Interview with Gal Shir

UISDC
Prototypr
Published in
5 min readAug 10, 2018

Here is an interview with Gal Shir, he is an excellent illustrator and motion designer.

UISDC: What made you choose to work as a designer? Can you talk about your growth experience?

Gal: I’ve been drawing from a young age and have always been passioned about colors, shapes, and design. I got my first version of Photoshop at the age of 13 and started to learn graphic design by myself. At first, I was doing some simple projects for friends and small businesses such as wedding invitations and business cards.

Later, I started to find different clients across the internet and began to create my network, get to know the market, gain experience and build my portfolio. Then I’ve joined and worked at some studios as a designer and in the last years, I’m working with startups to help them communicate their ideas better through UX, illustrations, and motion design.

UISDC: We see that your painting videos are all very smooth and you are so calm. Would you have a draft before this? Can you tell us about the source of inspiration for your illustrations and the drafting process?

Gal: I find the illustration process very meditative. Besides it’s being my job, I also go drawing and doodling when I need to relax or just to clear my head. I find my inspiration in the real world around me, the people, the city, and nature. Sometimes I also find inspiration by browsing the internet on websites like Dribbble, Behance, and Instagram.

My process usually starts with a concept in my head that I try to translate into a quick sketch. Then I choose the right color palette that creates the atmosphere I want to achieve and start the drawing.

UISDC: In the specific production process, what kind of drawing process do you follow, how to carry out specific color matching? What are the inspirations for these cute effects?

Gal: The first thing I keep in mind when I start a new drawing is the composition. I always want to make sure that I plan the positions and sizes of the objects carefully. When choosing colors, I sometimes get color inspiration from websites like Color Hunt where I always find trendy color combinations. After creating the basic shapes of the drawing, I go deep into the small details, polish up the shapes and add shadows, highlights, and textures. See more of my drawing process on my YouTube channel.

Every drawing I make starts from a concept I have in mind. Most of the times, I’m finding inspiration for concepts in the real world around me, from people, from the city, and from nature. I try to think of the interesting movements, compositions, objects, and stories that I can “freeze” for a second to create an image out of them. When I illustrate something for a client, the story of the drawing has to communicate with the idea of the client’s product. I help companies explain their ideas/products to their customers in a better way — with illustrations, icons, and visuals. I’m giving a lot of attention to my color choice, and sometimes I spend hours adjusting and tweaking my colors to achieve the right atmosphere. I get a lot of color inspiration and palettes from Color Hunt.

UISDC: What is your typical day?

Gal: I usually wake up at 9 AM and start my day with a 20-minutes walk to the office of the startup I’m currently working on. My work hours usually include meetings, brainstorming with my co-workers, designing, illustrating, and working closely with a team of developers, product managers, and copyrighters. By the evening, I find some time to answer emails, watch YouTube videos, share things with my followers, and have some free time to spend with my partner and friends.

UISDC: Can you share with us how you can effectively enhance your design skills and hand-drawing skill? Is there any good book or efficiency tool worth recommending? Can you give some advice for our new designers.

Gal: I believe that any skill is achievable, and that persistence is a key to enhancement. I found out that having a daily routine of a small drawing a day can be very effective.

I’d advise new designers to have their environment filled up with stuff that inspires and motivates them. Follow illustrators, designers, and artists on social media, watch videos about design, read articles, and try to learn as much as you can every day.

UISDC: There are so many people interested in your works, we wonder to know if you have plans to make tutorials.

Gal: Yes. I’m uploading tutorials on my YouTube channel and videos about design, illustration, and tips for growing a career as a designer.

UISDC: We are very interested in your office environment. Can you show us your workstation and the items that bring you happiness? (Can you open Uisdc.com for us and take a picture of your workplace?)

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Published in Prototypr

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Written by UISDC

UISDC(uisdc.com) is the most popular designer learning platform in China.

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