Artist in Residence: award-winning digital illustrator Laura H Rubin

Artist in residence, a woman sits at an art desk with a cat

(Image credit: Laura H Rubin)

Laura H Rubin is an award-winning digital artist from Switzerland. She studied film / VFX and art at the SAE Institute in Zurich and has illustrated for companies such as Ubisoft and Crystal Dynamics. You can discover more of her work on her portfolio website, but below, in her own words, Laura takes us on a tour of her studio.

Inside Laura H Rubin's studio

Artist in residence; a sunlit room with wooden floors — From clockwise: "I love hanging plants but didn’t have any high shelves to put this plant on. So when I found this rotten log in the woods I was like: “You have to meet my plants!” "My headphones. I can’t work without music." "I’m very interested in neuroscience in combination with design. It’s incredibly exciting to know how you can evoke feelings in viewers with certain colours or shapes." "My work Big Eyes, inspired (among other things) by the film of the same name by Tim Burton, in which one of the protagonists (a painter) gives the characters in her paintings supernaturally large eyes." "I’m an Apple fan and therefore work almost exclusively with Apple products, such as here with an iMac. When it comes to drawing, however, I’ll use an iPad Pro." "From this window one can see the river, which meanders through the old town only about three meters from the house." (Image credit: Laura H Rubin)

"My studio is on the second floor and the living area on the third and fourth floor. The building was built in 1780 and it still has some original elements. Which is why, for example, the floors are a bit crooked, the walls are cracked and there is probably a pigeon living behind a wall on the upper floor, but the area surrounding the house is incredible.

"In front of the house there’s a crystal-clear river that meanders through the town, and on the other side there’s a narrow alley with dozens of small restaurants, old boutiques, market stalls with fresh fruit and vegetables and street musicians. You feel a bit like you’re in a Studio Ghibli anime here (except for the pigeon behind the wall).

Artist in residence; plants on a balcony — "My little plant corner. My partner always asks if we’re not starting to have enough plants around, but I’m like, “NO!”" (Image credit: Laura H Rubin)

Artist in residence; a loft apartment with a balcony — "I often work in the gallery above the kitchen, because I love the smell of coffee, and because I eat all the time, so the fridge is right near me." (Image credit: Laura H Rubin)

"My workspace is spread over several rooms in the house and unfortunately it’s not yet fully furnished. But no matter – my studio is rather simply equipped with some plants and printed works just waiting to be sent on to galleries or to their new owners.

"As for my daily routine, I have various day planners, but often end up ignoring them. This really bugs me about myself. I always stick to my work appointments or deadlines, but I have absolutely no self-discipline when it comes to daily routines.

Artist in residence; a guitar stood against paintings — "I can’t remember anything if I don’t write it down or sketch it out, so I have various notebooks in which I write this and that." (Image credit: Laura H Rubin)

Artist in residence; notepads and sketchbooks — "I can’t remember anything if I don’t write it down or sketch it out, so I have various notebooks in which I write this and that." (Image credit: Laura H Rubin)

"I start every day differently: sometimes I get up and go straight to the shower, sometimes I go to the studio without any detours, or sometimes I just lie down on the floor in the apartment and stare at the ceiling (just because it’s possible).

"I usually work until after midnight, but also start administrative work such as answering emails, project meetings or similar only around noon. In the evening I take a short walk with my better half to clear my head and then the creative work begins with analog/traditional sketches or with digital work on the tablet."

Discover the art of Laura H Rubin

Artist in residence; a female portrait covered in paint — "Alone In The Crowd – a piece that I created in a somewhat melancholic phase of my life. It’s also the cover artwork of my book Melancholia." (Image credit: Laura H Rubin)

Artist in residence; a female portrait in black clothes — "Apophis – probably my best-known work, because it was the key visual of the Stroke Art Fair in Munich." (Image credit: Laura H Rubin)

This content originally appeared in ImagineFX magazine, the world's leading digital art and fantasy art magazine. ImagineFX is on sale in the UK, Europe, United States, Canada, Australia and more. Limited numbers of ImagineFX print editions are available for delivery from our online store (the shipping costs are included in all prices)

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Ian Dean is Editor, Digital Arts & 3D at Creative Bloq, and the former editor of many leading magazines. These titles included ImagineFX, 3D World and video game titles Play and Official PlayStation Magazine. Ian launched Xbox magazine X360 and edited PlayStation World. For Creative Bloq, Ian combines his experiences to bring the latest news on digital art, VFX and video games and tech, and in his spare time he doodles in Procreate, ArtRage, and Rebelle while finding time to play Xbox and PS5.