Roshan Gawand

Brought up in a Maharashtrian village, Roshan Gawand does not hesitate to add the essence of Indian culture to his artworks. This Mumbai-based illustrator and tattoo artist has an abstract style of art and mentions his love for portraits as well.

Expressing Human Forms

How would you describe yourself and your style as an illustrator?

Roshan Gawand: I am an Illustrator based in Navi Mumbai. I did my Graduation Studies from L. S. Raheja School of Art as a commercial artist. I spent most of my childhood in a village and lived in an ordinary family. For me, a painting not only puts color on a canvas but is an expression of the artist. I keep expressing my thoughts through different artworks. I love to explore different color schemes. As an artist, I never stop making myself better from all angles.

Could you elaborate on the distinct kind of color scheme you adopt and what role it plays in your work?

Roshan Gawand: To me, colors are like a new way of living life, so I try to incorporate that happiness, joy, and a new way of life in my paintings. Human eyes are easily drawn to bright and vibrant colors, so I try that aspect in my artwork. People have started accepting these color patterns nowadays.

What significant or memorable projects have you worked on so far and elaborate on one or two of them from brief to execution?

Roshan Gawand: I have worked on many projects and have loved them. All the projects were briefed nicely. One of them is the Swaraj Tractor. Their work process and coordination with the designer are very cool. Even the timeline for each project was given perfectly.

What kind of projects are you most excited to do further and why? What would be your dream project?

Roshan: My work shows Indian traditions and speaks about Indian culture. I would love to work on projects with more creativity and innovation. I enjoy working on human figures. If there’s a project where I can show cultures around the world and the characteristics of each human from a different continent, I would love to do it.

How do you choose your characters? What inspires and influences you to decide on subjects to illustrate?

Roshan: I was born and brought up in the village. Even now, I live about an hour away from my hometown, so I have a warm spot in my heart for my native place and it inspires me. Whenever I see something interesting, I try to take a snap as a subject for my next work.

Most of my character inspirations come from the actual scenes and experiences around me. For some ideas, I try to search for inspiration on Pinterest. It gives me the ability to play around with the ideas that I carry in my mind.

Most of your characters seem to project bold, expressive personas. What makes you choose that form of depiction?

Roshan: I try to capture the magic of a particular moment. The human form has a beauty of its own. When you achieve expression of its gestures, your work turns out better. For example, during the lockdown period, I saw a man shaving his beard on his veranda. I observed his body gestures – the shape of his folded legs and razer in one hand, mirror in the other – and felt like drawing him. It’s all a game of negative and positive spacing which attracts me the most to depict a particular persona.

“The human form has a beauty of its own. When you achieve expression of its gestures, your work turns out better”

What do you think is the relevance of digital art in current times and how do you see it growing in the near future?

Roshan: The future of digital art is in that it can be continued as an instrument to communicate with people, and express ideas and emotions to make changes in society. Digital artists should use their talents to make positive changes. Artificial Intelligence is a field that is very important in digital art. Nowadays, we are connected with everyone through this digital medium. Digital media also provides a lot of opportunities for artists to showcase their talent.

If you could time travel into the past or future, which era would you choose as an illustrator and for what reasons?

Roshan: If I get the chance to travel back in time, I will go to the time of the European Renaissance, so that I can witness the glory of the art of that period which is highly treasured today and spread over most of Italy and other European countries.

What is your word of advice to those who are just starting out in digital art, from your own experience?

Roshan: My advice to all those who love to create digital art is they must learn Photoshop, Illustrator, and 3D art software. These tools allow you to bring your thoughts on canvas. Before that, however, they should know what roles all these tools play. Also, keep practicing every day – an hour is enough when starting out.

A woman with a jug standing in the water

Of all the clients you’ve worked with, which have been your very best experiences and what made them so?

Roshan: One of the best clients I have worked with till now is Tata Motors. They have a different style of coordinating with designers. This client gives me a perfect timeline with minor changes. What else can a designer want?