By Claire Regenstrief
Theme Editor
Unlike other artists, Mira Costa senior Joanne Qi utilizes the opportunities provided to her by the internet by creating graphic designs.
Qi sells her graphic design on various websites such as Aywas and Tumblr. The art Qi sells consists of images she creates of characters, website logos and social media icons.
Qi has been graphic designing since seventh grade and started selling to friends in eighth grade. Last year, she expanded her customer base to websites and started selling to people she didn’t know instead of just her friends. She started by uploading her designs to her Tumblr, cappybara.tumblr.com. As her page grew popular, she expanded to Aywas. Her art has since became popular amongst an older audience.
“I am so incredibly proud of Joanne and all she has accomplished,” senior Danit Rich said. “Looking back on her old work, it’s great to see how much her style has progressed.”
Tumblr is a social media platform for photography and text blogging. Qi uses the site to showcase her graphic designs. Aywas is a website that uses graphically designed animals to interact with other users. Qi also uses this site to show her graphic art design skills.
“I thought that with my diverse range of Tumblr followers, people might be interested in buying my work,” Qi said. “I wasn’t expecting much, but it turned out to be a great success due to my hard work and unique designs.”
Her smaller graphic items, like icons for social media sites, sell for around $6, and her larger pieces, like logos, sell for 15 dollars and above.
“I don’t usually sell my work for that much money because I am not that popular yet, but they do take a long time to make. Whenever I get someone who wants to commission a piece for a large amount of money, it’s incredibly rewarding,” Qi said. “I hope to spread the word about my art so I can broaden my customer base and, hopefully, pursure a career in art later on.”
Qi sells around one piece a month, but when she does not have any commissions, she continues to create art just for fun and for reference for future pieces.
“My favorite thing about selling my graphic designs is the rewarding feeling I get when somebody enjoys what I created for them,” Qi said.”
Leave a Reply