Maksym Kopylov: illustrator interview

It is difficult for me to answer who I am and what I do. My professional activity is illustration or visualisation. This means I am a liar. I make dreams come true only in the world of imagination (more accurately in the world of images). The most important part of the illustration for me is the story. In general, I like to tell stories and sometimes the process of creation becomes a story too. I create all my stories in different ways and styles. I try to find unique shapes for each work or series of works. All my life I have lived in Ukraine and most of my work was created here for the local market.

I have stolen the idea for my image from my friend. I’ve developed the idea and transformed it into something brand new. I tried to find any free spot in my schedule to draw it. I was sketching everywhere: while drinking coffee, going by taxi, travelling by rail or playing with my children. All these moments have made an impact on my image.

The main goal was to draw images with eye-catching shapes using plenty of lines. The challenge I faced was to resist closing the eyes and falling asleep because I was drawing a lot of strokes. And my muscles became tired. I’m kidding it was fun. I learned a very important thing, that I can't describe with words, you can just observe it. In general it’s about representing lights and shapes combination only with line.

I use very different software. I like doing experiments and trying new software that I can find. I believe in the future of technology. Sometimes I use different applications for work and personal projects. However they are all connected and affect each other. It’s essential for me to divide work from personal projects as it gives the opportunity to be a different person at the same time. It helps to stay fresh.

I’ve never specifically thought about updating my portfolio and just worked. In my case, my portfolio consists of work orders. Sometimes I practice in something and it becomes the series too. Sometimes I draw sketches when I travel and it also becomes a portfolio upgrade. From the first days of my career, I was fortunate to draw nothing specific for my portfolio. My advice is just work.

I am not an active participant in social groups. Work takes up most of my time; all that remains is for the family. I look at Artstation and Behance in search of new artists and interesting ideas. I read professional literature, a lot of which is from 3dtotal. It's trivial, but for me the #inktober is the most popular hashtag.

I have many different plans for the future. Reality often changes that. I want to create something new, surprise the audience and tell my story that will attract the attention of people. Sounds are important for storytelling and mood. It will be probably an animation. It should be a non-commercial animation because it gives me more freedom in my creativity.

It's difficult for me to say who my favorite artist is. It greatly depends on time and mood. Klimt, Giger, Bazilevich, Mobius fascinated me when I was a student. I admired Bosch, Werner Klemke, Soyfertis Leonid, and Monet during my early career. I became more interested in the contemporaries when I understood the history of the art as far as I could. I'm following for interesting works authors such as Jean-Baptiste Monge, Katsuya Terada, or Nicolas Nemiri.

Dracula has sharp teeth that tore his lips

I plan to keep working and be different. Maybe I'll be more active on social networks if I find free time. It is the time of communication and information sharing. Maybe I'll start sharing my experience on YouTube, I have something to tell and show. I hope the future will be more interesting for everyone and me too.