MD Paper x Holly Wales
July 04, 2023
Introducing artist Yasmin Smith. Learn more about her, her inspiration and her work.
Tell us a bit about yourself and your work
I have been an illustrator for 17 years, drawing all kinds of pictures for some of the world's largest publications and brands - almost all with Tombow ABT Dual Brush Markers! I love drawing typography and lettering; I collect photographs of laundrettes, gas stations, diners and bakeries from around the world to work from. I'm really inspired by the films of Wes Anderson and his saturated colours. I love texture, and overlapping colours to create depth.
How did the MD collaboration come about?
My agent The Bees Knees in Tokyo, asked me if I would like to collaborate with MD on their 15th Anniversary Project to produce a typographic illustration across the pages of their signature notebooks - this was part of an exhibition which opened in Tokyo in January 2023. I produced a second illustration which was embossed directly onto a series of special edition notebooks. I was inspired by the poems of Mary Oliver; her words are very good at capturing a special moment in time in nature and I wanted to capture fragments of those; in the way a single page can never tell the whole story.
What is your creative process using MD?
The paper in the MD notebooks is beautiful to write & draw on. It's super smooth so the Tombow ABT markers I draw with glide across the surface and don't snag, and there is very little absorbency of the colour. It's also an off-white paper which makes my colours pop! I sketched out the illustration in pencil first before colouring it, and then erased the pencil work at the end.
What art materials do you enjoy working with / what materials did you use for this MD project?
I love drawing and making in all its forms really; from vibrant Neocolor pastels in a sketchbook on a hike on Dartmoor, to screenprinting in the studio - but day to day I am drawing with Tombow ABT Dual Brush Marker pens. I was drawn to these pens because of their versatility - I buy them in sets of 100, and make use of all the shades, from pastels to one of the many, many greens! A lot of my commissions involve drawing food & drink items such as bottles or drinks in glasses; the Tombow ABT markers are perfect for giving the illusion of reflections and highlights.
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