How did you become an artist?

I became an artist because of my anxiety disorder. Even though I studied Fine Arts at college and sketched and painted since I was little, I never thought about working as an artist or an illustrator. I worked for more than 15 years in the graphic design industry but when my anxiety problem bursted, I decided to come back to drawing as a therapy. I was very rusty at first, that's why I decided to create a journal of my improvements on Instagram, and then I realized how much I enjoyed digital drawing. It remembered my childhood, drawing non-stop all day, and I started thinking about becoming a professional illustrator.

Where do you get inspiration?

I find inspiration in the small things, like movies I've watched, a song I recently listened to or color palettes I like. Also, Pinterest is a great source of inspiration when I need something more visual, like poses, hairstyles or outfits. But basically, I can find inspiration everywhere hehe...

What's your hardware setup?

I work in an Intel(R) Corel (TM) i5-2400 3.10GHz with 16GB of RAM PC, nothing fancy and very very laggy when I run some heavy software like Premiere Pro and last year I bought an XP-PEN artist 24 Pro to work more professionally in Clip Studio Paint. I also have an iPad Pro 11inch where I love tho sketch in my spare time.

What do you like best about Clip Studio Paint?

It's very difficult to get tight to one feature, but I will say that, aside from all the amazing drawing features, I love that you can go to the ASSETS and download all the materials you need so easy, it's a huge time saver for me.

How long does it take you to make a single illustration?

Every drawing is different and basically, the time will depend on the level of detail and color I want to add. A flat color portrait can take me from 1 hour or two and more detailed illustrations, like scenes, can be more than 12 hours.

Would you consider Clip Studio Paint an industry tool?

Sure! In fact, I use CSP for all my client projects right now. I think it has everything that an artist or illustrator need for working professionally. It's true that at first, you relate CSP to the manga industry but once you try it, you understand how versatile the tools are and how well they fit with every art style.

Where can we follow your work?

You can follow my work on Instagram (www.instagram.com/adesignerlife_) Twitter (www.twitter.com/crisgv) and recently I opened a TikTok account too (https://www.tiktok.com/@adesignerlife).

*** Cristina is doing a #Giveaway with us! Reach her post on Instagram, follow her, follow @graphixly and leave a comment. Winners of Clip Studio Paint Pro will be announced on March 22, good luck! ***