Vector Artist: Alexey Ogolushevich

Alexey Oglushevich is a vector artist from Magnitogorsk, Russia. He initially studied to be a metal worker, but as the technological age grew he became interested in computer graphics. Like many digital media artists, he is self-taught. He views vector graphics as a hobby and he works to develop his own unique style, not drawing influence from any other artist in particular.

To complete his works he begins by sketching out his ideas and also taking photos. He then starts creating vectors in Adobe Illustrator, Xara and CorelDraw. He usually works between 60-90 hours for each piece.

Below are some of Oglushevich's pieces. He primarily creates still life images as well as portraits of women. Unlike some vector artists who use vectors to create fantastical works, he creates only realistic images. He often plays with light and reflections in his images. I think it is his mastery of the depiction of light and reflection that makes his images look realistic.

One of my favorite pieces of his is the second image below, entitled Glass. My eye begins at the upside-down glass and then continues around the image counterclockwise. After looking at each of the glasses my eyes look at the reflection of the glasses on the glass table. Then the reflections carry my eyes back up to the glasses. I like this piece because although it is very simple, it is intriguing to look at because each glass has its own unique shape. There is no bright color that distracts the viewer. Hence, the overall grey tone allows the viewer to focus on the light in the image and how it interacts with each glass. Ogolushevich uses ordinary images, like glasses, but portrays them in an new way, displaying the beauty in the object. I think by creating this image with vectors instead of only taking photographs allows Ogolushevich to "create glossy" finish look to his art. Vector art also allows him to emphasize certain features, like light, that he would not necessarily be able to photograph in this way.

A major theme in his work is beauty, which is especially apparent in his portraits of women. This can be seen in the image below, Portrait with a Rose, which won the Grand Prize at the CorelDraw International Design Contest in 2009. I think Ogolushevich aims to portray the beauty in the world around him. Roses represent love and beauty and in this photo the rose seems to also represent femininity and sexuality. The woman and the flower complement each other and your eye switches back and forth from the woman's face and the flower. Ogolushevich also uses light very well in this piece by very realistically depicting the light hitting her face and the sheet.  

Below are some additional images of Ogolushevich's work. He commonly portrays flowers as well as animals. The last piece, Water, is also interesting to be because for my vector project I plan to use an image that has the ocean in the background. I hope to be able to blend a variety of colors together to make a realistic ocean as he did in his piece.