Interview #5: Zuzana Čupová’ Folkloric Characters
Discover Zuzana's work and thoughts on character design, traditional art, and style
Welcome back! It’s a new Sunday, and that means a new interview with an extraordinary new artist.
As an artist myself, I know how difficult it is to find guidance in the art industry. Through these interviews, I want you to receive valuable information and take inspiration from new artists and their personal stories.
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Zuzana is a freelance illustrator from the Czech Republic. I discovered her works in one of the CDQ magazines and immediately fell in love with her lively and pointed characters. She draws both people and anthropomorphic animals, as well as fairy tale-ish characters, dragons and fan art. You will be amazed by her colors, textures and designs, and her majestic use of different traditional media. In this interview you can find some valuable gems that will help you better understand the work behind a character.
✦ Hi Zuzana and thank you for joining ForArtists. Could you tell us what was your artistic path that led you to where you are today?
Hello! Thank you for inviting me!
For as long as I remember I enjoyed drawing. At the age of 12, I discovered manga comics on the internet (there weren't any mangas published in Czech at that time) which gave me the motivation to draw more (that is - to draw more Naruto and One Piece fanarts). Still, I never thought of it as something I'd like to do as a job.
When I was 15 I had to choose where to go to high school, by then my older sister was in her third year at art high school studying graphics and animation. As I wasn't sure what I wanted to do I decided to follow her example. It was such a good time at high school, I found a lot of people with similar interests and also I found that I really enjoy doing and learning about art. There, I also fell in love with animation, especially old Czech animation, and decided that's what I wanted to do! So, I went to university to study animation, and to not be a burden for my parents I had to start making money by doing art commissions (I was posting my work on social sites since high school).
I spent six years studying, made a few short films, had a few tiny little comics published, and illustrated my first book. Studies finished, I went on an internship at a little studio in Oslo and then was hired to work on a movie called Robot Dreams. That made me spend a year in Madrid working as a posing artist. It was the first time I was an employee and not just a freelance and it was quite nice and comfortable. Now I'm back home trying to focus more on illustrations as a change from animation. I'm freelance again and glad to have my own workflow although making money is a bit of a hassle.
✦ Why did you choose “suwi "as your nickname? What does it represent to you?
Uh, I really should have changed it already but I've been using it for some 13 years now so it's a bit hard to get rid of. It's just a silly nickname I got at secondary school, made by some strange transformation of my name. Nowadays I rather go under the name of Zuzana (that is under my actual first name)
✦ Today's art industry often requires the use of digital tools, and this can lead artists to think that they can no longer work with their traditional art. In your experience, what are the job opportunities for traditional artists and what advantages can they bring to the table?
I can understand why many artists prefer digital tools as it makes many things easier. I just really dislike working on a computer (as an animator I still have to do it often). Of course, it's useful for some things, layouts or sketching for example. But the computer also has an infinite amount of options and I find that so overwhelming and exhausting.
I never really thought about the job opportunities as I genuinely use traditional media just because I enjoy it more. I think the advantage could be that nowadays it's not so common to be good at some of the traditional techniques and it can make you stand out...?
✦ How do you break down your personal projects to keep them on track?
Oh no, I'm extremely bad at that! There is no system for me whatsoever. The only thing I do is writing little notes with things I want to/I should do when I have the time and pining them to a noticeboard. I really dislike when a project drags itself for too long, I much rather work super intensely on one thing until it's finished and then I start with another.
✦ What recurring themes and subjects do you most enjoy exploring in your art?
That would be my favorite books and things from folklore or mythology. I'm very fond of classic literature and when I fall in love with some author I keep getting back to their books again and again. Especially Tolkien, Pratchett, Wodehouse, Austen, or Brontë sisters (haha, I like English literature a lot). Czech folklore has been my big interest for years and I'm still inspired by its art, tales, and poems.
Also "love" is a recurring theme as I'm quite terribly soppy.
✦ What exercises would you recommend to improve character design?
The best thing to do is people-watching. Trying to find how and why people differ from each other. It's often in little details but these details can add a lot of personality to your characters. Sketching random people (on the train for example) is good too.
Another fun exercise is to take a geometrical shape and try to fit your design in it, that can help you simplify the shape of the character which is very useful when you need a simple and easy-to-use character (for example for 2D animation).
✦ Where do you find inspiration for the character’s outfit design, patterns, and colors?
Mostly in books, it's easier for me to find unusual ideas in them than on the internet. Last Christmas I received A. Racinet's The Costume History book. It's absolutely wonderful and packed with beautiful and unusual clothes, that's my biggest inspiration this year. Another inspiration for both outfit designs and patterns are Czech and Slovak folk costumes. Some of the prettiest can be found in Karol Plicka's photos. And when I need a more modern outfit I just draw whatever I like or what I wear or something funny I've seen someone wearing.
✦ Your colors are soft and vibrant but at the same time well balanced, do you follow any rules for choosing colors before you paint or do you just go with your gut?
The only rule I follow is to use each color in more places on the picture, I think that's what makes them look balanced. But of course, if there is some part of the painting you want to make stand out then it makes sense to use it just in that one place.
Also, my palette is very limited, I have a few colors I like and I mix all the other shades from them. I have this big watercolor set that I got when I was 18. Many colors are still almost full only indigo, red, browns, and ochre I'm buying repeatedly.
✦ Artists are constantly struggling to find their own voice, do you think style comes from conscious decisions or just a bunch of practice and time? Could you pinpoint the steps that led you to the style you have today?
I'm convinced that style isn't something that can come from a conscious decision. I don't think it works like that. The best artists can be recognized even if they change styles and style isn't something you can set up and always keep that way. Or I guess you can do that, but it'd just make you stay stuck in one place which can't be fun neither for the artist nor his fans. Also, you can't make every project the same, new subjects need a new style. At least that's how I feel almost every time I draw - like I have to find a way to do it all again. I guess it would be easier if I had some rules and just blindly followed them but where is the fun in that?
I think style comes from your personality, from things you like or dislike to do, from things that influenced you as a child, from your inspirations (best if they are as various as possible so you don't end up copying someone), from your studies and job and interest and people around you. Struggling to find your own voice sounds kind of strange to me, there aren't two same people so there shouldn't be two same styles either. Maybe the problem is that sometimes people are afraid to accept their own personality or they like someone's work so much that they stubbornly want to do the same? But I mean I like so many artists and I wish I'd draw like all of them and so I probably end up merging them all into something that I do. Still each time I see something pretty I wish I could do that too and I'm never quite happy with my own work, I just don't feel like I can influence what I do much. I can do my best and influence about 50% of the drawing but the rest is pure coincidence.
✦ What are your future projects and goals?
I'm now more or less working on three books, let's see how it'll turn out, haha! One is from an author I collaborated with a few years ago. Another was written for me by my sister (I'm very much looking forward to it) and one is my own project. Then I finally have to finish paintings on kitchen furniture for my friend, that's one of my most beloved projects.
As for my goals... I don't like to set up any huge goals as I feel I'd only be disappointed and you never know what the future will bring. I'm a very "que sera, sera" type of person. But I'd like to finally open an e-shop with my prints and works as I've been promising for years.
✦ One last tough question. If you could choose just one color shade for your art, what would it be?
Just one color? Well, most of my things nowadays are just black and white anyway. But I believe I'd choose the shade of walnut ink, rich deep brown.
✦ You can see Zuzana's art on her Instagram and tumblr ✦