To catch up with Mohamed on his creative endeavors, Bored Panda reached out to the artist. Since it has been over a year since we last posted Mohamed’s artwork, we were curious about the changes that have happened over time.
“A lot has changed for me. The world of art has opened up and is continuing to do so. I had a narrow notion of what art is, and since realizing the endless avenues there are, I changed what I want to create and how I want to create. Because even though I started these comics to take the pressure of creating art off of me, I felt more pressure trying to keep up with an upload schedule when I gained some popularity. That's where it became less fun and more trying to push out stuff. I realized that this does not work in art or in life in general in the long run. The comics in this article might be the last new ones for a while. I guess here and there I'll create one, but my focus has shifted. I'm more interested in learning how to create visually awesome artwork, so that's what I'll do,” replied Mohamed.
Mohamed's drawing style on its own is very captivating. We asked the artist to share his biggest artistic influences.
“Inspiration is hard to pin down. When it comes to my comics, I tried to use a way more simple stylistic approach than usual. I got inspired by various popular webcomic strips like webcomic_name, Safely Endangered, Poorly Drawn Lines, and alike. I tried to be more playful with my art and just simplify everything to get rid of my perfectionism, which, in hindsight, kinda worked. Of course, I also draw different stuff. Yesterday I discovered Rene Gruau, his work is amazing, and a new inspiration added to the list,” wrote Mohamed.
Since you can never really predict what Mohamed is going to create next, we were wondering what themes inspire him the most. Mohamed shared: “I like to just observe real life because if you view it through a certain lens, it's hilarious in itself. A kid losing his first tooth can be funny, A couple breaking up can be funny; a guy losing his job can be funny if it is transformed well enough. All in all, though, I mostly just want to be silly.”
Unfortunately, what has a beginning also has an end… and that is followed by a new start! Mohamed wrote about his upcoming projects and ideas and whether we should be expecting new strips for the Very Cereal comics.
“For me, comic strips have come to a halt for now. As I mentioned, my interests have shifted. I want to create illustrations (not exclusively comic illustrations) and grow as an artist in the visual field. I had some plans for other comics, but they are also on a halt. If you want to know about my journey, you can find me on various social media platforms under the handle @mo.mayati,” explained Mohamed.
Additionally we wanted to know what Mohamed hoped for people to take away from his comic art.
“I want readers to have a good quick laugh when they read my comics. I do it in different ways. Sometimes I illustrate a harsh truth in a funny way. Sometimes a mesmerizing concept. Sometimes just a clever joke. I try to break the readers' perception of the world in a quick glimpse. That sounds way too philosophical, but that's fine,” wrote Mohamed.
And lastly, the artist added: “Thanks for reading my stuff over the years, and thanks to BoredPanda for making this article. I hope you stay healthy and do what you love. Stay cool.”
