Artist Spotlight: Stef (blondierule)

Today's spotlight artist is Stef from London. This is her nickname as she would rather not give out her full name. She just turned 23 in January.

In her art she uses the name Bigbosspanda which has little to do with her art, however her art speaks for itself. She has been doodling all her life but has only become seriously interested in art in the last 4 to 5 years. Stef believes art is her outlet for girlishness as she is somewhat of a tom boy.

She is inspired to be an artist because she loves what she does. She has a satisfaction in creating something. She has always had a love of vivid colors as well, therefore all signs pointed to being an artist. Even though she loves art and it takes up a lot of her time, she also likes photography and plays around with that when she has time.

Stef is a hobby artist who is also training to be a graphic designer and is hoping that will be her future job. (Let's all cross our fingers.) She works best anywhere except for a desk. She finds sitting at a desk a little too confining. She likes to draw comic type art as it is fun for her to draw, however she mostly loves to draw women because she loves to draw pretty things. She even enjoys designing the clothes for these women.

She prefers to work on her Mac using Photoshop and OC1.1. She believes using a computer gives her more control and creates a much smaller mess. She also uses Copic markers that give beautiful colors. She also plans on using watercolors in the future after she is finished with her design course.

Her favorite artists are too numerous to list. However, a few would be Mucha, Beardsly and any nouveau and pin up style art.

Stef admits she has lots of unfinished work. Some that are commissions of an elf, who looks very much like Liv Tyler. In the future, she plans to draw a piece based on her favorite nostalgic song, Strawberry Fields.

Stef's favorite thing about being an artist is the satisfaction of taking something from start to finish and the end result. She believes that art is very therapeutic. It can take the mind of particular subjects of worry.

Her least favorite thing about being an artist is when something doesn't go as planned and inking (she has very shaky hands).

Stef has never wanted to quit or give up however, she admits that if it was a full-time job she would grow to dislike it and that is why she has chosen to be a graphic designer instead. Graphic designing is still creative but it doesn't interfere with her personal work.

Her message to children is to study something that bring in the money. The easier it is the better. If you are really serious about art then you can dedicate your free time to art and maybe later on take an art course.

Her message to aspiring artists is don't think about the fact that your work isn't as good as others. Don't let it get you down if you don't improve fast enough. Enjoy the process and keep on at it. If you enjoy it and draw enough, then you will improve naturally. Don't be afraid of mistakes. You need to make them to learn! Be prepared to learn a lot of stuff by yourself. Art courses don't teach you everything. Internet tutorials are helpful. You can also find many books available that would help you. She advises against the how to draw manga type of books. Life drawing a superb way to learn the anatomy.

When asked her view point on art usage and the Internet she states, "I do

In her spare time she likes to watch comedies such as Flight of Concords and Scrubs. She also likes to go for walks in the park, play video games and take photographs.

Stef is open for commissions anytime especially when it is drawing others' characters. She doesn't tend to create and sell art however she does sell prints and they range anywhere from $2 to $30 depending on their size.

You can view her art on Deviantart.

Stef's message to our readers is "There are many different styles of art out there, each has it's own special point, try to enjoy all of art - not just the art style you draw. You'll learn so much and find some wonderful stuff."