We had the distinct pleasure to interview award winning designer Najeeb Omar about their original and creative Illustration design work. Najeeb Omar is an award-winning communication designer, that makes our world a better place with their original illustration works.
Najeeb Omar ("NO") answered Design Interview ("DI") questions about their award-winning work Anubis The Judge Illustration. Interview questions prepared by Frank Scott.
NO : Falling in love with the mysterious mythology behind the Ancient Egyptian Civilisation charged me to read more about it, and try to understand the symbols and designs that represents the underworld. To go deeper in each character they draw, to understand each ones power and level. I was fascinated the most by Anubis "God Of Death" and what this character represents.
NO : My main focus was to represent the power and boldness, seriousness, appearance and glorious look of this character. A Character that had no bargains when it comes to death and the underworld.
NO : I would love to physically sculpture it and use lots of elements & materials to make it stand out more as a physical character.
NO : Almost 6 months, from sketching to research to illustration to the final look.
NO : No it wasn't commissioned, This is one of my own pieces of arts, one of many designs i did, that add more mastery to me day after day, and a design that proves my abilities.
NO : My next plan for this piece, is to produce it with best material available, and add it to my collections on my wall. And If I find someone who loves this design and wants to get it, I will be very happy, and I will endeavor to produce it with the best materials as a print. And I would be happy to lease or sell it to anyone who really wants to have it.
NO : Self challenge, And i always wanted to discover my abilities , and to sail in the ocean of art in all its directions. Art is without limits, and there are always new methods & styles worth exploring and trying.
NO : I resorted to many designs and pharaonic manuscripts during the search process, and many designs of mysterious characters done by several artists, in order to help myself in forming the idea and make it appear more beautiful and distinctive in its final appearance.
NO : Everyone who cares about detail and prestige illustrations, and mysterious ancient art.
NO : Its Unique look and style, the variety of symbols and techniques used to make it stand out. I used Geometry to communicate the Expressions of the character. the Uniqueness in using the Symbols of Egyptian History in the design in a different way, and the dark areas that hide some of the characters’ expression, gives it that mysterious look of the underworld.
NO : The Judge, The design got its name because it is indeed Anubis, who according to Pharonic belief was the gatekeeper of the underworld. He was the only one who could judge the dead, and decide if they could pass through the gate that separated life and death.
NO : The usual tools i use all the time, The Pen & Paper, was and still my main material to start a design, write my thoughts or even sketch an idea. Then for sure the execution part using adobe illustrator and photoshop.
NO : The Choker, it represents self-worth and an obvious level of charismatic power. Despite the beetle being secondary, its value is contained within its intercession.
NO : I did not collaborate anyone with this design, i did it on my own. But i got lots of valuable information about the Ancient Egyptian Art from my Egyptian friends and colleagues.
NO : Adobe Illustrator & Photoshop, played a big part of making this piece look like this.
NO : The mythical and methods of the ancient calligraphies and arts, and how they tried to communicate. The search process was wonderful and full of surprises, as I searched online and through books of ancient arts and cultures.
NO : The biggest challenge was to create special symbols adapted from the Pharaonic symbols, in my own way, and to be different and distinctive. It has already added a special design beauty, from the icons intertwining In the character, to the elements & symbols surrounding it.
NO : I received an email from the A’Design Award that they would like me to submit this design. It was a wonderful moment indeed, and here I am, one of the winners, and my heart filled with joy.
NO : This work improved my ability to deal with the facial expressive details, and i was able to discover a lot about how to express it in an effective way.
