Antonio Uve
Madrid, Spain
Antonio Uve is a Spanish illustrator based in Madrid. His work is simple and elegant, utilizing shapes and bright colors to create charming characters. Antonio is focused on textures to give his work a hand-painted look. He is a self-taught illustrator and his background in advertising and graphic design is apparent throughout his illustrations. He is influenced by the cities around him, travels, nature and music. In his personal time, he is constantly seeking new techniques to expand his capabilities; applying his illustrations.
Dassault Systèmes
Here is a series of illustrations made by Antonio Uve around the theme of sustainable strategies. For Dassault Systèmes, a renowned French aviation group that offers military and business aircraft founded in 1929.
APM Commercial Center
Giant sculptures made for the APM shopping center in Shanghai based on the illustrations of Antonio Uve.
Campaign for Barcelona City Council
A series of colorful illustrations for 2021 the Barcelona City Council campaign by Antonio Uve.
M le Magazine du Monde
Antonio Uve created this funny series of 7 illustrations for the no/low alcohol issue of M le Magazine du Monde.
Mightywarm
At Colagene, we love bold and graphic projects! Here is a series of illustrations and some animated and illustrated gifs by Antonio Uve for the website of the brand of hot sauces MIGHTYWARM for “cool people''!
Shanghai iapm mall
An illustration by Antonio Uve, made for the Christmas promotion of the Shanghai iapm shopping center.
Creative capsule
Here's our sixth CREATIVE CAPSULE. This month, we invite you to meet Antonio Uve, spanish illustrator living in Madrid, with his very own playful and graphic world. It's a real pleasure to work with Antonio. Enjoy meeting him!
Describe your creative lab (the place you do illustration) in a few words?
My workspace is a little corner of my small loft. It has plenty of light and I love it! Although in the Spanish summer, it gets a bit too warm! I like to be surrounded by posters, plants and postcards to inspire me.
In two sentences, how would you describe your work technique?
My technique is focused on finding simples shapes to depict what I have on mind, then I play with color. The final part is adding textures to give a warm touch to the final result.
What is the project of which you are most proud of?
Last year, I made some illustrations for a Spanish magazine called Icon, about the best culinary schools in Spain. That assignment brought me some amazing clients outside of Spain, which made me appreciate the unexpected power of the internet.
What are your favourite colors to create?
Recently, I realized I tend to use a lot of blue, but in general I tend to use bright colors. I love playing with color and testing different palettes. When I have enough time, I could spend hours and hours testing colors… it’s one of my favourite part of the process.
Why did you become an artist?
I was working at different agencies as an art director and graphic designer, but I was never completely happy. At one point I realized that all I wanted to do was draw so I kept following that feeling. Now I feels like the most lucky guy in the world to get paid for illustrating.
In four words, how would you describe your style of illustration?
Colourful, simple, dynamic and fun
What is the project of your dreams?
I would like to illustrate a book for children. In my free time this year, I hope to put together some ideas for my portfolio to help this dream happen in the future.
What does a typical day in the life of Antonio look like?
My day starts about 7:00 am, I go to the gym very early to start my day full of energy. After, I head home to have breakfast and then work until lunch time-- which in Spain is usually 2pm! In the afternoon, I feel more creative and I save this time to work on sketching, or new ideas and new projects. I try to have a schedule similiar to an office but often deadlines demand something very different.
What inspires you?
Charley Harper, Blexbolex, Alexander Girard, Manolo Prieto, interior design, travels, Radiohead, The Smiths, The xx, Moderat, The Amazing World of Gumball...
What is your favourite blog or website?
I have to admit that I love to check websites in which you can see the homes and workspaces of people like http://theselby.com/ or http://www.designsponge.com/
L'Express
Séries of illustrations by Antonio Uve created for an article on spirits in the l’Express magazine.
New illustrator
Antonio Uve is a Spanish illustrator based in Madrid. His work is simple and elegant, utilizing shapes and bright colors to create charming characters. Antonio is focused on textures to give his work a hand-painted look. He's a self-taught illustrator and his background in advertising and graphic design is apparent throughout his illustrations. He is influenced by the cities around him, travels, nature and music. In his personal time, he is constantly seeking new techniques to expand his capabilities; applying his illustrations on textiles, pottery, and recently embroidery.
