Interview for Queen's medical illustration society (QMIS)
- Anna, what did you study prior to becoming a medical illustrator? What was the process like of becoming a medical illustrator?
- My path to the medical illustrator profession is quite unusual. Briefly, it is possible to say that I mastered the medical illustration on my own.
If we go into details, I hold two degrees - in mining engineering and journalism and also 10 years of art school. I graduated each of them with honors. I live in Russia and there is no such specialty as medical illustrator here. So, I can't study it in some place in my country at all desire. Sometimes I think I'm the only person in Russia who decided to make medical illustration the main focus of my work.
But it was not always like this. After my graduation I've been working in PR and SMM for a quiet period of time. Anyway, whatever I've been doing, I've always drawing, giving private painting lessons and creating images as a freelancer in parallel with my main work.
One day a customer came to me asking to create illustrations for a mobile app with anatomy tests. This app called "Easy Anatomy". I got to work for it and this is how my path in medical illustration started.
I had to create illustrations, but also had to highlight the borders of all anatomical areas on the images. After that, each illustration was reviewed by anatomy teacher from medical university. It turned out to be very helpful. Thanks to comments and reviews from anatomy teacher, with whom we were working for 3 years, I learned a lot about anatomy.
I created more 600 illustrations and about 5000 additional images with highlighted borders for Easy Anatomy. So, it turned out I combined the drawing with self-study of anatomy.
- What types of clients do you work with and do you think the career is in demand?
- I am still working for Easy Anatomy, but now more as 3D-artist. I work with full 3D-model of human body. (Yes, I also mastered 3D in the last 2 years) And of course, I create a lot of medical illustrations as a freelancer. Many specialists from different areas need high quality medical illustrations.
Among my customers are the universities looking for educational content for lectures, surgeons looking for illustrations for publications in professional journals, physicians speaking on conferences; rehabilitation specialists, fitness trainers, massage specialists, authors of medical books and many other experts.
Answering the question if the career is in demand, I would say that, just like in any other profession, the medical illustrators, who can perform the work professionally, fast and efficiently, are always in demand.
- How is the work life balance in the field?
- My own work/life balance is clearly disordered. I’ve always studied and worked more than rested. For example, I was getting two degrees at the same time. And now I still work clearly more than I rest, because when my full-time job day ends, I start doing my freelance work. But it's quite usual and comfort rhythm for me, and also a fully conscious choice at this point in life.
- What's your favorite part about your job?
- There are a lot of things, but most of all I like to see the result of my work continues it's path after I send it to the customer. When I see my illustrations becoming the part of the articles, tutorials or a book covers, I see people speaking on conferences and seminars with my images, I see students study medicine with the help of my illustrations, I feel I did something really great.
- What advice do you have for students aspiring to become a medical illustrator?
- Learn to think on the illustration and draw better. You have to compete not only with each other, but also with artificial intelligence. You can master the drawing only creating a lot of illustrations. You can only know if you progress when you compare your first work with your 101st. And my main advice - if something goes wrong, then erase it and start over. And start over again untill you succeed.
