The interview below was paired with the launch of the I AM Patterns new collection, I AM Relaxed. Read more about the project in my case study. You can also find the original post on the I AM Patterns website.

He collaborated on the I AM Relaxed collection and created all the illustrations. Artist Iancu Barbărasă brings sweetness, beauty and joy to our creative lives.

Firstly because he’s a talented artist, but also because we have a very special bond with him. Love: he’s Blandine’s husband. Their daughter Mira was born this summer. An amazing brother-in-law and a caring uncle.

Iancu is a sensitive, humble, kind, honest, discreet and very creative man. He has many, many qualities, the list would be very long. His work speaks for itself.

This collection release is a great opportunity to celebrate all that love. So we’ve worked together to open up our worlds to you and give you the chance to dream, bask and create! Come and discover the gentleness and depth of this extraordinary man. Don’t miss a moment, discover the magnificent world of Iancu.

Who are you? What is your job?
I’m Iancu Barbărasă, a graphic designer, illustrator and visual artist based in London, UK, born in Transylvania, Romania. I’ve been working for almost 20 years with clients and agencies from all over the world, but self initiated projects are also an important part of my practice.

Can you tell more about your illustrations?
My illustrations in particular are usually about the beauty of things, finding moments of wonder every day, kindness, love, joy and creativity. My work in general aims to inform, delight and inspire.

What are your inspirations?
I’m curious about a wide range of subjects, from art & design to music, history, literature, sciences, popular culture etc (kottke.org is one of my favourite websites, full of wonderful, quirky finds). They all influence my work in many ways. I often draw inspiration from things I see every day, especially the ones that might seem mundane to most people. But I’m also inspired by other artists and designers, of course. Some of the people I admire are Christoph Niemann, David Hockney, Mai Miturich, Milton Glaser, Katsuji Wakisaka, Hayao Miyazaki, Isao Takahata, Jean Jullien, Luis Mendo and many more.

What is your work process?
I love drawing on paper. Nothing beats the feeling of a brush, pen or pencil moving smoothly across the page, leaving wonderful lines and shapes behind. Drawing on paper allows for “happy accidents” to happen, when my hand almost seems to have a mind of its own. The end result often surprises me, in a good way.

Having said that, I do a lot of digital drawing as well. Apps like Procreate allow for a faster workflow, especially when working under a tight deadline.

All my work starts in my sketchbooks, where I explore lots of ideas and approaches. For the refined drawings, I either work on larger watercolour paper (which I scan afterwards), or move into Procreate and redraw everything digitally. Final tweaks are done in Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator or other software, depending on the project.

What are the messages that you want to share?
I think it’s important to appreciate what we have and see in front of us every day: family, food, nature, neighbourhood, friends etc. I would even say it’s important to practice appreciation just like athletes and musicians practice their craft every day. Our lives would be better, kinder and happier this way.

What made you want to collaborate with I AM Patterns?
I admire I AM Patterns for several reasons. First, the company teaches and encourages people to make things with their own hands, which is one of the joys many have forgotten. This has a large benefic impact on people’s mental health, and, of course, helps the environment. Second, it’s run by two brave, very creative and hard-working ladies. Third, I AM Patterns has a timeless, simple but elegant sense of style, which is something I also strive for in my work. So I’m quite happy that we get to work together.

What is your relationship with I AM Patterns?
My wife is a longtime collaborator of I AM Patterns, and I’ve helped with design work several times in the past, so I am fairly familiar with the brand :)

What was your inspiration for this project?
Flowers are one of the simple but great pleasures in life, bringing joy and relaxation. I launched a stop-motion short film with over 500 hand-drawn flowers earlier this year, which Marie-Emilienne liked, so we started talking about how we could use flowers for the I AM RELAXED collection. The approach is different from my short film, but there are several common aspects as well. I also thought it would be nice to create something that might bring to mind the beautiful Toile de Jouy patterns.

