This piece was part of Light Grey Art Lab Gallery's BOTANICA Show; a nature-inspired group exhibition celebrating the diversity of floral life on our planet Earth. I chose to do an experimental digital painting study of the studio space Jenn Liv, a part of called Lunchroom Toronto. Lunchroom is a small collective where we gather together to eat family-style meals and work in a shared studio space.
Lunchroom was the main inspiration for my Botanica piece because of the sheer amount of plant life Gabe (www.studiogabe.com) has at his place. I knew from the beginning that I wanted to draw the studio because plants have a healing factor to them that helps to soothe any indoor space. I was really fascinated with the idea of bringing in exterior elements to transform an interior environment and I think Gabe's done a great job doing exactly that with Lunchroom. When you're working indoors for hours on end, you want to relieve that tension off your mind by surrounding yourself with natural things. For this piece I wanted to diverge from my usual style of focusing on detailed line work and tried using a more 'painterly' style, going back to traditional roots such as perspective, light and shadow, and drawing subjects from real life.
- Jenn Liv
This piece was created entirely in Photoshop CC. I use Kyle T Webster brushes to render all of my illustrations. My process involved spending a day at the studio to draw the space observationally, with my fellow studio members Pam Lau (www.pamlau.com) and Justine Wong (www.patternsandportraits.com) present in the piece. And of course Lunchroom's resident feline- Russell the Kitty.
- Jenn Liv
I think it was received very well! I think people are constantly trying to find ways to transform their workspaces into places that feel less like a workspace. I learned a lot about capturing the mood and atmosphere of a space in visual form while also gaining a greater appreciation for the power of plants over the human mind.
- Jenn Liv
About Jenn Liv
My name is Jenn Liv and I am a freelance illustrator based in Toronto. I have created editorial illustrations for clients such as PLANSPONSOR, Nautilus, Autodesk, The Walrus, Quill & Quire, and Medium.com. My work has recently been recognized by Society of Illustrators 58. Occasionally I like to create comics and print things in risograph.