Paigee Rohrick is a 16 year old artist from Vancouver BC. She has created an interactive application called PaigeeDraw that teaches aspiring artists how to draw manga characters through step by step instruction and tutorials. We met her in person this year at Sakura Con in Seattle, and we think you’ll find her story fascinating! Not to mention her artwork.
Copic is co-sponsoring the PaigeeDraw “Back to School” contest that goes from August 1st to September 15th, and Paige is the judge. Find out more about how to participate and win Copic products. Or click here to try out one of Paigee’s online tutorials for free!
Tell us about when you started drawing, and how you became interested in Manga style art?
My mom tells me that I was drawing ever since I was old enough to hold a crayon! In grade 7 my friends and I started drawing cats. But then I was worried that I would become “the crazy cat lady” so I started to sketch people. In grade 9, someone told me I looked like an anime character named Misa, so I started looking at some of the manga and watching animeonline. I fell in love with it instantly and started collecting manga. Later, I decided I wanted to create my own characters.
That seems like a pretty natural progression. How and when did you come up with the idea for PaigeeDraw?
When I decided I wanted to learn to draw Manga, I was frustrated with the tools and books available. I felt that the books I found showed the finished product but didn’t explain the process of how to get there in enough detail. So I started collecting manga comics and taught myself. Later, my friends kept asking me to teach them, so I approached my dad to help me find a way to make it easy for anyone to learn how to draw.
So what makes PaigeeDraw different from other teaching tools on the market?
In PaigeeDraw, I break every character down into as many as 29 steps, and provide instructions and tips each step of the way. I also provide detailed tutorials on how to draw hands, eyes and faces. Also, PaigeeDraw teaches users how to hand draw, not rely on digital drawing tools or expensive software like Photoshop.
Do people need special supplies to get started, or can they use what they have at home?
All you need is a pencil and a piece of paper to get started. But manga looks best using special markers and marker pads, which are all available on PaigeeDraw.com When I was learning, my mom had to drive me all over town looking for art supplies, so we sell starter kits that make it easy for people to get started.
The kits you sell to go with the application come with Copic markers. How did you first come upon Copics, and why do you continue to use and recommend them?
I first came upon Copic Markers from DeviantArt. Many artists that I love are on DeviantArt, and most of them prefer to use Copic markers when they use markers. I have tried a number of other markers, and Copic are my favourite! They are very reliable and do not streak as much as other brands.
Which part of drawing a character gives you the most trouble and how do you overcome that challenge?
Hands and feet still give me the most trouble. Like most artists though, I love drawing hands. I look at images from artists I look up to. I always reference them for difficult poses, and for practice.
Do you draw your characters based off of real life experiences and people, or are they random ideas from your imagination?
Imagination! Many of my characters are based off of my dreams. Reading manga comics and watching Japanese Anime inspires me. The characters from the application are based on individual poses or hair styles I like. Sometimes, they are based on fashions that I have seen.
I’ve heard that you have a name for your character in mind, before you draw him or her. At what point do you know what colors you want to use for a character?
I usually just play with the colors while creating the characters. When I created the PaigeeDraw application, I tried to use only a few colors, so that people could draw the character without having a huge Copic set.
We know you’re great at creating mango character, and are considering Fashion Design school in the future. Do you have any other interests or talents that we may not know as much about?
One of the other things I like to do is bake. I have a lot and am getting quite good at it. I’ve made Melon pan, cream puffs, cookies and cakes. I plan to tackle macaroons and chocolate mousse in the future!
My passion is still art. I have recently been practicing with my airbrush! I have not included backgrounds in my application yet, hopefully we will get there in the future.
The PaigeeDraw application can be found in the iTunes application store, where they are available for download for your iPad and iPhone. Don’t have these gadgets? Not to worry, Paige’s online tutorials have got you covered. Check out www.paigeedraw.com for more info!
