Meet Chiara Berrugi | Illustrator and concept artist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Chiara Berrugi and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Chiara, why did you pursue a creative career?
In truth, I didn’t grow up with the idea that one day I would be an artist, but in the end I can’t deny that in some respects it was a bit of a question of fate. Since I learned to hold a pencil in my hands, I have always loved drawing and coloring. I had an inordinate obsession with dinosaurs, also increased by the Jurassic Park movie that came out in those years, and I practically only drew them. I have always cultivated this self-taught aspect of mine, but relegating it to a hobby to which I dedicate myself in my free time. I never thought of making a job out of it.
My school education focused particularly on biology, so my job goal was to become a marine biologist first and then a microbiologist.
It was after the first years of university that I began to perceive that what up until then had only been a hobby suddenly could no longer be one.
I was satisfied with the scientific career goals I had achieved, but I still felt a void, as if I had left behind a piece of myself that I had to recover in every way.
And here comes what we could call “destiny knocking on the door”.
In addition to my tormented state of mind, the first hardships of the economic crisis that was soon to hit Italy began to feel in the world of work that I was about to make my own.
Therefore I decided to try a change of direction, taking a short course in advertising graphics. I’ll be honest, it wasn’t the creative career I wanted, but it was a small compromise to allow me to work. It was 2010 and Italy was in full economic crisis, it was very difficult to find a job, but graphic designers were in great demand, so I opted for that choice.
I ended up working in that industry for several years.
But the story doesn’t end here. Cause I still kept feeling dissatisfied, what I really wanted was to paint and be an illustrator and so at the age of 27 I took yet another step. I attended a digital illustration course and from there I finally began to take my first steps as an illustrator. I have since gained some experience and currently work as a freelance illustrator. I’m happy that my whole journey has led me to where I am now, because it’s actually what I should have always done.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I drew whenever I could, I needed it ’cause for me it was a kind of pleasant and relaxing distraction. Drawing has been always in my life, even when I had only a pencil in a hand and a white paper in the other, maybe during class in high school or at university. I can’t remember once time I left for a holiday and I don’t took everything I needed to paint with me too. It doesn’t strange for me to dedicate entire afternoons to my creativity.
However, during the years I’m realizing that I was planning my life away from art. Everything in my life seemed try to convince me to left only a marginal and leisure role to my art, but I was wrong.
While I devoted all of myself to other work projects, I began to feel the unease of having made this choice. I was managing to achieve my career goals, but I was still unhappy. That was the moment that I realized that I had to change course. Put myself on the line with a creative profession.

I was lucky enough to be born in Italy, especially in my hometown Pisa in Tuscany.
I have always had all sorts of artistic marvels around me, ranging from the architecture of Piazza dei Miracoli with the iconic leaning tower, to the painters of Florence and more.
When you live in places like these, it enters in your life deeply, even if you don’t practice art. It shows itself to you as soon as you leave the home and that constant connection with all of that it’s been fundamental for my formation.
Although I abandoned my previous career, what I worked for has not been lost, in fact another aspect that connects my experience to my art are my studies of biology. I love animals and I have studied their anatomy and zoological aspects. This was very helpful to me when I am about to paint them or make creature designs for some fantasy/sci fi setting.

My dualist experience has led me to be a very multifaceted illustrator as I try my hand at both visual art made with digital techniques and naturalistic and scientifically accurate watercolor illustrations. They are practically two techniques and two styles at the antipodes.
I have a following who like both styles I manage, others who like only one.
Usually when customers contact me, they are only interested in one of the two styles I offer. I assume that knowing how to do more things increases the customer base and even, thanks to my artistic multiplicity, I’m starting to receive comic art commissions, which I don’t usually deal with.
But in that regard, one thing I’ve learned is that if on the one hand, it can be positive to be able to implement multiple styles, on the other hand it can be harmful, because instead of evolving to the highest levels in a specific technique, there is the risk of becoming dispersed and falling behind. So I think it is more profitable to keep to a few artistic niches and cultivate those, creating your own uniqueness and creative identity.

