GB: I've been drawing since early childhood, for as long as I can remember. I come from a poor family, so I didn’t have the opportunity to study art professionally at a young age, but I attended all sorts of free community art classes. In my final year of school, we had to choose a university path, and it became clear that my only real talent was drawing, so going to art school seemed like the obvious choice.

I spent all summer before my final year drawing and taking private art lessons. I had lost my only parent at 15, so I was allowed to study for free, and I attended a drawing course at the graphic design school. However, the time was limited, and it wasn’t enough to develop strong enough academic drawing skills needed for an art university. I could have spent another year at the drawing course and probably been accepted to university. But in our culture, taking a gap year is not common, and my relatives pressured me into applying to a completely different program—publishing business and journalism.

Still I never stopped drawing, but I did it just for myself. At some point, while working as a copywriter at an advertising agency, I realized how empty and meaningless that work felt to me. I longed to create something that held real value and personal meaning. That’s when I made the decision to fully dedicate myself to art. And it turned out you don’t really need art education to become an artist.

GB: I just drew and experimented a lot. Growing up, I really liked gothic art, and illustrations of Tove Jansson and Aubrey Beardsley, so it definitely influenced my style. I was always fascinated by the black color, and over time, I realised all I really need to express myself is white space and black lines. I love how powerful high-contrast black and white drawings can be, they are simple but still create a striking visual effect.

GB: One of the founders, Sad boy, was a friend of mine. He had supported my art before and liked my style, so he invited me to join the project as the artist.

GB: A typical day would be just drawing all day, but it’s actually always different. One day I might be packing and shipping orders for my online shop, and another day, searching for open calls and writing artist statements, or looking for references for a new work, or learning how to animate my drawings, and so on.

GB: Lately, I’ve been taking a lot of photos of little things that bring me joy, whether it’s a blooming tree or a cat in a window. And I’ve become really fascinated by light, the play of light and shadow. I’ve started paying more attention to how artists use light in their work, and how it’s used in films. Right now I’m just exploring and doing some research, but I hope I’ll find a way to bring that into my own drawings.

GB: Everything feels so uncertain for now, it’s hard to dream about anything in particular. But I dream of being able to call the UK my home and be a full-time artist here. I moved to London two years ago, and it feels like immigration is not starting from zero, but from below zero. I hope to find my community here and grow as an artist.

GB: I have a black Sphynx cat named Boo. He’s seen a lot, and we’ve moved together four times across different countries. He loves sleeping under the blanket with me and escaping from the window to eat grass in the garden. Boo doesn’t really like wearing clothes and just chews holes in them, so he ends up looking like a real punk in his ripped jumpers. Like many cats, he likes to chill in the sun and sit in a box. His favourite toy is my hair scrunchie. I taught him how to high five, but he’s too smart and only does it if he knows you have a treat for him.