Life & Work with Di Liang

Today we’d like to introduce you to Di Liang.

Hi Di, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
As a child, I loved watching Japanese anime and SpongeBob SquarePants, which fueled my passion for animation. I was captivated by the characters’ movements. However, when I learned that animation production was time-consuming and lacked confidence in my ability to draw these movements. Nevertheless, my love for drawing persisted, and I decided to pursue illustration instead. Looking back on my childhood, I remember drawing on the clean, white walls of our new apartment with a pencil when I was six years old. My mother scolded me for my actions, but instead of punishing me, she found an art teacher who helped me improve my skills. This teacher was one of the most influential figures in my career development, encouraging my passion for art and creativity.

Therefore, as I grew up, I became aware of my sensitivity toward images and visually pleasing aesthetics. This realization naturally guided me toward where I am now in my career. Surprisingly, I have now started working on an animation project, proving that you can never truly escape from the things you love.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Drawing for days on end may seem fun and exciting, but in reality, it can be quite the opposite. Coming up with new ideas can be exhausting. I used to believe that inspiration was something that just came to you, and I didn’t know how to keep generating new ideas. However, through consistent practice and creation, I learned that inspiration is actually a cumulative process that requires a lot of research and studying the works of different fields. This research doesn’t necessarily have to be focused on illustrations; I enjoy looking at various fields for inspiration. In fact, there are many aspects of everyday life that can be used as sources of inspiration.

As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I am an illustrator based in Baltimore and currently studying MFA Illustration Practice at Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA). I enjoy observing the “uncanny moment” in my daily life and using these small inspirations to create illustrations. While most of my work is in static images, I’m currently experimenting with multimedia and hand-drawn short animations. In addition to these, I also design posters. Nowadays, I consider myself more of an image maker than an illustrator, especially with the project I’m working on right now. During my graduate studies, I realized that I had so many ideas that just couldn’t be expressed in static images. They were dynamic and required movement to come alive. That’s when I decided to learn animation and start developing my ongoing animation project. It’s a visual thesis about the emotional attachment people have to scissors and the metaphor of “cut & connect” behind them. The process of animating is completely different from that of illustrating. Learning animation has refreshed my mind and opened up new doors for me to see more potential in the illustration field. I’m proud to say that the whole animation is finished and I’m submitting it to animation festivals. This project has opened up new paths for me to pursue and I can’t wait to explore more opportunities in the world of animation.

We’d be interested to hear your thoughts on luck and what role, if any, you feel it’s played for you?
I’ve always considered myself a lucky person. I’ve been fortunate to have my parents’ support, and to have encountered and learned from many people whom I admire. I feel lucky to be where I am now. Sometimes I even consider bad luck to be another form of good luck. It can be a tough teacher, showing you what you need to get rid of and helping you focus on what you really want.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/di_liang_/

Image Credits
Images credits: Di Liang