Meet Zi Xu | Freelance Illustrator

We had the good fortune of connecting with Zi Xu and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Zi, how has your work-life balance changed over time?
The concept of a work-life balance has always been a challenge for me, as I think it’s difficult to not do too much work especially when you’re pursuing a freelance career. When I first started doing professional art, I was working non-stop to the point of damaging my health. At some point, I had accumulated so many tiny damages (such as pinching nerves on my arms and getting various aches and pains from sitting for too long) that I decided something needed to change. Now I have a much better grasp on work-life balance as I prioritize sleep first, and don’t hesitate to reach out to clients and ask for an extension if I really need one. I also make sure to remain active for a good part of the week in the form of some sort of exercise, such as taking a quick walk, practicing archery, or doing some ring fit. So while it’s still a challenge, I feel a lot better now that I don’t go to extremes.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
Hello! My name is Zi Xu and I am an illustrator who has worked in the film and entertainment industry for the past five years. I was born in Hainan, China, but moved to the US when I was 5, and spent most of my life living in New Jersey until I moved to California in 2022. I graduated from the Maryland Institute College of Art in 2018 with a degree in Illustration and Art History, and have since put my skills to use in the commercial art world, illustrating posters, cover art, and marketing art for clients such as Disney, Lionsgate, Lucasfilm, Marvel, Universal, and Warner Brothers. In addition, I have done comic covers for the likes of DC, artwork for video game companies such as Arkane and SEGA, tour posters for bands such as Metallica and The Smashing Pumpkins, and cover art for Blu-Ray and Steelbook releases for films such as Akira Kurosawa’s “Ran” and “John Wick 4.”

My work combines everything I love about art, such as Chinese ink drawing and American Golden Age illustration styles. I have been drawing ever since I could remember – there are photos of me scribbling all over the walls at my grandparents’ place back in China – and I was very privileged to have parents who supported me in deciding that art was what I wanted to study and pursue as a career. However, I remember struggling a lot during my studies at MICA, because the curriculum was largely focused on editorial art for magazines and publications and I wanted to focus on creating artwork for the entertainment industry. At first, I had wanted to break into doing concept art for games, but immediately fell in love with creating designs for steelbooks and movie posters after receiving an assignment for them during my sophomore year. I decided to focus my energy on creating a portfolio just for that, and it was in large part due to that that I was able to start landing freelance work right after school.

My family and I have a wonderful relationship, and I was blessed to be able to move back home to NJ for a few years after school to save up money and launch my freelance business. Even though no one in my family is an artist or knew anything about the art industry, they had experience in running their own small business, and I think I definitely got my entrepreneurial spirit from my mom and dad. I immediately jumped straight into marketing myself on social media and sending out mass emails and mailers to potential art directors and clients I wanted to work with and was able to score a few jobs doing posters for indie films and games then and there. However, it wasn’t until I met my first professional mentor (Tracie Ching) by complete chance while scrolling on social media that I was able to land bigger jobs, get my name across bigger clients in the entertainment business, and learn how to price my work to match my skills. After her mentorship, I was introduced to and signed onto the creative agency that I’m now represented by (Poster Posse), and that combined with years of developing a social media following, a bunch of testimonials and recommendations from fellow peers and clients in the industry who knew or have worked with me, networking at conventions, and a lot of cold emails to just about everyone I want to do art for (I keep a very organized Google Doc to track this!), I was able to build a small business out of drawing the things I love for a living. In 2022, I had saved up enough money to move out to where I’ve always wanted to live (California), so I packed my bags and now I’m here!

I firmly believe that the biggest part of how I was able to get here is through the support of others, as well as through sheer luck. Of course, a lot of grit and hard work come into play as well, but I think a lot of people overlook the importance of emotional/physical/financial support (whether through family or community) and having a large network where people know you and can recommend you (which is how I’ve gotten some of my best-paying and biggest jobs to date). With luck, I believe that that is something that can be influenced to a certain extent (eg. developing a social media following, which increases your chances of being seen, etc.) with hard work and other factors you can control – there have been many times where certain things have lined up or I’ve gotten jobs I’ve been dreaming of for years, and it always feels magical (even though most of the time it was because I had emailed an art director years ago and they remembered me after all this time, or because an old classmate had referred me to a certain client). I always think of luck as something you can plant and reap the rewards down the line if you water it the right way.

One of the other major lessons I learned along the way is that even if you fail at something first, it doesn’t mean that you won’t ever be able to do that thing and succeed in the future. I remember really struggling with editorial and concept art in college, and I ended up deciding that I didn’t want to pursue those professionally because it didn’t “click” with my sensibilities and way of working. However, I still ended up scoring a few concept art gigs for games years after, and recently was able to do my first cover for Mother Jones magazine, which is now out on newsstands and bookstores nationwide. It took some time, but because illustration is a very broad field, most illustrators can find several uses and markets for their artwork and style – it just takes the right client or art director seeing your work at the right time.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
I’d probably take them to the beach or boardwalk to watch the sunset! Part of the reason I love the West Coast is it’s color quality (maybe it’s a “me” thing, but it’s a huge reason why being here doesn’t give me seasonal depression like being in New Jersey did, haha) – the scenery here is incredible and perfect for taking out a sketchbook and drawing/painting. I’d also like to take them up to the Mulholland Overlook to watch the city lights during the nighttime. The Last Bookstore was a place I visited when I first moved here and it’s since become one of my favorite bookshops to chill and read.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I have so many folks I’d love to shoutout for this! Firstly, I could not have imagined a career in the arts if it were not for the financial and emotional support from my family. I believe that it’s crucial to acknowledge your privileges as they can absolutely give one a head start in whatever it is they want to do – and I have been blessed with so many, starting with my mom and dad supporting my decision to study and pursue a career in the arts. I would also like to shoutout one of my first mentors in the field of illustration, Tracie Ching, whose mentorship I was lucky to be chosen for in its inaugural year. It was largely because of her guidance that I was able to start getting a lot of jobs in posters, and how I met my current art agency that I’m represented by, Poster Posse (who also deserves a shoutout because they were the ones who put my art on the map and helped me reach out to so many professional clients!).

Lastly, I’d like to do a special shoutout to my partner Jon for being a pillar of emotional support, especially during the times when I need someone to tell me that the piece I’m working on is looking good (It’s hard to tell if you’ve been staring at a drawing for 50+ hours!), as well as all my friends, peers, and clients in the industry who have provided feedback and encouragement for me to keep going.

Website: https://www.zixu.art/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ziqqix/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/ziqqix

Image Credits
Sanjana Rajagopal (headshot credit)