Aliaga Mirguseinov’s obsession with cartoons and children’s books began at an early age — and it continues to shape his work as an adult. “They’re so positive, like a gateway to an imaginary place where I can also be a kid again,” he says.
 

The Lithuanian artist, who works across digital illustration and animation, and also teaches art classes for kids and teens, created this year’s colorful splash page for Adobe Character Animator. The project is not only fitting to his expertise, but a testament to his personal drive to pursue his lifelong passion.

As a young college student, Mirguseinov initially pursued law at his family’s urging. “Almost everyone, including my teachers and some of my friends, discouraged me from seeking a career as an illustrator,” he says, “and for a given time, I agreed.”

Completing both undergraduate and law school degrees only further convinced him, however, that he would need to fully commit if he wanted to achieve his dream. Turning to the two available design programs offered at his local technology school — interior design or graphic design — Mirguseinov opted for the latter, which was “closest to what I wanted to do,” he says, and completed a third degree in graphic design. “It was the fastest and happiest four years of my life.”

While he enjoyed art school, Mirguseinov’s first day job in graphic design proved unfulfilling. He discovered he was less interested in working with typography and layouts than drawing, so he finally made the leap to start a freelance digital illustration practice three years ago.

Being featured in an Adobe splash page, Mirguseinov says, has provided affirmation that he’s now on the right track. “I just love going against the odds, and people saying that I won’t make it. It just makes me want to prove them wrong.” 

Surprisingly, the idea for the Character Animator artwork came to him while he was taking a figure drawing class with live models. “Instead of drawing the actual human figures, I was just imagining them in an abstract sort of way,” he says. “When everyone around me was drawing on paper, I was sketching on my iPad.”

“A good character shows emotion, and not just on his face.”

The final splash page features a friendly character ambling through a purple landscape. Even with soft, cartoonish features and no eyes, she is full of personality. “A good character shows emotion, and not just on his face,” Mirguseinov says. “The whole body language, the setting, the colors, and the atmosphere around him all convey the specific emotion that goes along with that character.”

“Color is what sets the whole mood and atmosphere of the illustration,” adds Mirguseinov, who’s constantly experimenting with new styles and ways of creating his characters. At the end of the day, he says, “I mostly work from instinct.”