Angelo Dolojan

Your pronouns
He/Him

Where is home?
My home studio is in a neighborhood called Wicker Park in Chicago, next door to my favorite coffee shop and my favorite bookstore, living with my thirteen-year-old dog Charlie, surrounded by all my stuff.

Describe your style in one sentence:
Lively, organic and gestural drawings of everyday people, places and things.

What lights your soul on fire?
Deep conversations, colors, photography, film, stories, clothes, winter, people, a full dinner table, hands, a busy city, theater, classical music, paintings, architecture, various shades of green, winter coats, a character driven plot, queer stories, a full train ride, tattoos, chairs, a beautiful plate of food, narrative poetry, soliloquies, Asia, a bottle of wine, to name a few.

What themes do you enjoy exploring?
A few themes that constantly appear in my work are the psychology of food, the restaurant industry, cityscapes, still lifes through observation, figure portraits, at the base of it all are stories of people. The human condition and identity and the different environments and narratives that surround them. At the base of it all are stories of people.

What techniques do you use?
Most of my personal work is done on paper with pencil, graphite or charcoal. Majority of client and commissioned work will be digitally or both, always with photoshop.

Is there an unmistakable thread in your creative work?
I think about the idea of identity and people and how they present themselves and how they are presented by their environment. I am a keen observer of my surroundings and I’m constantly pulled by conversations, expressions, solitude, interactions, all related to the people surrounding me.

Which projects excite you most?
Projects with interesting text and stories, portraits of people, character design and big murals.

What is your dream gig?
I think in general, to work with as many international artists/ projects. Culture and environment is such a factor in how art is formed and experiencing the different nuances of expressions within different places would be really interesting.

Where, when and how do you best create?
I find myself the most productive in a coffee shop, most creative in my studio or in front of a stagnant crowd with a sketchbook in hand. A lot of my favorite personal work has come out of procrastination, mid deadlines and random bursts in my sketchbook.

How has your style evolved since you started?
I’ve recently been very happy with my line work. They have become looser and more expressive but cleaner and more confident over time.

How has being an illustrator changed your life?
Being an illustrator has given me a platform to express my true self and challenge my abilities within such a stimulating yet nurturing creative environment.

Name a tool you can’t live without!
My Staedtler 6B pencil

What influences or inspires your art?
I am often inspired by visual storytelling such as photography and paintings; and by movement and expression such as theater and film. I try to visit exhibits and see shows on a weekly basis to spark ideas for my own work.

What would you tell your younger self?
Drawing on the corners of your paper and not paying attention in class was probably okay.