Nick Lyre

Year of birth: 1996.
Where do you live: Ukraine.
Describe your art in three words: “Art is Freedom”.
Your discipline: My discipline is graphic design.
Website | Instagram

How would you describe the evolution of your artistic journey, and what led you to work primarily in the digital medium?

I was simply impressed by the works I’ve seen in Louvre and wanted to follow the footsteps of the masters. I’m still very far away from their level, but i’ll definitely try my best. Regarding digital – I simply didn’t have my own space or money to go with traditional, and digital was much more affordable. I would love to try traditional, one day soon 🙂

You mention blending nature, portraiture, and architecture in your work. How do these elements complement each other in your pieces?

Here I meant that Im working in these directions – I don’t  intersect them in each piece. I’m sorry, I’ve put it the wrong way. 

Nick Lyre | Сossack on horse

You describe your style as impressionistic. How do you balance traditional techniques with modern digital tools in your creative process?

I just draw. I’ve been working for a very long time on my digital brushes – adding textures and making them as close as possible to the traditional once. Just trying to reach that traditional look and luckily the brush engine in Photoshop and some impasto brushes for Krita really allow that.

Can you tell us more about your use of digital impasto and canvas textures? How do these traditional features influence your work?

I simply apply them and see how it works for every single piece. I judge visually and also depending on what I imagine each piece should look like, and it differs from piece to piece. I just experiment – my inner feeling lets me know whether I’m on the right path. These features make my digital look closer to traditional and I love it.

Nick Lyre | Сhildren of war

Your work seems to evoke deep emotions. How do you approach conveying emotions digitally, and what role do color and value play in this process?

I would saythat digital is same as traditional in this regard. Yes, the difference is in how its done, but digital artists still communicate in visual terms such as color, shapes, values, composition in the same way traditional artists do.

You draw inspiration from baroque architecture. What aspects of this style influence your digital artworks, and how do you incorporate them?

I love the artistic features of this architecture style. I’m in process of working on pieces with this architecture style, it proves being difficult. And I understand how much love the creators had for their creations just by looking at those works.

Nick Lyre | Hair brushing

What advice would you give to emerging artists looking to blend traditional art techniques with digital media?

Experiment. Always.