Discover her thoughts on illustration and explore her works!
Your first drawings as a kid?
I remember that I was drawing a lot, but not anything specific. One memory is that I drew a naked girl standing over a potty and pissing into it, got scolded for this one, I think I was four at the time. I always liked to draw feelings, faces and random patterns.
Is illustration a tool or an art form and why?
Illustration is a tool, that has an ability to become art depending on the receiving end. Art can never be monopolised to a certain technique or a tool, it just is an can be anything.
What do you think about when you draw?
Often abstract thoughts, like what if there was a head with just legs for a body. Or very generic stuff like outfits I can put together based on 5 items I get to pack for a trip. But mostly my head gets clear when I doodle so nothing at all, I might sketch a full page of cat faces without a single thought besides oh that's a funny cat.
How did you find your style?
My style have been forever changing. Like when I was little, I really wanted to draw as good as my mom, then in teenage years as good as manga that I read, now later on I started to dig postmodernism and Memphis Milano movement so my stuff transformed into something very meta and structural with an infantile vibe. Once an illustrator-dude told me, that if I don't stick to one specific style, I will never find success in my professional life. This made me feel like shit and I've been returning to that thought ever so often. But fortunately I decided that I can allow myself to draw however the fuck I want. So no style here in my opinion - you have the right to disagree.
Color or line?
Color.
Character or situation?
Character.
Your favourite artists?
I love sensitive and interesting artists like Merike Estna, Sirje Runge and Kadri Rääk. From old but still alive people I like Jean-Charles de Castelbajac and from not so alive I keep on being facinated by Ettore Sottsass. My favorite artists make art that makes me happy on the first glance, I get a familiar heart buzz when I see it.
Your favourite cartoons? Name at least 3.
Adventure Time. 90's anime in general from Paprika to Memories and of course Sailor Moon. Fionna and Cake too. From recent ones Scavengers Reign and Midnight Gospel shook me up properly, if you want to feel alive go for these ones.
Your favourite places in Estonia and the world?
My favorite place in Estonia is my bathroom, in the hot tub and where one´s head goes from there. The best places are often memories of the places and in reality are never as cool as they used to feel. So many of my places only exist in the synapses that get triggered while bathing. Right now I have nice memories with tiny bars in Kalamaja, with Kalarand seashore, Brick Coffee roastery. Being tipsy with a friend at a summer festival is a great place too but it can be pretty much anywhere. As for travelling Trinca and Esquina da Fe in Lisbon, Bun Cafe and botanical gardens in Malaga centro, tv-series bratty life style in the New York with my person Sauma.
Advice for beginners?
Look around you, an eye has to travel. If your mind and soul has no essence the illustrations might turn out sucky, even if they are well drawn. Draw all the time and every day, train hard in somewhat realistic style first, and then when the gimmick is mastered, just drop it and use your intuition instead. In my humble opinion there are printers to print photos, illustrators can do better than mindlessly duplicate what already exists. Do weird heartfelt shit a machine couldn't do and do it a lot. Show your work, don't be timid, be your own biggest fan, imposter syndrome will take you nowhere.
What you need to have a productive work day?
I need to have one of the two things.
1)good night sleep and a great morning or
2) a deadline fire up my ass.
Do you think of drawing as of work or as of fun?
Work is a construct, nothing is work, we just make exchanges, if you can exchange your drawings for goodies it's a benefit, you can call it work but I won't judge you if you don't.
Have you ever been stuck creatively and how have you dealt with it?
Option one is to sit down, take a piece of paper and start to sketch faces of funny people, creatures, dogs until I go to pee and an idea strikes. Option two is when I'm stuck I tend to give myself a breather and just lay in bed for a day feeling sorry for myself, then when the room goes dark and it's already an evening, I eat something really really good, watch a horror or a scifi movie with people who have it much worse than me and solutions to my problems arrive in my sleep the same night. Important tip is not to do this lay in bed feeling sorry ritual for more than for one day, as it will be called depression then.
How do you combine different skills - design and drawing - and professions of yours? Is it helpful or sometimes they become competitive with each other?
Everything that I've learned in my life has come into fruition the way that is the closest to a superpower I wanted as a kid. Sometimes it feels adhd'esque exhausting, but it would be boring otherwise. And I sometimes tell people that I don't know how to do something when I'm really just overwhelmed, so I don't have do it and can rest a bit more. I used to code web for myself, and had to lie that I didn't know how to code at my old job, because they would've enslaved me with the rest of my life with the web designer's tasks otherwise. I guess that means that I manage my skills and keep some of them on the backseat for when the right time comes.
Please make a drawing of Trickster as a fantasy cartoon character!
