Interview with Digital Artist and Photographer Emi Haze

Today we are joined by an artist whose work was among those featured in Adobe Photoshop's 25th Anniversary - 'Dream On'. Emi Haze is an Italian freelance digital artist and illustrator. His digital works are a mixture of graphic elements and hand-drawn ink marks, acrylic or watercolor stains. Read on and get inspired!

I believe your work to have a deep message. Can you share with us the philosophy of your work?

In my works the human being melts with nature and its four elements to give birth to my inner world, ethereal and imaginative, hanging in balance between reality, dream and fantasy. A harmony that bonds man and nature in a perfect way and which unfortunately nowadays seems to be a utopia.

How were you inspired to pursue this kind of career?

Art and painting connected to technology have always been my strongest passions and with the time this passion has eventually became my job.

Your style is a mixture of digital art and photography. How did you develop this?

Digital art and photography but also various hand-made elements such as scratches, ink marks, acrylic or watercolour stains: my style is a mix of all these tools.

Can you name an artist/s that you look up to? How have they influenced you?

I could name many artists, painters and digital artists that have influenced me, at first in my painting and later in my digital art. Mentioning only few of them would be reductive, because all the art world is the fundamental source of inspiration in the creative process, and I’m referring not only to pictorial art but also to music, filmmaking, photography and fashion.

What is your typical daily routine like?

It depends on the days…anyway usually the best moment to develop my works is at night…no sounds, no distractions…it is perfect time for my creative phase.

How do you go about creating a piece? Can you share with us your creative process?

My work starts from a photo and the first phase is its retouching. Afterwards I digitally import various hand-made elements such as scratches, ink marks, acrylic or watercolour stains. Then there a phase of image processing through the merging of these elements with elements of nature like trees, plants, leaves, clouds, water, fire, etc.

Do you get creative blocks from time to time? How do you overcome it? What advice can you share to overcome it?

Of course I do. I think is common to get them in every artistic process. However I have to say possibly they are more frequent in the beginning, when you still are in an experimental phase and you are looking for your own personal style. Afterwards everything becomes more natural and fluid. Any small block is overcome the very moment in which you develop your creation.

What are the things you do to get inspired? What are your typical movies, music, activities, etc. ?

In my opinion everything in every moment has an artistic side, the aesthetics of things, people around me...For me everything has its own importance, images, textures, sounds, fragrances, my creativity is constantly stimulated.Music is the key of this creative process. I could mention Sigur Rós, Radiohead, Bloc Party, Coldplay, Bjork etc.I’m also fond of movies, I love every kind cinema, especially indie movies and art movies.

Which of your works is your favorite? Can you describe it to us and why it is special?

I don’t have any favourite one. I think each of my works reflects my inner world, which I try to represent in the best way in that exact moment. “Cosmogony: Origin of the Universe” is probably the one I feel most attached to. It is the work that allowed me to make myself known to the general public and I think it fully represents my style, my world, my sensitivity.