Jag's 365 Illustrations Follow-up

Jag Nagra completed her year long 365 Illustrations project on January 28, 2013...



What are the biggest lessons/skills you learned from doing your project? I think with some more practice in illustration, I'll be able to convincingly call myself an Illustrator.  That's basically what this project set out to do…challenge myself in something I didn't know how to do before.  I had only very briefly dabbled in illustration in the past, and I was fascinated with trying to break things down into their simplest forms.  How few geometric shapes does it take for something to be recognizable?  That's what I set out to discover every day.



In what ways did the project change your life? One of the most important things that I will take away from this project is that I learned how important self-intiated projects are.  It's so easy to get caught up in your day job, and you end up feeling like your creativity is sometimes muddled.  This was a really important experiment for me, and I was able to create and develop my own unique style, and got to see what my voice is as a designer.  It also taught me a lot about commitment.  It wasn't easy working on this each and every day, but especially since there was an internet audience out there, I couldn't stop half way through despite how challenging it was.  It was worth it in the end, now that I see the full series.



Now what? Well, I don't think I'll be starting another 365 project anytime soon, ha!  I think there is opportunity for that in the future, but for now, my goal for this year's self-initiated project is to complete a cookbook of my mom's Indian recipes.  I started it last year, but didn't have a lot of time to dedicate it, so it's just sitting on the back burners right now.  But I will be designing the book, writing out her recipes, and taking photos of her dishes.  I also plan to include lots of illustrations in it.  I want it to be something that would look as good on your coffee table, as it would on the kitchen counter. She's an amazing cook, and I think it's important to document and honour her recipes.  You should try her Pakoras :)




Read Jag's original 365 interview HERE.



See all of Jag's 365 illustrations on her site HERE and in this video...






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