Interview With Artist Francesco Liori

Today’s interview is with freelance illustrator and visual artist Francesco Liori. Francesco is established in Cagliari, Italy and he is also known as FR3NK or EOP Design in the design world. His artworks are really amazing and whether we’re talking about his digital art or drawings, they both are beautifully detailed and full of imagination.

When did you start your career as a designer?

It started back in 2007,  when I  did my first cover design  for a bunch of friends. Since then I realized I could do it for a living and I could put all my energy and time into it.

What is your educational background?

I’ve studied art and contemporary art at high school and after that I went to the academy of arts in Bologna too.

You’ve surely worked on several projects so far. What would be  the most relevant ones?

So far I enjoined working with loads of artists. I was into musical talking… there’s not much difference or more importance in any of them … my favorite so far are More Than Life and Lighthouse. I’m actually working on the new Gold Kids album which is one of the best things I’ve done since I started… can’t wait for  everyone to see it. Right now I’m also working for a few skateboarding brands. To have my artwork on a deck is something I dreamed about for so long so you can understand how I feel. REESON skateboarding made me their official graphic designer so loads of new things should come out really soon.

Can you name 3 designs from your portfolio you like the most?

There are a bunch of designs with some massive architecture stuff in them. Check them out on my portfolio, I’ve done them for fun but I have to say I really liked it.

Our readers would definitely love to know what hardware and software you use when you create your designs?

Stencils, Markers, Imac 24 “, Photoshop, Illustrator and a good Pen tablet.

What are the things that inspire you? Can you name a few websites you use for inspiration?

There’s not any website actually, I love historical books and history in general. Some really old artist from Art Nouveau, Pre Raphaellities and Symbolists in general gave me so much inspiration and ideas.

When you began your journey as a designer you probably had a few role models, would you name two of your favorite artists?

God machine is one of those I love the most and his career is incredible too. So if I really need to pick a name he would be the only one to be honest.

Designing has its ups and downs, what is the most difficult problem you ever faced as a designer?

I never found any huge difficulty or problem doing this. Dealing with my passion is something really easy and it just brings you more satisfaction than troubles!

Looking a bit into the future, how do you think people will look at your designs in four years from now?

I really don’t know and I  actually never thought about it. I have a “no future” way of thinking, I’m just working as much as I can to get better and better. Can’t really give you a proper answer on this one.

What advice would you give to the newbie designers?

Work every day. Do your best.

How much free time you have in a week and how do you usually spend that?

I’m a surfer so if I have some spare time and the waves are there I spend my time at the beach. I live in a remote island in the middle of the Mediterranean sea so this is something we can all appreciate over here.

What is your favorite PC game and how many hours you spend playing it?

Actually I am not into PC games.

I really liked this design. What was your drive to create it?

Smiles have been really popular in the 80s and Disaster clothing asked me to work on it and bring it back. I love zombies and dead creatures in general so I’ve done a mix of both cultures and that’s what it came out.

Visit Francesco’s portfolio website.

You can check out Francesco’s Behance profile here.