Mads Berg on Illustration and Raising the Bar

In the framework of the Nordic Fashion Exhibition, Georgia Today interviewed one of the participant illustrators from Denmark, Mads Berg, about his creativity and achievements.

Q: Tell us about yourself.

A: Born in Odense, Denmark, in 1975, since 1995 I have been living in Copenhagen. I graduated in 2001 from the Danish Design School. My mother is a textile designer, and my father was a painter, so art and design has always been an important part of life and being able to make a living as an illustrator has always been my goal.

Q: What is your favorite style?

A: Pencil (HB or 2B) sketching for getting the image’s composition in place, then coloring up with computer software, such as Adobe Illustrator.

Q: Can you explain your creative/working process?

A: Attack - doubt - reattack - reward - coffee

Q: What helps you be more creative?

A: The urge to raise the bar in every image. Inspiration comes naturally when living and working among other creators and non-creators, being part of a big city milieu, I do not feel it necessary to seek inspiration actively.

Q: The illustrators you admire?

A: My first heroes were the Baroque masters such as Caravaggio and Georges de la Tour. I admired their skills and their approach to contrast and colors.

Q: What awards have you received?

A: Danish Design Award & Best Danish Children’s Comic

Q: What is your dream?

A: I hope to be able to continue working together with nice people on nice projects. The personal contact is important for me, whenever possible. Also, I like to maintain the diversity in my commissions, from iconic to complex. I recently did a large mural piece for a Danish IT company, and after that a series of murals for a restaurant in Minneapolis. I am very fond of this field of illustration, and would like to do more of it. My goal is somehow to stay motivated to produce images every day, and never to feel too ‘home free’.

Q: What is the best and worst part of your job?

A: One of the best parts is being my own motivator and policeman. The most common challenge is to extend and evolve my visual language, when most of my working hours are spent doing illustration the way I usually do, and that clients know works.

Q: What do you do besides illustrating?

A: I spend time with my family; do a lot of different sports activities, and I travel.