Published by Leonardo Calcagno
Who are you :
Janine Rewell
Your current job :
Freelance Illustrator and Designer
In which city are you located?
Helsinki, Finland
A word to define what kind of worker you are :
busy
What tools are essential to your life (app, software, etc..)
I work mainly with Adobe Illustrator, sketching happens with traditional pencil and paper, sometimes finalise my artwork with handmade textures in Photoshop. Currently I’m pretty bored with sitting in front of my computer, so I constantly try to come up with art projects that are more physical. I recently created a dollhouse collection, NOOKS (http://www.nooks.fi), which was hand built and painted in my studio. It was super fun to play with wooden structures and paints!
What does your office space look like?
Kind of looks like a school gym; Wooden floors, 8m tall ceiling and big windows. The space used to be an old movie theatre and after that Church’s night shelter for homeless people. You can still see the bolts of a huge cross on the wall. We just moved in with a few other freelance photographers and graphic designers; in addition to our computer desk space, we have a photography studio upstairs, a painting dungeon in the basement, and sauna every Friday after work.
What kind of music do you listen when you are working ?
Music is always playing in the background when I work but if it’s loud, hectic and dominating the working atmosphere, it starts to show in the art pieces. I enjoy most calm melodic, fairly neutral music, it allows mind to wander around more freely and helps me to concentrate best. During my 10 years of freelance life, I have been to a lot of different studios with different people. Some creatives like to isolate themselves working with headphones on all the time but I’m more of a chatty type, so I like listening music from stereos that allows me to chat with my studio mates easier while I work.
Do you have a way to organize your day to maximize your work ? What tips would you give to improve productivity ? What is your best tip for saving time ?
Typically run erences and deal with social media and all emails in the morning so that after lunch I can work without interruptions all the way till evening. I set myself times when I can take a break and open the browser and check my facebook; otherwise I wouldn’t be able to concentrate at all.
You’re better than your colleagues to :
Keep the workspace organized and clean. We have four dogs playing around at the studio so it gets messy easily.
Aside from your computer and your phone, what gadget can you not you go without?
There is something calming about experiencing the world with your own eyes and hands, not through devices. I try to get away from all electronical gadgets on my freetime; I don’t even have a TV at home.
www.instagram.com/janinerewell