Rainbow Attracts: ‘It is so necessary to remain curious concerning the range of this world’

Initially from Shanghai and now primarily based in Liverpool, Yufei Yang is the artist behind the illustration apply Rainbow Attracts. And whereas it will be simple to say that she brings collectively the inventive traditions of each East and West, that might be to undersell the scope of her concepts, inspiration and strategy. Yufie is an artist whose work explores each nook of the globe – journey, tradition, and human interplay curiosity her most.

“I am impressed by the issues I see on the earth when travelling to new locations. I am at all times curious to find out about a brand new tradition. Individuals, crops, animals, buildings, meals and the whole lot else distinctive to a spot at all times catch my consideration,” she says. “In a special metropolis or nation, you see completely different colors, fonts, ornamental parts and so forth.”

With it comes an aesthetic that pulls on a wide range of fascinating influences – the Bauhaus motion, Pablo Picasso, Sophy Hollington, David Hockney, Philip Guston to call a handful. However actually, Yufei’s work is stuffed with experimentation as she pushes daring cut-out shapes backwards and forwards to kind dramatic compositions; refines restricted color palettes to evoke a sense; and provides tactility via paper textures, scribbles, scratches, and splats.

Phrases, too, play an necessary position in her inventive course of. “I begin by blocking out and simplifying data. I decide only some elements I like, write down the explanations I like them, and begin engaged on my image. I typically ask shut associates and colleagues for suggestions. I just like the working course of to be like a dialog generally,” she says.

She’ll not often create only one piece – as an alternative, she explores her topic via units of photos, which helps her establish the place the emphasis ought to lie. It is an strategy that has formed her method through the years. On the subject of folks, she attracts them how she sees them, not how the digital camera captures them, exaggerating sure options primarily based on first impressions.

A picture begins in the actual world, with free pencil drawings for the idea. The shapes and composition are developed in Procreate, then Yufei makes use of Photoshop and Affinity to complete the art work. “The scribbles, scratches and spills are primarily based on my experimentation in printmaking once I was learning for my MA in Youngsters’s E book Illustration. I really like the modifiability of digital illustration and the imperfection of conventional media,” she says.

Yufie’s love of journey has made Rainbow Attracts synonymous with journey illustration, resulting in commissions and work from shoppers all over the world. One in every of her favorite current tasks is a collection of items for Condé Nast Traveller illustrating the largest journey developments of 2026, which drew on her personal experiences.

“I typically embrace parts from my very own blissful journey reminiscences,” she says. “I added some easy animation to those illustrations for digital use, and that is at all times a enjoyable problem. I notably loved animating the little fish flag within the Japanese grocery journey pattern.”

At present, Yufei is engaged on a challenge for Nationwide Museums Liverpool, which can go on show on the Albert Dock. It is a chance for her work to seem in a public house, accessible to locals and vacationers alike. This 12 months, she set herself the problem of illustrating playing cards to promote at markets and in retailers, printing a novel set for Christmas 2025. And her private improvement has continued with the addition of animation abilities to her repertoire.

To finish, we requested Yufei to inform us one factor no one is aware of about her artwork. “I’ve an enormous assortment of home crops,” she solutions. “If you happen to see crops in my illustration work, likelihood is they’re drawings of the actual crops that encompass me. That little element makes me blissful!”