Igor Kubik is a visual artist, illustrator and designer. He is the author of art books, press and commercial illustrations. He also works across graphic design, art direction, branding and packaging. In his work, he focuses on the observation of connections, repetitions and patterns that can serve as an expression of synergy between external and internal reality. He is also the author of the cover’s illustrations of the latest issue of our magazine, devoted to food.
Anna Nowok: Let’s start with the beginning of your career as an illustrator. Did you know that graphic design is the job for you when you were a child?
Igor Kubik: I have enjoyed drawing for as long as I remember, but at first I would not think of it as my future professional activity. My further choices were always dictated by the wish to connect my passion with work, and this is exactly what happened. I took my first conscious decision related to my development as an artist as I was graduating from lower secondary school, when I took an exam to the Secondary School of Fine Arts in Warsaw. Because I come from a small town, my parents were not too keen on the decision. I think that my moving to the capital city at the age of 15 was a greater challenge to them than to me. Their doubts were ultimately dispelled when they found out that I got accepted to the school with the highest score on the list. Back then, it seemed that my further path would be related to sculpture or theatre stage design. Despite that, workshop techniques attracted my attention and I decided to study at the Faculty of Graphic Arts at the Academy of Fine Arts. I was not sure what exactly I wanted to do, so I tried my luck at nearly all ateliers – from animation to books. I chose the illustration atelier led by Grażka Lange and Monika Hanulat who showed me a completely new way of looking at graphic arts and illustration.
A.N.: You are a sought-after illustrator, you cooperate with many brands, and engage in a lot of diverse projects. Where do you get the energy and creativity from? What helps you relax?
I.K.: Concept work and new projects give me the greatest boost. Thinking about new solutions provides a lot of pleasure. I try to use manual techniques to give them a tangible form, because working with your hands is very rewarding and adds energy. You can take a break from the computer thanks to it. Drawing is to me basically a space to relax − it doesn’t matter if I work on advertising illustrations or on my own drawings, I can “break away” from the less enjoyable prose of my work life for a moment. I also enjoy playing the hang drum and cooking − kneading bread has become my greatest pleasure lately.
A.N.: Your works demonstrate several various styles. What does your choice depend on? On the client, the place of publication or the subject matter you want to explore in a given work?
I.K.: I like checking out new techniques. As for drawing, I’m a terrible gadget freak, I spend a lot of time at art supply stores looking for new tools. Testing new techniques gives me a lot of space for experiments and opens up to chance. My works are very different but what they share is the concurrence of the fascinations I’m experiencing at a given moment. I definitely prefer it when something that is called a style is legible only in the deeper layer of works. I think that excessive focus on the visual layer often leads to various stylisations. It seems to me that the form of work and choice of the means used express more than the topic which is taken up through them. That is why I like inventing a separate “workshop” for individual works.
A.N.: Do you remember a project which gave you the most joy? What was it about?
I.K.: My diploma project was a huge pleasure to me. It’s true that it was the last stage that gave me most joy, and the entire process was arduous, but I think that this is what gave me a lot of satisfaction. I decided to prepare illustrations for an opera entitled The Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny. The opera is a dystopian political satire by Bertold Brecht, which is set in the 1930s. While working, I wanted to translate the movement, the rhythm and the lighting into a visual language, hence the references to the oeuvre of numerous futurists, for example Boccioni or Marinetti. I transferred the means of expression which are typical for the language of opera – solo and choir pieces or dance scenes filled with loftiness – to the visual language. The opera depicted in the form of a book allows measures which cannot be recreated on stage. The time I spent on preparing my diploma project was a kind of up-in-the-air moment to me, when my thoughts revolved around it for a year and a half. I recall with affection the continuous drawing and long conversations with my professor about every detail of the book.
A.N.: What challenges do illustrators need to face nowadays?
I.K.: I recently got interested in all platforms where you can generate images with the use of an AI system. Based on a short description, advanced graphic designs, drawings or illustrations of any style are created in a few seconds. Although the programs are continuously learning, the effects are really astonishing already at this stage, and I must admit that I’m impressed by such tools. On the one hand, I can see the potential to make designers’ work more efficient, and a huge threat to copyright, on the other hand. I believe that some industries, for example film making, might wish to resign from the work of many talented people because of such tools.
A.N.: Do you have a dream project you’ve always wanted to implement?
I.K.: At the moment I can’t think of a specific project – I feel great in the place I’m in right now, and I’m trying to appreciate the things that happen to me. Yet – as to every artist – large-scale cooperation with reputable magazines or brands would surely be very rewarding.
A.N.: You are the originator and author of the new cover of Contemporary Lynx Magazine with food as the leitmotif. It is a very topical issue and gives rise to numerous controversies among a lot of people. What encouraged you to take a stance on excessive packaging of products?
I.K.: I was motivated by my everyday shopping dilemmas. I base my consumer choices on the care for my health, animals and the environment. For a long time now, I’ve got the impression, as I go into a store, that most of the products on shelves are ready-made rubbish. I try not to buy food packed in plastic, but unfortunately organic products are often honoured by such unnecessary packaging. I often face a dilemma whether to choose unpacked vegetables from standard farming or organic ones in plastic packaging. I believe that still not enough has changed in this respect, and that is why we need to stigmatise such practices, speak about the absurd and exert pressure on stores, by making the right choices.
A.N.: You used the pastel technique to create the work for the CL Magazine cover. Why did you decide to choose it?
I.K.: I chose the technique mostly because of the high level of realism you can obtain with pastels, and this is what I wanted to focus on most in this project. The Magazine on the shelf was to imitate shop display to the greatest extent possible.
A.N.: Finally, do you have any advice for people who wish to follow into your footsteps and start a career in illustrating?
I.K.: If I were at the beginning of my path right now, I would wish to hear that the idea is the most important thing in illustration, and not the method used to prepare it. Besides, looking from today’s perspective, I see that it is worth paying more attention to the process, not the final outcome. It is important to enjoy the creative process, because it is when we are able to transfer our good emotions to paper and reach your audience that way. Not all projects are perfect, so you need to turn to your own initiatives which are satisfying. Work discipline does not mean being stuck over a sheet of paper but caring for relationships, your mind and your body. Do what you like and not what, in your opinion, ensures assignments from clients.
A.N.: In that case, I wish you an endless stock of ideas. All the best and thank you for talking to me.
