It feels a little strange writing this post because the first months of the year passed by so quickly, and I kept thinking “I’ll send an update soon” while being completely swallowed by work in the meantime. But honestly, that’s also because a lot has been happening behind the scenes lately, especially something I hadn’t done in a very long time!
After years away from comic conventions, this year I finally decided to go back to exhibiting as an artist again. A few weeks ago I attended Romics in Rome here in Italy, and it honestly felt a bit surreal at first. I was definitely rusty and had to get used to convention life all over again, but at the same time it reminded me how much I missed this kind of experience. Meeting people in person, talking about art face to face, seeing someone stop at your table because a drawing caught their attention… I really missed all of that more than I realized!
And now I’m already preparing for the next big event: I’ll be exhibiting at Japan Expo in Paris this summer!
I’m both excited and slightly terrified because I’ve been working nonstop trying to prepare as many new things as possible for the convention. My studio is currently full of sketches, samples, packaging tests scattered everywhere. I’m designing a lot of brand new merch for the event, and honestly I can’t wait to finally hold the finished products in my hands and show everything properly to all of you too. I really hope those of you coming to Japan Expo will stop by and say hi!
Recent Artwork
I had the chance to experiment with some new art surfaces lately, especially watercolor canvas boards, and they ended up being such a pleasant surprise. I genuinely had no idea products like these even existed, and painting on them turned out to be incredibly fun.
I’ve actually been drawing much more than what I’m showing in this newsletter, but some pieces are still top secret for now. There are a few projects I’m keeping hidden a little longer until everything is ready, though I’m really looking forward to sharing them later on!
New Videos
If you’d like to see the creative process behind some of the artworks above, I also turned them into drawing videos! I also uploaded a review of the Magic Drawing Pad, which might be interesting.
New Handmade Apparel
One of the biggest additions to my studio recently has been my new xTool apparel printer. What makes me happiest is the fact that it finally allows me to create products I had wanted to make for such a long time but never had the possibility to produce on my own before. Thanks to it, my shop now includes T-shirts printed directly by me from my studio!
Learning how to use the machine properly has definitely been challenging. There are so many technical things to understand. I spent a lot of time experimenting with settings, materials, colors, and print results before reaching something I was actually satisfied with. But despite all the trial and error, I’m genuinely very excited about this new direction and about having more possibilities to create products in a more personal and hands on way!
Here are some of the T-shirts you can currently find in my shop, and I’m also working on new designs that will be available soon:
Freebies for You!
As always, I prepared a little bit of free content for you! This time you’ll find a couple of smartphone wallpapers, plus a scanned lineart drawing that you can color however you like, along with the scanned colored version for reference.
Feel free to use the lineart to experiment with colors, markers, or digital coloring practice. And if you decide to post your version online, you’re always welcome to tag me because I genuinely love seeing your interpretations and color choices!
Thank you so much for continuing to support my work and follow my artistic journey, even during quieter periods when I disappear a little while working behind the scenes. I really appreciate it more than I probably say enough.
If any of you will be at Japan Expo this year, I truly hope we’ll get the chance to meet in person. Take care and talk again soon!