PROPERNORMAL
PROPERNORMAL aka Ieva Gvazdaitytė is Lithuanian artist and illustartor, currently based in Germany. She has an unusual primitive, minimalistic style both visually and of the ideas behind it, talking about everyday life and the hilarious realities of adulthood.
This interview is pepared for her curent solo shaw of risograph prints and zine launch at Hungry Eyes. You can visist the exhibition until 14th of July 2022. All prints available in store and online.
Can you tell a bit about yourself, what is your background, where are you from?
I’m from smalltown Lithuania, currently living in Germany. I come from a background of languages, but staring at the screen all day doing translations wasn’t for me.
So now I stare at the screen all day doing drawing.
Why Proper normal?
I thought for a long time about what to name myself, but in the end decided to stick to something proper and normal.
How would you describe your work to someone who has never seen it?
Fun things in pleasant colors.
What is your routine and creative process as an illustrator?
I do have this flaw where I enjoy the result more than the process, but I’m trying to slow things down and enjoy the journey. Although I do most of my stuff digitally, I like to change things up, working with messier media like paint and clay. And of course, making stuff that nobody will ever see is very relaxing.
What inspires you?
The mundane and absurd details of everyday life.
What are a few of your favorite illustrators?
Self taught, their pure confidence and enjoyment of the process. And the classics – drawings of small kids are always out of this world. Also fellow Lithuanians are doing really cool inspiring things.
You are involved in comics culture, what do you like about comics?
The combination of visual and textual narratives in comics always fascinated me. Books but with
double the pleasure of escapism. Also, special thanks to Kitokia Grafika for sparking my and interest
in comics and confidence as an illustrator years ago.
Tell a bit about your current work or any recent project?
Currently I am illustrating a children’s book and keeping a tomato plant on my window alive.
What are your plans/ dreams for the future?
Due to the state of things, I'm happy just to be here and now. For more ambitious plans maybe a dog and a garden with some trees. Then my life would be complete.
