Portfolio 2024

PORTFOLIO 2024

RIJA QUTAIBAH

Home is where the heart is ..

From the time I could hold a pencil, I was doodling on walls and corners under the bed. I wanted to express myself and it felt natural and therapeutic to draw. There was a need to figure out the world and my place in it by creating something. The feeling of drawing on paper was wonderful and that turned into my passion.

Inspiration

I inherited a childlike curioisity from my mother who worked as an art teacher for over twelve years while raising three kids. She bought me my first art book and motivated me to keep drawing. Her playful attitude towards life is a constant source of inspiration and encourages me to try new things.

My personal inspiration comes from nature, spirituality and philosophy. In the pursuit of creativity, I like makiing visual art that explores relationship with oneself and others.

Tulsi Calming Candles

Visual Branding for a new business selling scented candles. The brief was to create illustrative designs for an organic home made product that contains real tulsi plants. The product usage and benefits (healing and spiritual) helped create consistency with logo, post designs, and the information card.

Keywords include - soothing, calming, spiritual, relaxing

Color Palette

Colors of nature, peace, happiness and spirituality

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The USP - Honeywax candles last longer and are free from aritfical chemicals that may be harmful to health.. Candle wax is made at home and a tin container is used to pour the mixture with garden picked flowers, tulsi and flavored scents.

Although we know tulsi as a fragrant plant for herbal treatment and therapy, it is an early manifestation of the Goddess Tulsi or Vrinda according to Hindu belief.

A symbol of purity and fertility, the plant also known as holy basil carries healing qualities that can improve the immune system and offer soothing effect.

Affirmation Post Designs

The designs are kept minimal with a complementary color theme. The idea is to spread positivity through motivational and spiritual quotes written by well known poets and spiritual leaders.

Setting up Shop

Product shots used for the online store. Social media platform used for series of post designs, reels of candle making and sales offer.

The how to use guide adds a personal touch to the brand and helps differentiate Tulsi from other scented candles.

Bi fold card - Information on how to use the product, the menu card for different scented candles and the story of Tulsi.

Philosophistry Artwork

Editorial illustrations for Philosophistry magazine, published annually by the Atelier. It’s an informative publication for school children that aims to challenge criticial thinking and create interest in philosophy as a subject.

I had free rein to make the illustrations in my style, each art work was hand drawn, scanned and digitally painted on photoshop.

Title- Are you wrong? Am i right?

What does it mean?

It was important to understand the subject to be able to illustrate it. I read through the content and divided them into sections for the rough sketches.

Creating Images using keywords

In other words, our intention behind the action must be it is our duty to do this action. We have to be super objective in our intention.

action, duty good deeds intentions

Draft Concept

Initial sketches reworked and shared for approval. The topic was divided into sections and illustrations were added as key visuals, smaller illustrations were also used for emphasis.

Formatting

The tricky part was the text placement and formatting since that would be designed according to the illustrations added and it became necessary to simplify by highlighting key headings such as different topics of philosophy and then illustrate that.

Typography

There was a lack of consistency in the use of fonts across the entire publication. While the headings might complement the illustrations. the body text felt boring.The flow of typography was needed but not addressed due to time constraints and adjusted after the second draft.

Use of lines

Different types of lines were drawn as patterns to highlight the foreground or add detail.

As illustrated below, smooth and jagged lines were used as textures. I think it creates repetition that can highlight or cover areas of the page.

These lines are handdrawn and then painted digitally. The pen drawings have a variation of ink thinkness to add depth to the composition.

Textures and patterns made with a micron pen and reworked digitally.

The section includes 7 spreads with the cover page. A series of 7 to 8 hand drawn illustrations painted with a Wacom.

Spread size - 8.5” X 11”

The illustrations on the right were part of the Utilitarianism spread.

Keywords- compassion, joy, happiness, kindness.

Commercial Work

I worked professionally in the creative field gaining experience in writing, advertising, teaching and design.

I also freelanced for branding and publication design projects.

In this section, I have shortlisted works on branding and illustration.

I have worked in different roles over the years until it came to a slow halt after COVID. I had to leave behind rigid ideas and adopt a new approach to move forward.

My biggest learning curve has been to look at failure as an opportunity for growth. I am eager to learn and aim to diversify my skill set in the art and design sector.

Digital Forge Corporate Branding

Commission work that includes corporate identity design and branding for a digital agency. The brief highlighted the importance of connection, innovation and technology.

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Typography

Headings - Prime

Body text - Avenir

Color Palette

Code Romulus

Logo Design

Commission to make a logo for a tech company. The inspiration comes from mixing greek mythology and the world of coding. The idea was to effectively convey through symbols, type and form.

Color Palette

#ef6926 #633288

Typography

Headings - Adam CGPro, Noah

Body text - Helvetica NueCyr

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Merchandising Digital Art on Shoes

illustration designs were made for a shoe brand as part of a collaborative project. The art work was to be printed for formal and semi formal wear.

The selected designs were reworked using bright color schemes, detailed line art and digital painting.

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Educative

Website Illustrations

Assigned to make minimal illustrations for a techEd company. The illustrations were made for the website and online courses offered to customers. The challenge was understanding the content and adopting a minimal style for the art work.

The hero pagethe illustration needed to highlight email subscriptions announcement for the year 2020.

Out of the comfort zoneMaking modern minimal illustrations for the first time.

Standup Speakup

Not for Sale

Commission to make illustrations for Stand Up Speak Up, a wellness brand that promotes the message of kindness, compassion and helping the community.

The illustration ‘Not for Sale’ addresses how women are viewed in society. The phrase tattooed on the skin makes a clear statement that women have the right to live the way they want without being objectified.

The pattern - Threads woven are delicate but strong like the nature of a woman. There is so much more to her but that is restrained by society’s expectations.

Polemical Zine

Zine Cover Illustrations

The online magazine was looking for artists to make a cover for its zine issue. The question shared was, What is home and what does it look like to you?

Journey to Self

I felt boxed in with the challenges of being a Muslim Pakistani woman but in time it pushed me to change my perception; that very fact makes me who I am today and that’s special.

We go through life looking at the world from a personal lens and this experience is unique to each and every one of us.

Inspired by surrealism and the art nouveau movement, I want to explore how psychology and spirituality can be visually expressed and how it alters our understanding of the world.

Poetry Art

Writing brings clarity of thought and is often the starting point in making art. While exploring illustrations, poetry art gave me some direction on how to put my work across; narrowing down what is expressive, communicative and relevant.

How it started - I selected a series of poems and listened to the audio version rather than reading it. This helped visualise the composition without a reference point.

Visualisation really helps create a flow of images that are personal and relatable.

hides our cheeks and s hades our eyes

debt we pay tohuman

guile;Withtornandbleedinghearts

Four poems were selected and illustrated, where each illustration is a visual translation exploring themes of isolation, human connection and psychology of self.

Inspired by Edgar Allen Poe’s Alone -

Thoughts are illustrated as a representation of multiple personalities.

The idea that being alone illuminates parts of ourselves that we need to accept even if it seems unordinary.

Philip Larkins’ Sad Steps - illustration shows a deep desire for what is out of reach rather than impossibility of that desire in reality.

Sketch Stories

I write phrases and make pen drawings in a small sketchbook. Similar to journaling, It helps create a personal narrative about life.

Taking inspiration from artists such as Harry Clarke and Edmund Dulac, I like to work with symbolism, dream theme and psychology to really observe what I draw.

It’s fun to find so many different things in the process. Like the need for connection, meaning and purpose. It often feels like a map of experiences or rather my interpretation of it.

Thankyou, feel free to check out more here