ASHES 57
Delphine Ettinger aka Ashes57 started freelancing as a graphic designer in September 2003 as she moved to Montreal where the rents are affordable and she could get away without working too hard. In Montreal, she met very good musicians like Frivolous, Stern, Ghislain Poirier, Donzelle, and Amon Tobin. She draws her inspiration from many different sources, amongst the most important are the urban landscape as well as the natural beauty of Canada. She spends the long winter nights doing line drawings and vector graphics for her own art projects.
photo by Sebastien Lebanc
I use black poster markers on white paper to draw a fantasy world."
What are your early influences and how did you become an illustrator? I left my job at a London design firm in June 2004 and decided to go travelling around Europe for a little while. I was so tired of working on company leaflets and very boring print work for financial companies. Even though people liked the work I was doing I found it very hard at the time to express my creativity and to be happy in my position. My plan was to move to Montreal for a few years and to start working on my own projects, freelancing and doing illustrations as much as I could. Then I visited Paris, and when I arrived at the Gare du Nord, where my friend came to pick me up, I saw an Obey poster near the train tracks. I said to my friend, “I am going to work for Shepard Fairey”. I got very excited about it but obviously nobody took me seriously. Two weeks later Studio Number One, which is his creative studio based In Los Angeles, got in contact with me and offered me an internship for the next year. I moved to Montreal that September and worked really hard on my illustration skills. I drew day and night. Then the following summer, I went to work with Shepard at his studio. I helped him develop his illustrations and his artwork. After working closely with him for a few months, I really felt that I had the confidence to call myself an illustrator and to get bigger contracts.
How would you describe your style to people who first come across your art? I have a lot of different illustration styles; I think I am
trying to resist being placed in a box. I really enjoy trying
different mediums and techniques but I have two main
styles. One would be vector illustration, where I use clean
lines that I have drawn on the computer using my Wacom
tablet. I usually add textures from photographs and spraypaint
or drips in the background to add some depth.
And my other side would be hand-drawn illustrations,
which are more organic and simplified. I use black poster
markers on white paper to draw a fantasy world.
What do you have to say about color in your work? When I fist moved to London, a few years back, I remember
taking the train in the morning to go to work and everyone
was wearing dark suits and it used to depress me so much.
So as soon as I got to my computer I would start to use
very bright colors as a sort of revenge. Ever since then I
have been using very bright colors and trying out different
combinations. But also part of my work is in black and
white only with the occasional drip of color.
What is the difference between commercial and non-commercial work for you? It depends on the freedom I am given
and the project. But over the years,
people have become more confident
in my work and given me more
freedom to do what I want to do. The
down side with commercial projects is
that you need to satisfy the client and
the public and sometimes companies
don’t want to take any risks. So in
this sense, it is way hard to break
out of the box. The upside is that it
pays the bills. With non-commercial
work, I usually get way more freedom,
and it gives me the opportunity to
explore different paths or try out new
techniques and to be more creative.
What is your favorite piece of your work? I don’t know if I have a favorite
piece but I love my little doodles. I
don’t think I have ever got tired of
looking at them. Of my vector work,
I think I like Lady Sovereign or the
Jay-Z portrait the best and for my
hand drawings it would be my latest
illustration for the Invizzibl Men.
On the subject of music, does it inspire your work in any way? Absolutely, music is my biggest source
of inspiration. First of all, I need to
listen to music to be able to work.
But one of the best ways for me to
find new ideas is to go out and listen
to some live music. I love dubstep.
I think the bassline has a chemical
reaction on my body. It clears my
head and sets free my ideas.
What are your favorite dubstep musicians/shows/DJ's? I love Digital Mystikz (Mala and Coki)
and Loefah. They run a night in
London called DMZ. It’s completely
dublicious. I think Mala is very
spiritual and all the songs he puts out
are a real delight. Look out for the
Deep Medhi releases. Joe Nice is an
amazing Dj. Kode 9 is visionary and
his label Hyperdub is quality. Flying
Lotus is not really Dubstep but he is
deep. Juakali and Sgt Pokes are my
favorite MCs. The list could go on for
a while.
You designed a lot of flyers for Dub War. How was the experience? I first talked to Dave Quintiliani, the
Dub War promoter because I wanted
to do an interview about his night
for Cool’eh Magazine. Dub War was one of the only Dubstep night in New York City and I
wanted to know what was happening behind the scene.
Then later on, Dave Q asked me to design a flyer for
the Dubstep History Lesson night. I have been doing it
since then. It’s been really fun, because for each flyer I
do, I try to create a visual representation of the headline
and I take it as my contribution to the movement.
How do you kickback and relax when you're not working? I work long hours and I have a very different lifestyle
from most people because when I start a new project
and I am inspired I like to work very late. I spend most
of my time in my studio or on my computer. So when
the weekend comes I have a lot of energy to use up. But
I think I am pretty relaxed most of the time.
Is there a medium/style that you haven't worked in and would like to try?I recently helped an artist in London to make these
little concrete statues that he puts up in the streets.
I just bought all the materials to make my own little
statues and I think that will be my next thing.
What artists inspire you? I was very inspired by Toulouse Lautrec, one of the first graphic designer in
France. I used to admire his poster compositions and colors. But Andy Warhol
and Roy Leichtenstein are both big sources of inspirations, not so much for
their techniques but more for the way they made illustration into an art. And
Shepard Fairey of course.
What would be the best tip you can give other people seeking to work in creative design?Focus on what you want to do and the rest will come.
- My wildest dream is take over all the digital displays in Times Square in New York and to put my illustration work there instead for one day.
- Big up to ...Cool’eh Magazine, Backwoodz Studio, Stern*, Ronzo, Word to Mother, Shepard Fairey, Invizibl Men for loving my line work llustration, Tarka Cordell who gave me my first freelance project, and Frivolous.
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