Work / Illustration
Still Life of a Graphic Designer
An Isometric Self-Portrait
This piece started as an experiment in self-portraiture. I’ve been drawn to isometric illustration lately and wanted to use it to capture myself in the act of making—focused, absorbed, working. Inspired by Vincent van Gogh’s depictions of peasants, weavers, and farmers, the goal was to create a form of labor art that honors the dignity of creative work.
Like Vincent, I’m GGSS too.
This isn’t my actual workspace. At the moment, I’m working from a small folding table in the corner of my living room. This illustration imagines a future version of that space—a quiet studio made just for creating. I begin by sketching on paper using an isometric grid, refine the drawing in Procreate on the iPad, and finish by vectoring the artwork in Adobe Illustrator. Vectoring can be tedious, but the clean, crisp result is always worth it.
Pencil sketch on the left, Procreate sketch on the right
The color palette mixes millennial grey, teal, and yellow. Compared to my usual art—which is bursting with color—this piece is intentionally minimal, reflecting how I dress in real life: mostly black and yellow. This illustration explores that contrast.
My Illustrator swatches
This piece reflects my tendency toward perfectionism. That’s also what I love about working in vector—it’s precise and unforgiving. Every anchor point and Bézier curve has to sit just right, or something feels off. I especially enjoyed this process because creating people has always been a weak spot for me in vector art, and this piece pushed me to lean into that challenge.
Still Life of a Graphic Designer poster
I loved creating this piece and learned a lot along the way, particularly about building human figures and plants. It feels like a turning point in my growth with isometric illustration. If you love isometric work as much as I do, I’d love to hear your thoughts—feel free to share them in the comments.
