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Maya Wild
To be given the ‘Maya Wild’ treatment must be quite an honour. Being immortalized by her is the delight of many a famous face who have been delicately sketched in her unique lo-fi way. Having drawn the good and the bad she even makes the ugly look less so. The London based Illustrator and Art Director’s work has graced the pages of magazines worldwide and as a result sees her become increasingly busy with commissions and collaborations as the weeks go by. Along with exhibitions in Paris, London and Tokyo she also designs fabric patterns and album cover artwork yet still manages to fit in working on animations for a documentary feature film to be released next year.
Please introduce yourself and tell us how you got into illustration?
I didn't set out to be an illustrator. I always drew a lot when I was younger but I ended up doing a degree in fine art and specialized in photography and installation work. When I finished this I started drawing again and really enjoyed it. I sent some of my drawings to magazines and luckily they got published. I still do photography and I try to use my own photographs as reference for my drawings wherever possible.
How would you describe your style?
My style is hands on, traditional craft. I use pencils, coloured pencils, scissors, glue and felt tips. I’m really into the lo-fi, handmade image.
Can you describe the process behind your work?
The process is different for each commission. When I first started out doing Illustration I was very constrained by each clients briefs, but now that I have become more experienced and confident I often get commissions where I art direct and have full control. This makes it much more fun. Recently I worked on a fashion story for a magazine that was all handmade cardboard sets with no drawings at all and at the moment I’m doing a project where my drawings are being animated for a film. The great thing about illustration is that it’s such a wide area and can be taken anywhere. It’s also important if you are an Illustrator to not be constrained to one style, so that it keeps it interesting for you and your clients.
What are your major influences?
It’s very difficult to make money and have a successful career doing something creative without going mainstream and commercial. What inspires me most are people that are successful yet have kept a strong sense of individuality, like the rapper Amanda Blank, the filmmaker and artist Miranda July and the Illustrator Julie Verhoeven.
What soundtrack do you work to?
I always have music on while I’m working. Everything from rap to electro to classical. I also listen to the radio a lot. I’ve even started following The Archers.
What are your thoughts on contemporary illustration?
Right now Illustration is being used more than ever on television, in magazines, on album cover artwork. So it’s an exciting time to be an Illustrator.
What's the best brief you've had to work on and why?
At the moment I'm working on an animation project with the artist Lung (the partner in our drawing team The boos). It’s a really silly, fun brief and its great animating the drawings and seeing them come alive on the screen. I’ve also just done a cover for Nylon Magazine in Japan for their 3rd anniversary edition so that was very exiting.
What would be your dream brief?
I really would love to do more music album cover artwork and I would love to do an ad campaign for someone like Marc Jacobs.
www.mayawild.com
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