Same question for Marie-Emilienne: what was your inspiration for this project?
I love Iancu’s work. He’s very diligent and every day I see him drawing, wherever he is. He looks around and draws. He created a whole series of flowers, one every morning for Blandine, and turned them into a magnificent story, which led to a beautiful digital exhibition in London. He draws on his everyday life and, through his art, creates magnificent illustrations. Flowers are one of the things we have in common. Iancu draws them, and Vincent, my husband, grows them. I live on a flower and vegetable farm with a man who is passionate about plants. So when we went to London to take photos for the collection, an idea came to me: what if Iancu wanted to draw flowers to illustrate ‘I AM RELAXED’? He said yes. What could be better than relaxing in nature?

Back to Iancu: What message do you want to share here?
I hope people will see the illustrated flowers as a reminder to stop and take a moment to enjoy nature for a bit next time they’re outside. Even if it’s just a quick look at some flowers or a tree on their street, on the way to buy bread.

Thank you very much!

Thanks to you Iancu :)

Want to find out more about Iancu? We invite you to discover all his work.
On his website: iancul.com

Follow him on Instagram: @ianculdraws

Check out his online shop: shop.iancul.com

My short film “A flower a day” is on show at the Outernet London digital galleries in June and July, as part of a collaboration with WeTransfer’s WePresent.

Outernet London is located next to the Tottenham Court Road tube station, at the end of Oxford Street, near Centre Point. There are two public (free to visit) galleries, The Now Building and Now Trending. Both feature giant Ultra HD screens capable of delivering amazing audio-visual experiences. Film times can be found on the Outernet free app.

“A flower a day” is a stop-motion short film with over 500 flower ink drawings, made every morning for my partner over three years. The film portrays the joy of being in a relationship, and highlights the importance of daily commitment that a good relationship requires. Music is an integral part of the film, the drawings being matched with Chopin’s Minute Waltz.

You can watch the film and read more about the process behind it in my “A flower a day” case study.

Many many thanks to Suzanne Tromp and Alex Mattinson from WePresent for including my film in their Outernet programme. It’s wonderful to see my drawings on such a huge scale, but it’s especially a delight to see so many people enjoying the film. I hope the film’s message will stay with them at least for a while.

There are several other great WePresent collaborations on show at Outernet, with artists like Ian Woods, Luciana Demichelis, Cato.ink, Ayange Olarinde, Ashkan Honarvar, Carlin Diaz.

Located on the left side of The Now gallery, the Now Trending gallery provides a closer, more intimate experience.

If you can’t go to see it in person, here’s a video for you to get a better idea of the space:

If you’ve missed it or just want to watch my film again, you can do so on my “A flower a day” page.

If you’d like to know when similar projects are launched, sign up to my newsletter (sent out only a few times per year).

You can also follow me on Instagram at @ianculdraws.

by Adrian Shaughnessy
ISBN-10: 1856697096
ISBN-13: 978-1856697095
This book will give you a very good general idea on what it actually means to be a graphic designer. Whether you plan to find a job or start on your own, Mr Shaughnessy offers plenty of details on what you need to know and do. He also interviews several high profile designers, asking for their tips. The table of contents, laid out on the cover, is more than self-explanatory.

by Robert Bringhurst
ISBN-10: 0881792128
ISBN-13: 978-0881792126
While there is no such thing as too many typefaces (unless they’re on the same layout), this is less valid for typography books. Good typography is the backbone of any design, whether it’s a small Christmas card or a large supergraphic signage system. Hermann Zapf’s ‘wish to see this book become the Typographer’s Bible’ written on the back cover says it all.

by Josef Müller-Brockmann
ISBN-10: 3721201450
ISBN-13: 978-3721201451
The 80’s are some thirty years back now and fortunately David Carson is just one, so you’ll need to learn the basics of grid systems, especially now that webdesign has finally caught up in using great typefaces and proper, even flexible grids. While the previous book will explain some of the basics, this book by Müller-Brockmann is the cornerstone. You don’t have to become a gridnik like Mr Crouwel, but any piece of design – just like architecture – needs a good structure.

