Julian Rentzsch, 33, lives and works in Hamburg as an illustrator and designer. At the age of 18 he started to paint graffiti, and his first commissions as wall designer followed. Later he studied Illustration and Communication Design in his home town of Hamburg. Since 2005, Julian has worked as a freelancer.
How do you approach your work?
I always start with a rough scribble, using a very hard pencil. I then refine this with a softer pencil, and thereafter complete it with an ink pencil, working on the light and shadow to develop it further.
Why do you use rotring pencils?
The rotring fine lead pencils have the advantage that one can use different line widths and degrees of hardness. This creates the strong differentiation, which I need for my work. The same applies to the ink pencils, the flexibility and handling won me over.
Where do you get inspired?
In no particular place, I just keep my eyes open. Often, brief vision sequences spark an idea, which then develop further and become complete during drawing. People, nature and city scenes can inspire me, a photo or a graphic on a blog. I walk a lot or cycle. This way all types of impressions in my environment can influence me.
Do you need silence when you work?
When I create, I listen to music, it also influences me subconsciously. I let my mood dictate what I am going to listen to, not the project.
Have you never been tempted to move to a different city?
No, Hamburg offers me every opportunity to pursue my interests and my profession. I now work with designers from all types of disciplines. We motivate and inspire each other.
www.julianrentzsch.de
Przemek Truściński, born in 1970, lives and works as a freelance cartoonist and illustrator in Warsaw; he signs his work as "TRUST". Truściński studied Graphics at the Academy of Arts in Lodz. Truściński's works are award winning, his comics have been published in numerous anthologies and collected volumes.
What inspires you?
To draw futuristic images, one doesn't always need too much imagination. Here in Warsaw, for example, we have this amazing place, where old, scrapped vehicles and machines are stored. I love this place. If you have a look around there, you will see where the ideas for all the futuristic elements in my drawings originate.
How did your style develop?
I am a child of pop culture, it influenced me tremendously. I have already expressed this during my studies. Furthermore, I grew up with comics and movies like "Star Wars", "Blade Runner" and "Apocalypse Now". I have also always been greatly inspired by books. All these influences are reflected in my creative work.
Cartoons or illustrations – what is the main part of your work?
I mainly draw cartoons and am perceived as a cartoonist, although I do illustrate a lot, too. Either way, I like to express a type of "madness" in the creative process. That is the basic principle of my artistic work.
What role do your pens play?
In order to create this "madness", I need precision, which I can only achieve with precision tools such as the rotring Isograph. They are extremely important to me because this precision further inspires me and enables me to transform ideas into images.
www.trusthead.com
Sena was born in 1982 and lives and works in Istanbul as an artist, graphic designer and fashion designer. Until 2006 she studied at Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design in London. Her work focuses on illustrations, drawings and paintings.
Describe how you approach your work.
Before I begin I look around at what's happening in my surroundings or the world. Then I begin to draw with a pencil and paper. When the sketch is ready, I transfer it onto a larger sheet of paper, and sometimes also onto canvas.
What kind of pens do you use for that?
On paper I like to work with a calligraphy pen and lots of ink. For small detail I use finer pens. On canvas I use oil paints and brushes. If the picture requires it, I transfer the calligraphy onto canvas or use oil paints on paper. I usually mix different techniques and media.
Where do your ideas come from?
Everyday life and the people around me inspire me, particularly the role of women in society. There are all kinds of women in my circle of friends. Each of them has a different cultural and economic background. They are all very strong and they all work for their families. For that reason too, their stories give me a great deal of inspiration.
What role does literature play for you?
I like fantasy novels. I often mix the stories together, and they also influence my work.
McBess, aka Matthieu Bessudo, was born in Cannes in 1984 and is an illustrator and director living in London. Until 2006, the Frenchman studied 3D animation in Arles, before moving to the British capital where he began working at The Mill, the award-winning company specialising in post production and visual effects. The focus of McBess' own work is black and white illustrations and animations. He also plays guitar in his band The Dead Pirates.
How do you go about your work?
I essentially work in two different ways: Either I do the entire illustration on the computer in Photoshop or I use pens and pencils. In this case, I sketch the outline with a pencil, trace it with a rapidograph/isograph technical pen and add in new strokes and detail, whereby I work rather spontaneously and let the pen guide me.
