Colors Gallery, meet ValiToast
@ValiToast is a cozy artist and media designer whose cute, pastel colored artwork should make everyone feel comfortable and content during the cold months. I know I am! What makes me even more comfortable is getting to know them more, now let's get to the interview!
@ValiToast ? hope you've been staying toasty as the weather gets colder. Warm us up with some details! What should we know about you?
"Hello readers! I’m Vali, 25, from Germany and as a true 'toast,' I stay warm and cozy in my toaster during the cold season! I’m thrilled to be the 88th artist featured in 'Artist of the Week'! Fun fact – 88 is a lucky number in my family, so maybe it was fate that Zyik’s message sat unnoticed in my inbox gathering dust for 4 months..."
"I’m a quiet person who loves escaping into my fantasy world, where Hello Kitty, Dante from Devil May Cry, a literal office of God in Heaven, magical girls, and creatures from outer space all coexist! Sounds crazy? I came up with a whole story with my best friend. B) I have a huge manga and anime collection and i'm doomed to buy every cute figure and stuffed animal I see!"
Doll by ValiToast
You style is incredibly cute and I just love how you use pastel colors! What would you say your inspirations are and how did their influence help you develop your style?
"Thank you very much! Over the years, I’ve experimented with many styles and color schemes to find new ways to express myself through drawing. Artists on Instagram and YouTube have been a huge inspiration. Right now, I feel like the sweet style and pastel colors represent me best because, at heart, I’m still a child. These colors feel cozy, soft, and add a touch of fantasy and magic!"
When did you discover Colors Live and what made you decide to become a member of hour community? Also I see that you're also a flipnote studio fan which is awesome and I always welcome more old flipnote fans in the gallery! What was your experience like during the days of flipnote hatena? What do you miss about it if you do?
"I was 10 when I discovered Flipnote on a friend’s DSi, and that’s why I asked for one for Christmas! I loved watching animations from around the world and wanted to join in. Once I finally got Flipnote, there was no stopping me and I even worked on them during breaks between classes at school! One of my favorite features was drawing in the comments, like later in Miiverse. It helped me to learn how to draw simple figures quickly without making them look bad – a feature I miss a lot! During this time, I made many friends, some of whom I’m still in touch with."
"If you are curious, you can find some of my old Flipnotes on my YouTube channel!"
"When I was 14, I discovered Colors3D on the 3DS. It was an affordable and my first real digital drawing experience, and the simple interface and tools made it easy to learn. I even remember drawing on the tram during a school trip, and that piece is still on my profile!" : D
Eevee by ValiToast
"The nostalgia caught up with me later when I saw that Colors live was available for the Switch. Even though the options are limited compared to my iPad and other drawing programs that I use now, Colors live is still my favorite way to draw on the go!"
Your gallery is so vibrant and colorful! What would you say is the artwork of yours that you're most fond of and which would you say was the most challenging? What lessons did you learn from creating those?
"I think I am most proud of my drawing for my own and very first DTIYS challenge! I really enjoyed drawing this character and I was so happy to see how many talented artists took part with all their different styles!"
DTIYS by ValiToast
"The drawing that was the most challenging was probably my drawing from 2017 with the penguins and northern lights. While drawing it, I learned alot about how to use many different layers and how to create an 3D effect!"
Pinguin by ValiToast
"My funniest learning experience, however, was with my very first drawings. I always wondered how people could achieve such clear, sharp lines and draw with pixel precision.. One fateful day I discovered: Hold on. Whats that? Wait a minute.. I can ZOOM?"
Top 3 favorite Colors Live artworks?
There are so many artworks by different artists that I love! These are some of my favorites!
revisit by Phasilic-Renavon
teal by Rainbronii
Stray Balloon by ColorMeInspired
Favorite artist on and off Colors Live? How do they motivate or inspire you?
"One of my favorite artists on Colors Live is @The_Adjudicator. I've been following him since I started using Colors3D, and I was always impressed by the detail in his work. I believe his art was some of the first I saw when I joined! When I mentioned on my Switch comeback that I had deleted a lot of my old drawings, and regretted it, he wrote some motivating words to me that might encourage others not to delete their old drawings as well: 'I'm glad you recognize that your old art, however good it might have been, is part of your legacy and growth. Let's hope other young up-and-coming artists learn from this and choose not to delete their legacy as well. : )"
Gentle climb by The_Adjudicator
"On Instagram, I love derekdomnicdsouza. His drawing videos show how impressive backgrounds and art can be made using simple shapes and tricks – highly recommended!
Another artist I admire is sseongryul, whose dreamy and nostalgic art has such a unique style!"
What story does your art tell? What were the most important tales?
"Hmm... No matter what style I’ve tried over the years, all my non-commissioned drawings have been created to express my feelings or escape into another world, becoming the character in my artwork. Reality is limited, but imagination knows no bounds – you can be anything, anywhere. With a pen, you hold great power! I hope to express this feeling even better in my future work."
Color Bunny by ValiToast
You're a media designer! That's incredible! What's it like being a media designer and what brought you to that path? What should others know if they wish also get into media design?
"After school, I didn't know what I wanted to do at first. A year in which young people were able to try out different jobs led me to the profession of media designer. The profession is varied and I specialized in print media in the third year. No matter which direction you go in later, you learn the rules of design, color theory, creating print media and websites, as well as HTML and CSS. Photography and using Adobe programs are also part of it."
"The profession of media designer is often confused with that of graphic designer. As a media designer, you don't really draw, but creative skills are of course an advantage! You learn that there's more to the profession than just moving shapes and pixels around. It's about creating advertising designs for products that are tailored to a target group. We are the ones who entice you to buy! : D You also learn to develop a complete corporate design where every design decision has meaning. Customer contact is also an important part of the job."