Currently I work as a freelance illustrator for private individuals and companies. This type of work has good advantages, for example I can combine my private life with my working life much better.
When I worked as a graphic designer, I split my work between home and office. I often entered the office at 8.00 am and left at 8.00 pm. I was no longer able to live my daily life and this made me feel very bad. It was negatively affecting my life.
Now that I have focused my work exclusively on illustration, I am able to work from home and this leaves me a lot of freedom to manage my private life. If I’m having a creative block, or if I’m a little down in the dumps, I can just go out for a walk or have a coffee with a friend. I couldn’t do it before.
Another aspect which, as a woman, I find very beautiful, is that of being able to devote myself to the needs and affections of the family, without giving up work.
In short, I manage my commitments as I please and this has certainly benefited my state of mind and my health.

However, being a freelancer involves the lack of a fixed salary, I earn based on how much I work and how much I sell. Money management and the possibility of having a savings fund are very important to me.
As a good italian girl, I come from a family that taught me thrift and therefore I am very saver.
When I shop, I always try to buy as much as I can while spending as little as possible.
At the supermarket, instead of buying based on the price of the package, I buy by looking at the price per kg, so as to be sure that I am buying the product that costs proportionally less.
I’m not ashamed to say that I often buy at flea markets, in that case it’s not just for savings, but also because there are some very beautiful and interesting things among vintage things.
Let’s see what else… Oh yes! I never throw away leftovers. Italian people are quite good at using leftover food from the day before and reworking it into new dishes. If you have leftover chicken, you can make excellent meatballs.
If something breaks, I always try to fix it and reuse it before throwing it away,
I try to spend only the minimum part of what I earn from my jobs and put the rest aside for emergencies and unforeseen events that can happen in my life.
I use part of what I save with all these tricks for reinvest on my career and progress professionally. For example, I can take some training courses or buy better material that able to me to draw in higher quality, like that time I replaced my wacom intuos S with a 22-inch screen tablet.
Obviously, I also use part of the savings to enjoy life from time to time, such as traveling and seeing new places which always be an inspiration for my art.

In regards to future goals, I’m in love with everything that includes the fantasy genre, environments, stories, characters and mostly the possibility inherent in the genre to recreate any imaginary creature.
I often played games like D&D, Magic the Gathering and part of their appeal to me was also due to the beautiful illustrations that accompany the games. So, although I am very happy in my freelance status, I hope one day to have the opportunity to work on this kind of large productions as well.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
It’s a difficult question for me, because when you live in Tuscany everything is pretty much beautiful and you eat well almost everywhere.

If you were staying several days and had the opportunity to visit every aspect of my land, I would take you to the sea in Versilia, with its pine forests and wonderful promenade.
I would take you to Pisa, to visit Piazza dei Miracoli, with its baptistery and cathedral with the iconic leaning bell tower next to it. I would take you to the Certosa di Calci, which has survived since the 1300s and houses one of the most beautiful natural history museums in Italy.
Then I would take the train to take you to Lucca to see the medieval walls that surround the whole city.
In Pistoia to see one of the largest bioparks in Europe and then in Florence where you could admire the wonderful works of the Uffizi, the iconic statue of David, the Duomo and the Specola museum with its disturbing anatomical waxes.

I would take you to eat in family-run trattorias where you usually eat and drink genuine and local dishes. I would definitely say to be careful about eating in places located near tourist attractions, because if it is true that you enjoy the view at the table, you can also pay 5 euros for an espresso instead of 1 euro.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
In the beginning of this career (and sometimes even now), I have often encountered problems or rejections. I still have many people around me who have tried to make me give up and professional disappointments, which have made me fall into despondency. Many times I doubted if it was the right choice and doubted about myself too.
To have the patience and the force inside me to gohead and believe in myself, I have to thank my husband Jacopo, who was there every time to remind me how much I am really worth.
If there’s one person who believed in my abilities and potential, it’s definitely him.
Even my mom supported me in my choice, she always let me accomplish what made me happy.

Regarding books, the book that has most influenced my life is without a doubt The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien.
He introduced me to the whole world that revolves around fantasy which then became a fundamental cornerstone of my creativity, but not only that. Tolkien brought me closer to chivalric myths and Nordic mythology with his novels, as well as to all that art and artists who permeate this literary field. My creativity has been very inspired and shaped by this kind of writing.

Website: https://www.chiaraberrugiart.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chiaraberrugiart/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chiara-berrugi/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCgUpAyspg95tDr0uFSAYPUA

Image Credits
Chiara Berrugi