How did you become an illustrator?
I've always been interested in art and design. I almost chose to study fine art in higher education after my art GCSE, but instead I chose graphic design because I was interested in visual communication. I studied it for the next six years. I graduated in 'Graphic and Media Design - Typography' from the University of the Arts London (London College of Communication) in 2008. I completed the degree in two years because I qualified to start from the second year. I still wish I did the full three years. The degree course focused heavily on conceptual ideas and solutions, which I really liked. However, I wanted to be creative outside of graphic design again so I began to draw. I found myself mostly drawing abstract shapes and patterns; a completely different style to what I had before. I believe studying graphics has been a big influence on my current style. I decided to focus on making illustration my primary discipline after I graduated.

Who were your early influences and who inspires you now?
I researched Salvador Dali a lot while I was studying art in school. Surrealism and Dada are two of my favourite art movements. Herb Lubalin was a great inspiration for typography and graphic design during college. My first dissertation was a comparative analysis between the works and lives of Marcel Duchamp and Damien Hirst because the themes within their work interests me. In 2010, I visited Pompidou in Paris, which was massively motivational and left me awestruck. Today, contemporary illustrators who also work with abstract elements and/or the female form inspire me greatly. Seeing beautiful works by other designers reignites my passion for illustration and challenges me to expand my own imagination. I adore shapes, colours, photography and typography and try to incorporate them into my work. I post my favourite works by other designers and illustrators on my Love & Inspiration blog at: nikkifarquharson.tumblr.com

What advice do you have for a new designer or illustrator?
Create a lot of work and build a portfolio that strongly demonstrates your skills and personal style. Having a simple online portfolio is the quickest and most convenient way to share your work with a wide audience. Send links of your work to magazines, brands, studios etc. and join online design communities and social networks to get that initial ball rolling. It’s about letting people know that you exist. Try not to let negative feedback or criticism put you off or deflate your confidence. Instead, aim to prove people wrong by using the criticism to inspire you to experiment and improve.

What is the idea behind your mixed media work?
Mixed Media Girls are experimental works combining found imagery with personal illustration. A Mixed Media Girl illustration is initially inspired by the original photograph. I alter the surroundings with abstract details and meticulous patterns. The final outcome is often playful and eclectic. The girl is either a prop to the pattern or just part of the canvas. I add the girl to put the patterns into context. Sometimes it is viewed as the other way round but I don't mind that. I approach mixed media work for clients a little differently. The illustration should be secondary to the real imagery. I want to enhance the photography, not drown it out.

How did you come up with Random Got Beautiful?
I started the site while I was still at university. At that time, I had a massive obsession with other people's random spontaneous photographs, so I wanted to create an easy location for them to be viewed and decided that 'colour' was a nice easy incentive to get people involved. www.randomgotbeautiful.com

Can I commission you to create original mixed media work?
I am always interested in new work and collaborations, especially with photographers, so do not hesitate to email me regarding details of a project. However, please bear in mind that I am unable to provide any real imagery for the mixed media artwork. If you already have fashion or editorial photographs that you would like me to work with, please attach low resolution copies of the images to your email. That way, I can tell you immediately if I am able to produce artwork for them, as all mixed media work is initially inspired by the original photograph.

Is your work for sale?
Any work that is for sale will be in my online shop. I am currently in the process of creating new mixed-media artwork that will become available as limited edition prints. Please join my newsletter to be the first to get exculsive news regarding this upcoming work.

What materials do you work with?
I pretty much exclusively work by hand with pens and paper. They're my favourite medium because they give me the most control, I enjoy the process and prefer the results. I use pencils, fine liner pens, a lot of colour markers, plain paper, coloured paper, tracing paper, magazine cut outs, photography and a lightbox. When necessary, sometimes I complete, edit or make final touches to my work digitally.

What methods do you use for creating your work?
I do a lot of preparation now that I didn't used to do. I used to draw with ink straight onto paper, with no clear vision of the final outcome. Now I sketch, lay out the composition, test colours together etc. The plan is to have the final artwork be as close to as how I imagine it to be with little to no mistakes, so I can keep the digital editing to a minimum.

How much time do you spend to complete an illustration?
It really depends on the detail, size and timeline of what I am creating. Illustrations can take between a few days to a few weeks. I like client work because I'm obliged to stick to deadlines, and they're usually quite tight. I'm trying to use this tradition of working to a specific timeline when working on self-initated projects. However, I have so many ideas and plans that I tend to start another new illustration or project before completing the previous one. It can be hard to remain disciplined and focused, but I am getting better at it!