How Ukrainian folk art and '90s TV inspired Inna Vjuzhanina to create energetic fantasy art

Inna Vjuzhanina: I grew up in Ukraine, which has incredibly rich and vibrant folk art that really influenced my love for bold, vibrant colours. As a '90s kid, the only kind of entertainment you got was what was playing on TV. My childhood TV shows included Xena: Warrior Princess, Buffy the Vampire Slaye,r and Charmed, so I reckon my love for magic and strong women who pull no punches certainly stems from there.

IV: Films and video games have a major say as well. I’m an empath, so strong emotions and powerful stories are things that always have a great impact on me. When a particular story or a character connects with me, I get this immense reservoir of energy that I need to create an outlet for. “Painting out the feelings” is what I call this process of channelling that energy into my artwork.

IV: Yes! It was actually a 3D render. I was still dabbling in various creative branches at that time. And then I came across the work of Nicobass on DeviantArt. His Tomb Raider artworks impressed me so much that I knew I wanted to pursue art for sure. That’s how it started for me.

IV: That commission was a gig to illustrate a graphic novel for a self-published author. The project was drastically underpaid and never finished, but I’m grateful for it. Thanks to that commission, I was motivated to quit my office job and start pursuing art. It also made me realise that I never, ever want to illustrate labour-heavy projects like a graphic novel again, and that I prefer singular illustrations to creating sequential art.

IV: My latest paintings are a series of Arcane-inspired character portraits. That franchise is incredibly dear to me, so working on each piece feels like paying tribute to an old friend. An emotional connection to the subject is incredibly important to me, which I only realised upon some self-reflection down the line. So right now my main focus is personal art, and I’m only taking commissioned work if the subject matter connects with me.

IV: It’s way better than I imagined! I thought I’d be living from commission to commission, doing private gigs and company work, hoping the big clients would notice me one day. But upon realising that freedom of creative expression is vitally important to me, I worked hard to break away from that and started doing my own thing. This has its own set of challenges, of course, but I’m waking up excited every single day, and that’s how I know I’m on the right track.

IV: Honestly, I’d tell her to do exactly the things I did, with all the chaos and pitfalls along the way. I don’t see “mistakes” as something to be avoided or to be guided away from. Trying different things with various outcomes is what gives you valuable experience and knowledge. It may seem like stumbling in the dark at times, but in hindsight, it’s always a great lesson that you grow from.

IV: I definitely enjoy the part that social media is playing now. I remember when I was starting out, the main art hub was just DeviantArt. You would comment on each other’s art and try to make friends, but there were a lot of limitations to it. But right now, you have so many platforms that allow you to connect with other artists, companies, and fans.

Personally, I really enjoy seeing the aspects of everyday life of my peers and favourite artists. It allows you to see the things you have in common, better understand a person and the challenges they’re facing, and simply connect on a human level. And not to mention that social media gives you the opportunity to be noticed by major companies without even reaching out to them.

IV: Oh, that’s a tricky one. I actually wouldn’t pin it down to just one piece, simply because the human soul is such a multifaceted being that no one painting or character can capture enough of it to truly be a significant representation. Every painting I’ve created showcases one or a few aspects of my own personality, so I really can’t pick just the one.

IV: I’ve always been curious about art conventions but never took the time to do any, just because the whole process felt way too overwhelming. In 2023, I was the guest of honour at the aniMUC convention in Germany – my much-needed push to dive in!

It was such a phenomenally fantastic experience that I knew I wanted to do more from that point on. I already did one local convention afterwards, and 2025 promises to be very interesting in that regard, too. I’ll be announcing everything on social media, so stay in touch!