Meet Zarin Baksh | Freelance Artist & Illustrator

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

Hi Zarin, have there been any changes in how you think about work-life balance?
In these recent years, my art has been very financially gratifying. I’ve managed to get a foot in the book industry and many of my freelance opportunities have either been for book covers or book-related work for literary subscription companies.

Before this, art was mostly a hobby and passion, but not significant source of income. Due to this, I focused a lot on what I wanted to draw and had a freedom then that I lack now. I often look back on my past work with a nostalgic fondness as a result.

Although I’ve improved at an artist, I still sometimes feel like my progress is stagnant due to the decreased time to work on personal artwork. It’s difficult when art is your work and your hobby, but you only have time for your work. Not having the time to work on my own art or the subjects that interested me made me begin to lose my sense of artistic identity.

I actually promised myself to work more on personal work starting this year and there’s already been a shift in my own perception of my work. It reminds me of who I am as an artist and what I’m capable of if I shoot for it.

My own work-life balance is far from perfect, but I am working each day to get to a more personally fulfilling divide.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
My art has evolved a lot over the years. I mostly made, and still primarily make original art featuring my own characters. This can be difficult to build a following off of, but through forming relationships with other artists, I was able to create a small following that eventually expanded to what it is now.

It was not easy, nor do I think there was no luck involved. I was very fortunate to be a part of a small artist ring that all supported and promoted each other. These artists were the foundation to my current following. I’ve also been very fortunate to be followed and admired by artists larger and more successful than myself. Whenever they share one of my posts, I receive far more engagement than I would otherwise.

My brand has typically been original characters and fantasy art, be it demons, vampires, or elves on occasion. This is what I feel really set me apart from other artists as I got a lot of recognition for my darker fantasy pieces. Though, as I’ve grown, I find myself drawn to different subjects artistically.

As algorithms changed and as I took more and more hiatuses from my social media, I found that it was harder and harder to keep up engagement. It’s not enough to just post anymore. Successful pages post reels or create other video-form content to supplement their work. This is something I have had the mind to do for a while, but I have yet to start.

The biggest lesson I learned from this is that, social media and the market changes, and I need to be prepared to adapt to that change. What was enough five or more years ago is no longer the standard now. I may not have made that shift yet, but I do care about my work and I’ll put in the effort it takes to keep up with this ever-changing world.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
Although where I live is great for food and casual hanging out, it’s not dense enough for a week-long trip. Though, I have the great fortune of living in the DMV. For those not aware, that’s the D.C., Maryland, Virginia area, not the Department of Motor Vehicles.

My proximity to D.C. means that we can easily take the metro there and see the city. D.C. I’ve had many friends visit before and I usually give them the same routine. The Smithsonian Institution includes many museums, art galleries, the National Zoo, and even Botanical gardens at no charge. This often means our money goes towards food and their over-priced gift shops. But even the museums and attractions that charge admission are still worth a look.

In terms of food, there’s plenty to choose from. D.C. in particular has so many options for specific ethnic cuisine. My friends and I will always try something new each time.

There’s a lot to do in D.C, enough to last a few days at least, but a little further away is Baltimore. We typically would take a day to go to Baltimore to visit its museums or the National Aquarium. You also can’t leave Baltimore without ordering some Maryland blue crabs.

The last great part about living in the general area is the concert venues. I often go to concerts as many of the artists I adore choose venues in the area, be it D.C., Silver Spring, or even Baltimore. I’ve even had friends plan their visits around attending a concert nearby.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
My first big repeat client was FairyLoot. Although I have made book covers for various publishing houses, my main clientele is still literary subscription services that hire freelance artists to make artwork for their monthly releases.

FairyLoot initially hired me many years ago as an artist for just a small art print. But over the years, I’ve worked on many endpaper illustrations for them, foil lineart for the hardcovers, and even a reverse dust jacket illustration.

The exposure from when the books released have introduced many new people to my artwork. I found that most of my clients find me on Instagram, which is where my collaborations with FairyLoot are shared the most. I have no doubt that that the work opportunities I am fortunate enough to have today can be linked with these shared posts.

I would also love to thank OwlCrate, another literary subscription service, for their employment as well! Similarly to FairyLoot, OwlCrate has recruited me for several different projects. I love working with former clients as it informs me that they were happy enough with my work that they’d want to work with me again.

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nir4z/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/Zrn_Bksh

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/nir4z

Other: https://www.inprnt.com/gallery/nir4z/

Image Credits
Zarin Baksh