Interview with Giovanni Gastaldi I Illustrator experience
I met Giovanni at Art Residence in Calabria, Italy. He is young and successful illustrator from Turin.
I pleased him to give interview about his own expierience being creative boy.
1.Giovanni, tell us about your decision to became an illustrator? What did motivate you to choose this profession?
I became an illustrator by vocation. It means that it was not a choice, nor something passive, but a consequence.
When I was young I was very restless and depressed. Now, as then, I had a beautiful head full of ideas and things, but which couldn't be channelled.
I had two things to let off steam: playing music and drawing. One day, an older friend who was a graphic designer noticed my sketches and told me: try being an illustrator, and so I did!
2.What do you like to create the most in illustration sphere ?
I will answer you in a lateral way: relationships.
I think this job, if I didn't have clients and colleagues, would be a bore for me.
I'm realising that what can give real value to a job are relationships.
But I'm not good with relationships really. I'm a bit shy and sometimes I lose myself. But this job is slowly teaching me to come out of my shell!
3. I saw your wonderful editorial illustration. Do you have any advice what should an illustrator to note by making picture for articles?
What I am learning at the moment is to interpret articles and consignments in my own tone of voice.
Some time ago, I tended to interpret articles with the " trendy " tone of voice, but I felt that it did not work very well. When I realised that my irony and my crazy view on things could be the right tone of voice, everything changed. But I didn't discover this on my own, I was told! Because some things are hard to realise on your own. Homework: ask a fellow friend to tell you what ideas he or she likes best.
4. What was your favourite commercial project?
Probably the ceramic cups I made for Alberto Marchetti ice cream shops. I really liked it because it was a project that required a lot of people and skills, coordination and a lot of imagination, because practically no similar project had ever been done before!
5. Do have any plan for finding client?
I have a secret, absurd but it works: Linkedin. Yeah, strange, it would be logical that the best social to find clients is instagram, but actually I have found so many jobs and contacts with linkedin.
I advise everyone to get a good profile and post daily!
6. Which advices you will give for beginners in illustration sphere?
My advice is very simple: reply to emails quickly.
This is obvious advice, but not so much. Many of my clients are super enthusiastic about the fact that I always reply, I don't disappear, and I'm always clear in my content. I guess because many of my colleagues are just 'artists' and end up being unreliable and unprofessional. On the other hand, there are secretaries, art directors, managers, etc. who only need one thing from you: that you are there.
Mach es besonders
I think at this job, if I didn't have
clients and colleagues,
would be a bore for me.
I'm realising that what can give
real value to a job are relationships.