Why do you use rotring pens?
I've tried a lot of different brands but no other brand has this deep black. Also, the sizes are perfect. On the computer, I work with very fine lines to achieve complex and intricate shading. rotring's fine line thicknesses enable me to also do this on paper.
Who or what inspires you?
Everyday life, my friends, my family, probably also my childhood. At the end of the day, it's all about women, food and music. I even find inspiration when I'm surfing the internet or doing things that don't have anything to do with work. Everything is in motion and can inspire me.
Does your commercial work differ from your freelance work?
Less and less so. My work as a director at The Mill also influences my freelance work.
www.mcbess.com
Timo Müller, born in 1980, lives in Frankfurt and studies Industrial Design at the Technical University of Darmstadt. Industrial design includes the design of products that are to be manufactured industrially. He also works as a freelancer for renowned architectural firms and design agencies in Germany.
Darmstadt is known as a city of science. Is it still a source of creative inspiration for you?
Yes, I find the environment here totally inspiring. Art and Design are very present on the Mathildenhöhe in Darmstadt, through the artists' colony and the Ernst Neufert house, for example. Our department is surrounded by parks and museums - we students can work in peace here. Art Nouveau and Bauhaus influences have shaped the city. There are exciting exhibitions to be seen in the Darmstadt Design House, for example an exhibition about the Braun designer Dieter Rams.
How do you go about your work?
I usually start with a sketch. First, I make myself aware of the task and investigate the information that needs to be included in the draft. Knowing what the product must be able to do forms the basis of the design. I then develop the external form gradually through the use of preliminary models and material samples, depending on what kind of project it is.
What do you design?
A walking stick, for example. I wanted to change an object, the form of which already exists, in such a way that it moves away from medical aesthetics and becomes less obvious, more chic. Or perhaps a sledge, which could serve as an attachment to go on a snowboard. When I came up with the idea for this, I moved straight on to sketches.
What kind of pens do you use for sketching?
Usually a ball point pen or a retractable pencil. These allow me to evolve the forms slowly, shade areas with a relatively wide range of shades of grey and draw stronger lines. As I often need lightly-drawn construction lines to use as a basis, I use pens that move across the page smoothly, but with gentle resistance. The happier I am with a drawing, the more I then add shadows and contours using fine liners and if necessary fill in explanations or signs which may indicate imaginary movement.
How did you discover rotring pens?
A few years ago a friend of mine gave me a present of a rotring rapidograph set which he had received from his grandfather, a technical draftsman. I was fascinated by the products, because I had never had such delicate drawing tools in my hand.
Kätlin Kaljuvee, born in 1982, graduated from the Estonian Academy of Arts in Talin in 2006 having studied fashion design. She still lives there today working as a fashion designer and illustrator. She also runs the fashion label "Katyusha as Me" in her home town. Her collections, that she sketches illustrations and fabrics for, are produced exclusively in Estonia.
How did you get into fashion illustration?
When I was growing up Estonia was still a part of the Soviet Union. At that time there were a couple of fashion magazines that had fashion drawings by fantastic illustrators. They influenced me from a young age. When I was three or four I began to draw. During my degree at the Estonian Academy of Arts I decided to focus more on fashion illustration. Several of my teachers encouraged me to develop my own style.
What is your work process?
First, I collect ideas and then I make a collage out of them, an art mood board. Then I make as many sketches as necessary until I've found the right composition that I can continue using. I then transfer this onto bigger, better paper and begin to work with ink, pens and brushes. Afterwards I add colour to it, if it's not meant to be a black and white illustration.
Why do you use the rotring pens?
They fit perfectly in your hands. The black ink is of such high quality that I can draw in whatever shading I need. They allow me to create unique effects and achieve various shades. And I love the ArtPen because it glides so easily and well over the paper.
What inspires you?
The air, my surroundings, my travels, my own thoughts, colours, light, shade and landscapes that I've seen somewhere. Talin is on the Baltic Sea and that also influences my work, because the waves, cold wind and seagulls inspire me.
www.katlinkaljuvee.com