by Wally Olins
ISBN-10: 0500514089
ISBN-13: 978-0500514085
Unless you’re living on a remote mountain, growing your own vegetables, you’ll know by now that brands are all around us. In this day and age, understanding branding has become maybe even more important than classic skills like typography or grid design. This book explains what brands are and how they work. If you’re involved in any commercial business, branding is essential for success, whether you’re a designer or not. You’ll rarely find such concise, no-bullshit writing on branding as from Mr Olins – and these days everyone writes about branding.

by Austin Kleon
ISBN-10: 0761169253
ISBN-13: 978-0761169253
I’ve rarely seen such concise pieces of advice for any creative venturer. You can read the ten short chapters in less than an hour, but you’ll find invaluable advice, ranging from copying as the best form of learning or freedom from debt to the importance of habits and perseverance. Buy it, read it, keep it on your table and browse it again and again.

by Richard Hollis
ISBN-10: 0500203474
ISBN-13: 978-0500203477
Graphic design has changed significantly with the introduction of PCs in the 1980s and with the spread of the Internet in the 1990s and especially the 2000s. Still, the core ideas remain pretty much the same as the ones used by the Bauhaus or Paul Rand. The past is a great source of inspiration, as long as you keep in mind that you need to steal from many, not just one. Hollis’s book is a great start (also look for the Meggs tome if you have the time and the money).

by Beryl McAlhone & David Stuart
ISBN-10: 0714838128
ISBN-13: 978-0714838120
Design without ideas is mere styling. This book shows plenty of memorable examples of fine design, the kind that makes you smile with admiration. The projects shown range from playful, witty to humorous or ironic, covering the main business sectors. It also contains interviews with 26 of the best designers, explaining how they got their ideas. A must have for any designer striving to learn how to think.

by Steven Heller
ISBN-10: 0714839949
ISBN-13: 978-0714839943
Probably the best monograph ever written about a designer. Paul Rand is regarded as one of the finest thinkers, with work spanning from advertising, publishing to corporate design and children’s books. This volume will show you the endless possibilities in design (even before the digital era) and introduce you to one of the best role models you could have.

by Haruki Murakami
ISBN-10: 0099526158
ISBN-13: 978-0099526155
It’s not about design, but this book will teach you about the importance of perseverance. Murakami offers great insights into what it takes to have a long and fruitful career. It also talks about the benefits of sport, especially for creatives that are bound to their chair for most of the day. Btw, this cover shown here is designed by Chip Kidd, look him up too.

by Hermann Hesse
ISBN-10: 0141189576
ISBN-13: 978-0141189574
This is my all time favourite book. There’s so much to learn from it, but the main reason I’m including it here is that it talks about the importance of leaving your familiar places to experience diversity and about the search for meaning. It’s a great book for any designer that learns that best things come from ‘seeing’ (not just looking) around you, and dares to step out of the ‘bubble’ designers usually tend to live in.

Such a list is never easy to do. I had to leave out many gems like ‘From Lascaux to Brooklyn’ by Paul Rand, ‘Make it Bigger’ by Paula Scher or the wonderful ‘The Art of Looking Sideways’ by Alan Fletcher. Also, ‘An A-Z of Visual Ideas’ by John Ingledew and ‘LogoDesignLove’ by David Airey are worth reading and keeping close, for daily references. All these will help you a lot, but in the end, the best way to learn is still working with a senior (in addition to doing a lot of work yourself, paid or personal). Read these and go out and find somebody better than you, learn everything you can, then find somebody even better and repeat. Good luck!

— check out Designersandbooks, the favourite books of many great designers;
— also worth checking out Frank Chimero’s and Jason Santa Maria’s book lists.