Meet the lovely Ekaterina. I first came across the very talented illustrator when COUCH Magazine published a beauty editorial with her illustrations. Being already familiar with her work from Elle and other publications, I had to ask her for an interview. And luckily she agreed. Ekaterina was born in Naberezhnye Chelny, the second largest city in the Republic of Tatarstan, about 1,000 kilometers east of Moscow. At the age of three her family moved to Berlin. “My mum started working as an art teacher at the Russian Embassy School. I went to a German Kindergarten in Pankow and eventually graduated from German high school,” the illustrator tells me. After her graphic design studies, she decided to stay in Berlin. “Why not Berlin?” she asks me, “where else should I be living?” She tells me that she lived in Rome for a year in order to study the language and to work for a design agency. Even though she’d been familiar with the city after a while and she’d known the right people, she couldn’t make a living as a freelance artist in Italy. According to her, Berlin gives her the freedom to live and work as a creative on little means.
“I like to think that I may spread a bit of Russian ‘Glam trash’ among my friends, or well, at least to incite them to be more silly. In Germany everything is way too rational and Germans tend to take themselves too seriously,” the Russian-Berliner says. “I like to believe that this also reflects in my work. I hope to transport the observer of my paintings into a moment of joy and that he or she might let go for a moment – A bit less function, a bit more colour and gimmickry for the eye.“ In the evenings, Ekaterina enjoys riding her bike around the city. “My friends live all over the city,” the young illustrator tells me. “My bike allows me to get to know Berlin and to absorb life in the different parts of the city – the bars, restaurants und the small stores. On my bike I am a quiet observer of Berlin with a never-ending inventory of impressions.”
For more information about Ekaterina’s work go to behance, facebook or tumblr and follow her on instagram.
For booking go to www.kombinatrotweiss.de or buy her illustrations online at dawanda and etsy.
No Comments