Bored Panda reached out to Amii, who shared more about her journey from a small town with limited opportunities to becoming a successful webcomic artist with a large following.
“I come from a small town and grew up in a low-income family. As nobody in my family had gone to university, that path seemed out of reach and not for 'people like me'. However, I am the type of person who, if anybody believes that I can’t do something, then nothing will get in my way from achieving it. Therefore, when I realized that going to university would be practically impossible for me, I knew that I had to do it.
My family didn’t even drive, so even traveling to any open days or interviews came with many hurdles. I worked 3 part-time jobs to be able to pay for myself to take on this journey to further education.
I think that coming from a background where taking this direction in life was unheard of allowed me to be free to lay my own blueprints. I did not have anybody's footsteps to walk in, expectations to live up to, or anything to lose, which left me with nothing but my dreams to follow.
This independence has allowed me to craft a creative practice that is an authentic reflection of my character and a life that would make my struggling childhood self proud.”
Previously, Amii shared about her transition from struggling to finding her niche in university to gaining traction during the COVID-19 lockdown. She elaborated on how those experiences shaped her artistic style and approach.
“During the first couple of years of university, I struggled with confidence, noticing that my artwork was different to that of my peers. I created work which was silly and lighthearted. I was self-conscious about this at the time, but looking back at my work from that period of time, I can see the hilarious visual narratives peeking through and waiting to be embraced.
During COVID-19 I studied from home. Here I was separated from my peers and had nobody to compare myself to. I started to create short comic strips and share them to my Instagram account which had around 200 followers. Quickly, my work gained traction as the dry humor, topical subject matters, and minimalistic visuals struck a cord with people. I was sharing my real outlook on the world through a funny and creative manner, and people really seemed to enjoy it.
The key aspect to this is that I gained traction by creating what I wanted to create, how I wanted to create it. Had I gone viral by creating work which wasn’t authentic to myself, then it would not be sustainable. I knew what I enjoyed and was happy to share my artwork to fulfill myself, rather than creating what I think others wanted from me. In doing this, I create a practice which has longevity and brings me joy every day.”
Amii described her webcomics as "embarrassingly minimalist." We asked what drew her to this style.
“Ha! I should change that phrase. I’m much less self-deprecating about my artwork nowadays. During my Master's Degree in Illustration, I spent time analyzing my practice and I’ve come to have a deep understanding of my style and why the simplicity is so effective and successfully resonates with so many people across the globe.
We’re in an age of information, bombarded with content which overwhelms us daily. My webcomics provide the light relief that people are craving. I love to make work which comments on our mundane daily life, flipping perspective on its head to poke fun at life and strike a chord with the viewers with absurd yet relatable illustrations.
The simple visuals of the comics allow the joke to be understood instantly, not demanding too much time or brain power from the viewer so that they can immediately resonate with and enjoy the drawing,” explained Amii.
Humor seems to be a central theme in Amii’s webcomics, reflecting her personality. We were curious how the artist maintains a balance between staying true to herself and resonating with a growing audience that now exceeds 92,000 followers.
Amii replied: “My priority is always to ensure that I am staying true to myself - this is the key to resonating with the audience. The two go hand in hand.
If I begin to create work which is less authentic then I think the audience can feel it. Some of my most successful drawings are ones which are unfathomably ridiculous and came from a quick, unprocessed thought and scribbled onto a canvas. These types of ideas are so authentic, so human, that the viewer instantly connects with it.
In contrast, an idea which I heavily think through and over-complicate will never be as successful. It is taken past the point of the silliness and absurdity of what it means to be human that it loses its relatability and the viewer can feel that it lacks the much-needed fun and playfulness.
It’s funny how humor connects us in this way. We all share such similar experiences in the nuances of life that when you tap into these with art and a sense of humor, you’re onto a winner.”
Building a community of like-minded followers is crucial to Amii’s success. We asked how she nurtures this community, and what role their feedback plays in shaping her future projects and comics.
“One of the most fascinating and encouraging aspects of my community feedback is how they continuously remind me that people truly love absurdity and silliness. I cannot tell you how many times I have hesitated to share a piece, believing that it is 'too silly'. These are often the pieces that go viral beyond comprehension.
One illustration features a cow stood in a field. The cow looks at the viewer and says 'I fucking love this field'. I almost didn’t post this, as although it was funny to me, it was (obviously) ridiculous. I fought the urge to not share it, and this illustration has now been viewed by tens of millions of people across the globe and is one of my most successful drawings.
That cow is a fantastic demonstration and reminder of how I need to trust that people find immense joy in my dry humor and there is no such thing as 'too silly',” wrote Amii.”
And lastly, Amii commented on what her aspirations are for the future as a webcomic artist: “I am actually releasing a book in the next few weeks! This book, Simply Absurd, will contain 145 of my comic strips, an almost complete collection of my webcomics to date. I’m so excited to see my work come together in this way and be able to offer my audience a product which will put all of their favorite drawings in their hands.
Looking forward, I want to continue to put emphasis on being playful and allowing myself to have fun. This means not restricting myself, creating and sharing the ideas that I’m not sure about.
I also want to widen my product range, allowing my audience to enjoy my art in more ways and put the work into bringing their product suggestions to life.
I’m feeling excited and optimistic about the future of Amii Illustrates - watch this space!”
