Dharme

What inspired you to get into the arts and creating illustrations?

“I have been painting and drawing since I was 11 years old. I paint to calm down. It helps with anxiety or feeling overwhelmed. I paint to think. So I wasn’t really inspired by anything or anyone. It was a necessity.”

Did you have any influential role models (if so, who?).

“I really enjoy Beyoncé. I love her dedication to her craft and how much she strives to be the best at what she does. She is a big inspiration to me. My painting style over the years has grown to imitate the methods of Daniel Clark, A South African digital artist and illustrator. When I started to learn how to paint on computers and tablets, I was heavily inspired by his methods and use of colors to express moods.”

What is your creative process and what are the most important things you keep in mind when beginning a new project? Are there any recurring themes/issues you like to address within your work?

“One thing about me is that I will paint anywhere. As long as I have my iPad with me, it doesn’t matter what’s going on around me, I will always find time to paint because it is the thing I love the most. So when I begin a new project, it is usually influenced by what is going on around me or in my life at that moment. The most important thing is that the painting represents how I feel and I have to like it and be proud of it enough to show other people. For example, if I paint someone I know, it is because they mean a lot to me at that moment.”

“I mostly paint black people or people of color because I remember growing up when I would try to get better at drawing, I would look up other drawings online and it would only be drawings of white people. I wasn’t aware enough of myself to think further about it so when I learned how to draw people, I learned how to draw white people, white features and I told white stories. Which is funny now that I think about it because I was born and raised in Nigeria and I started art at 11 years old but I never drew an African person till I was 17 or 18. So this is something I’m highly cautious of, I want to represent people that look like me and think like me too.”

What do you enjoy most about your work?

“I enjoy the peace it brings me. Life is not always easy for me so when I paint something and I really really like it, it reminds me of my worth and my abilities. And that is more therapeutic than you could ever imagine.”

What advice would you give to designers starting out or to those designers who are struggling with creative blocks?

“I would say, take inspiration from your surroundings. Look outside and paint what you see so you can remember it when your life changes. Pinterest cannot fix all your art blocks and trust me, your favorite artists are probably doing the same thing. Paint your own life, your room, your family and friends. And if those things are not ‘interesting’ enough to paint, think about why they don’t fit your art criteria and then make it fit. Add things that will change even your perception of your life.”

Any other interesting facts/information we should know about you?

“I’ve always been a writer as well; the combination of both writing and art would be animation. So I would definitely love to go to school to study that. Speaking of school, I have a bachelors degree in political science and international relations. I wish I studied art instead.”