Yumi Yamazaki

Interviewer: Hey Yumi! Thank you for doing this interview! You seem incredibly busy juggling your personal artwork, art direction role, and running HIDEOUT. How do you manage it all, and what does a typical week look like for you?

Yumi Yamazaki: Hi, thanks for having me! It’s been a crazy busy year for sure and to be honest, I don’t know how I manage either hahaha. I just try and get through each task one day at a time.

I work during the day at my company and then usually work on HIDEOUT things or gallery pieces after work and on the weekends. I’m really lucky to have a fully remote position at the moment which is probably the main reason I have the time and energy to work on my other projects after work.

I still try to have some free time though which I usually spend going to gallery shows, catching a movie, or playing games at home!

You studied Digital Media at Otis College of Art and Design. What was that experience like, and what compelled you to pursue the challenging path of being an artist?

I had a love hate relationship with Otis for sure but it was definitely a formative period for me and my career. I had a lot of beef with the curriculum, but I really value all of the friends I made there. I also learned from many incredible teachers who definitely helped guide me towards the right direction.

Many of my cherished memories of being at Otis are the late night manic work sessions I had with my friends in their dark computer labs. I loved drawing and paintings for sure but I don’t think I would have survived 4 years at Otis without my friends.

Student work by Yumi

During your time as a student, was there any particular class, professor, or lesson that marked a turning point in your development. Something that helped bridge the gap from amateur to professional?

When I first started art school, I had no idea how much hard work it would take. I distinctly remember the moment where I had the realization that I had to dedicate all of my time into art. It was in an animal drawing class that I was sitting in on with my professor, Gary Geraths. He was known to be a very intense and passionate teacher but he had such a strong love for art and teaching. Through his classes, I learned that art was not just a career but a life style.

Your personal work features an impressive array of styles, mediums, and layers of complexity. What drives this diversity?

I've always had diverse interests in art, Western and Eastern styles, internet culture like early YouTube animations and music videos. I'm fascinated by all of these influences and grew to want to incorporate them into a piece in an organized chaos, kind of like how my brain is.

You seem very involved in the traditional fine art gallery world. How did you break into gallery exhibitions, and how does that side of your practice complement your commercial work?

My mentor Nathan Ota introduced me to the gallery scene through the post-it show at Giant Robot Gallery, and I felt like keeping my identity as an artist separate from my commercial work was important to me. I didn't want to just dedicate my work to a company for my entire life. Plus, I get to draw and paint whatever I want for galleries, so it's become my completely self-indulgent creative outlet.

You're currently working as an Art Director for SUP Inc. What does a typical day look like in that role, and could you tell us about some of the projects you're currently working on?

My role as an Art Director has been to find or create bridges between tech and art to create something unique, and everyone at Sup is very appreciative of art and believes in creating technology for creative people. In my day to day, I manage a team of 3 in-house 2D artists and 3 outsourcing teams for 3D work, overseeing schedules and communications, and I still get to draw and design things, especially in early stages when we're establishing style and scope.

As an Art Director, what qualities or skills do you typically look for when hiring artists? Are there any red flags that student should be aware of?

I hired all three of my team's artists after looking through at least 500-600 applications, and it was pretty clear within the first minute if they'd be capable. I looked for strong fundamentals in drawing and painting, diversity in their work, ability to match different styles, and something unique that made them stand out. It's an immediate close-tab for me when the work is presented poorly with bad photos or dirty scans, because they're showing me unprofessionalism and inattention to detail. The presentation is just as important as the strength of the work, and if I have any trouble navigating your website or seeing your work, it's over.

What's next for Yumi?

It’s a really strange and chaotic time right now and I have been finding some peace in creating resources for HIDEOUT to share with fellow artists who are just trying to navigate the world. I hope to keep expanding this community while continuing in my own artistic career.