0 Illustrator Supriya "Sho'nuff Love" Under The Spotlight

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Supriya, also known as "Sho'nuff Love" is an illustrator from Sydney, Australia who has always been known as: "the artist in class" as a kid. with a passion for 1950's vintage cartoons and advertisements, she perfectly combines great colors with unique creativity - Lets have a chat with her!

Welcome to Think Smart Blog.Would you Introduce yourself and tell us more about your art and what made you become an Illustrator?

Hey! Thanks for having me - my name is Supriya, but I represent my artwork as Sho'nuff Love.
I've loved drawing since I was very young, I had always been known as the artist in the class, always trying to redraw Disney and Warner Bros. cartoons.
Ever since I discovered Adobe Illustrator in college, as I started using it in my own time, I started to develop a style and it just became something I loved to do.
I focus mainly on 1950s cartoons and advertisements, I love illustrating woodland creatures, monsters and robots - anything really that appeals to kids.



Your illustrations have great color combinations. and are very iconic The colors are powerful without being overwhelming, Where do you get that balance?

I do a lot of research on 1950s cartoons and am influenced a lot by other artists. I try to use palettes that are soft and easy on the eye but try to keep that whimsical feel. Looking at vintage cartoons and advertisements help me to keep on track.

Is there anything you are currently working on? Have you ever thought of illustrating for kids?

I will be doing a book soon based on one of my favorite characters "The Green Leaf Monster"
My main goal is to get a few books published and to get some prints out there for people to buy. The "Inspire Me Alice" series was a good project for me - it gave me a lot of attention with the movie being released around the same time.



What do you consider the biggest improvements and pitfalls of your career as an artist ?

I think what really started it off for me was creating the monthly newsletters for Bush Australia, it really made me focus on my artwork more and to be disciplined with certain projects. It got me focused on a deadline every month and really helped me to learn more about commercial work.
I think as I go along I learn/pick up new things. I think if I just stay true to my ideas and creativity I can't go wrong.
One thing I think I can definitely be doing better is promoting my artwork and being out and about in the art community and getting more contacts.



What do you feel are the most important skills for a Illustrator to have/develop?

Imagination! you need to be able to let your mind wonder and day dream sometimes, you need to have creative ideas and to be optimistic about those ideas, you need to have patience and understanding, as sometimes what's in your head doesn't always come out right or how you pictured it to be, but you try to use it to your advantage and make what you can of it.
I never push myself to draw - if I'm not in the mood then I won't force myself. I can go weeks without drawing, and then just have this sudden urge to get on the computer, and that's when the best pieces are made and often quite quickly too.

Do you have any favorite websites for interacting with others in the Illustration community? (flickr, twitter etc)

I love networking on Facebook - I get to interact with other artists and get their opinions and they do the same with me, sometimes I get comments on certain things that I didn't even consider when I was drawing, its always great to get feedback.
I love uploading news on illustrationmundo.com and 5oup.com



What is the one lesson that you learned the hard way that you wish someone had told you about when you got started doing Illustrations?

To be honest I wouldn't want someone to tell me a thing about Illustrating! I love finding out everything to do with illustrating in my own time - I think you grow better as an artist when you pick up things yourself - you learn how to deal with the mistakes and I feel like I've accomplished something knowing I've overcome those certain obstacles

Who would you consider to be the biggest illustrator that inspired on your career?

There are a few illustrators I really look up to, Amanda Visell is a big one - I love how she works with animals and her ideas are so fun and crazy - she's really got an imagination.
I love love love Nate Wragg - his pieces are so magical and make you really want to be there - I'm a big fan of 3D animation movies and I love the illustrations in the end credits - they truly resemble the cartoons Mary Blair used to produce - who is my ultimate idol! :)

What are the tools you couldn’t live without? (software, time/task-management apps, pen/paper, online etc…)

A Mac, Adobe Illustrator and my brain...


What piece of advice you would like to give to illustrators out there?

Just to do what's in your head - keep your ideas true to you - don't draw what others want you to draw otherwise your style will never develop as you grow.



where can we find you online?
www.shonufflove.blogspot.com
http://www.facebook.com/people/Shonuff-Love/680994936
and coming soon.. www.shonufflove.com