Anime Boston 2019: The Balance Between Line And Color – A Conversation With Pegushi
by Tito W. James
At Anime Boston 2019, I had the chance to chat with artist Peggy Shi (Pegushi).
Tito W. James: Tell me how you got involved with drawing and then drawing professionally.
Peggy Shi: I think drawing has been my passion ever since I was young. Going to art school was a very last-minute decision but when I finally went there I started drawing a whole lot more.
TWJ: What school did you go to?
PS: RISD; Rhode Island School of Design.
TWJ: Did they make you draw a bicycle? I believe that’s a tradition.
PS: Yeah, we had to do a lot of bike drawings. But it paid off. I didn’t really know how to draw a bike until then. It was a challenge.
[Laughs]
TWJ: What are some of your artistic influences?
PS: Originally it was Masaaki Yuasa, but also at a certain point I just really wanted to incorporate lineart with color really well. For a while people would do black lines with color and I wasn’t too fond of that. So I wanted to impose a challenge upon myself and see what I could come up with. I was trying to seek a good balance between lineart and color.
TWJ: Are there any rules to your art style?
PS: There are no set rules. But sometimes I try to go for flat colors with no shape. But if shade helps with describing the form I would have to use some shading and gradients.
TWJ: What are some things you love to draw and some things you hate to draw?
PS: What do I love to draw? It varies… Sometimes I’m more interested in the color than the subject. It’s more like I draw the subject to get to the color.
I think drawing hair is the hardest part. Mechs are ok, as long as you have a good reference.
TWJ: Do you have any advice for aspiring artists?
PS: Whether it’s drawing or coloring always use reference images.
I’d like to thank Peggy for taking the time for this interview. You can view more of her work on her website.