"The job is not always easy. On days when you don't have any creative ideas, you have to be systematic. You learn how to come up with ideas yourself, and over time you also realize that the first idea that pops into your head is usually not the best solution. In my training, I was given the task of creating my own logo, and the idea generation was supposed to fill an entire notebook. In the end - the sketches at the very back of my notebook led to the finished version of my logo."
"Once you've learned that pretty much everything you see in your environment is adapted to design rules, you constantly analyze and you'll notice even small mistakes in everyday design - like a logo in the waiting room of your doctor's office: "What a crime for the eyes! In this logo, the font is not perfectly aligned to the square!" You'll never get rid of this "media designer disease" again."
Being a media designer, I assume Colors Live isn't your only software that you're good with. What other software or mediums do you use? How does Colors Live fit into your workflow? Are there any features you want to see in Colors Live in the future?
"Besides programs like Photoshop or Illustrator, which I hardly use in my private life, my absolute favorite is the layout program InDesign. I like to use it to add, edit and align text, as my drawing programs are too imprecise for that. My main drawing program is Clip Studio Paint EX, which I have been using for many years. I also recently got an iPad and now often use Procreate. Despite these programs, Colors has a special place in my heart. When I'm lying comfortably in bed, Colors is perfect for relaxing and doodling. Sometimes it's liberating to have a simple tool that isn't overloaded and is quick and easy to use. Occasionally I upload sketches that I draw in Colors privately, and continue working on them later on PC in Clip Studio Paint!"
Features that I would like to have:
I’d love to see more erasers! It would be great to have the brushes that are available, as erasers too!
It would also be great to have an option to save as a new file while drawing, instead of overwriting the original. I often realize too late that I forgot to make a copy before I start
As a Flipnote Studio fan... grid brushes?
How would you describe your artistic process? How has it evolved over time?
"My artistic journey has been like a rollercoaster ride with many stops. As a child, I was fascinated by the detailed landscape paintings in our apartment, which led me to paint landscapes and animal paintings myself. With the Flipnote era, my focus changed and I only wanted to draw cute Eevees! Later, I discovered the joy of drawing semi realistic portraits of people and the art of impressionism that we learned in school. I experimented with different materials like pastels, oil pastels, watercolors, and painted on canvas and even tried sculpting figures out of clay. Recently, I even painted in VR! I've tried a lot, both traditional and digital, and know there's so much more to discover! But manga will probably always be my main form of expression because that's where I can put the most of myself into it."
What goals and plans do you have for the future?
"I want to get a driver's license and maybe.. but only maybe get back to animating again!"
What's a weakness of yours that you've turned into a strength?
I'm not sure if it counts, but here is a story about myself:
"I was always shy and lacked self-confidence, never wanting to stand out and without many friends at school. But I always had two stuffed animals as my best friends. Over time, I became less embarrassed to bring them to school. They just made me feel better and I didn't feel so alone. I even put them in the shopping cart or next to me on the bus. Now, as an adult, it may seem childish or strange, but I no longer care what others think. I’m more confident, and I’ve found many lovely friends who accept me and my stuffed animals as part of who I am. Be yourself, and you’ll attract the right people! Also, as an adult, you can do whatever makes you happy. No one can stop you from carrying your stuffed animal if it gives you strength and security. No adult can say no to you when you ARE the adult." ; )
Mia x Cinnamoroll by ValiToast
What do you do when you feel overwhelmed or burnt out? What's the best way to deal with it or your preferred way?
"When I feel burned out, I try not to push myself. I relax by listening to music or watching anime and movies. Music in particular, when it matches my mood, often sparks new ideas that I want to express in a drawing. Even if it’s just a sketch! But… I still haven’t figured out how to actually finish some of the sketches and ideas I’ve started…" *stares at the folder full of forgotten ideas* :' )
"I also went to an art therapist once and she taught me that if you don't know how to express yourself or are burned out, imagine your mood and your feelings as a color. Try using this color as the background color and draw the first thing that comes to mind!"
Fail by ValiToast
What're your plans for the holidays?
"My holiday plans are simple! I’ll relax with freshly baked brownies, play cozy games like "Sky: Children of the Light" with friends, or watch movies. One tradition is watching the classic "Three Hazelnuts for Cinderella" (1973), which is shown on TV every Christmas in Germany. I’ve watched it every year since I was a child." < 3
Cinnacloud by ValiToast
Anyone you want to shout-out?
"Shoutout to everyone who has read this far! I really enjoyed looking back on my artistic career and writing about it!"
That wraps up our interview with @ValiToast ! The Colors Team would like to thank you for your time! Grab a cup of hot chocolate, wrap up in a warm blanket, and stay as toasty as possible while you check them out!
Check out all of our previous interviews here:
For those who may need a reminder
The Artist of the week will be posted every Friday so be sure to tune in! Prior to that, the artist may be contacted via email or other means at least a week or more in advance so be sure to check your emails( and spam) so you don't miss out on a chance to be featured. If you don't reply within 48 hours another artist may be chosen to be featured for that week instead and you will be in a future artist of the week update.
The announcement of who is the upcoming featured artist will be announced at least 2-3 days in advance or eariler so look out for that too! If you would like for any of your questions or comments to be featured in an upcoming interview please check out colorslive.com/discord and visit the official artist of the week channel to submit questions/commentary for a chance for those to be answered before Friday.
Suggest a new artist for artist of the week on the forum post on my gallery or by posting with the #heyzyik tag.
Christmas is almost here! Join #wc586 "Ghost of Christmas Past" and get even more people primed for the holidays!
Stay creative!
Zyik & The Colors Team
