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(UN)LUCKY FOOLS
Yannick Schroeger
(UN)LUCKY FOOLS (2022, 70cm x 100cm) by Yannick Schroeger is an illustrative series and concept for 12 different tattoo designs, which have been drawn by hand and digitalised and colorised afterwards. Every single design is independent from each other, but together they create a unity once put into composition and form a tattoo flash sheet.
Every work is inspired by old book illustrations such as alchemy, kids toys from 1981, or mythical creatures.
The idea behind this sheet was to create a small world of chaos and darkness to be showcased together with the sketches, the translation of a drawing into a tattooable design.
Work materials are basic tools used as an illustrator involving pencils (B, 4B, 5B), transparent paper and a light table. By layering different elements of different sketches together such as references, shapes, compositions and lights, the audience will be able to observe each step of the work process of a design from the first scribble to its final form.
Yannick Schroeger
Born 1996 in Luxemburg, Yannick S. decided to make it his goal of moving to Berlin and become an artist when he was 13 years old. After graduating high school in 2017, he finally managed to move to the german capital in 2018.
Starting his studies in illustration at UE in the same year, Yannick showed more and more interest for the craft of tattooing. Being around tattoo studios and getting in contact with different artists, he started an apprenticeship 2021 in addition to his studies to become a tattoo artist himself.
Yannick's work mainly focuses on hand drawn illustrations with pencil or black pen and is finding comfort in the black and white scheme. Inspired by Punk/Hardcore music and personal experiences such as addiction and childhood abuse, his subjects are always referred as gory, violent, dark or sometimes intense.
"I love dirt and filth. There is no such thing as ugliness, everything tells a visual story and is worth being illustrated. I feel inspired by the things that people try to ignore everyday, even though people are fascinated about things that make them feel uncomfortable, more than they might want to admit. Look around, this world is full of misery and people choose to turn their backs on them and simply adapt or follow upcoming trends."-Yannick Schroeger
Where do you see yourself in 20 years?
Obviously it's hard to predict the future and in general I don't spend a lot of time thinking about it. What I do know is the present that we find ourselves in. I'm currently finding myself in an apprenticeship to become a professional tattoo artist, which is my future goal and where I definitely do see myself working even maybe in 20 years. Who knows what life will serve us at the table!
What is a good design for you?
A good design for me depends on various aspects. Skilled techniques and visually pleasing work is one part. For the other part a good design tells a little story, whatever it is, even if it's just an emotion. Emotion for me is a big part. Something that brings up disgust, anger, anxiety, joy, excitement.
I appreciate manual work, sticking with the true basics of a craft especially in a digitalised world like ours. I admire true crafts work and want to keep it on the same height but maybe combine them and find new ways to create a design and make it its own language.
What was the most challenging experience during your studies?
The most challenging experience during my studies was definitely the B.A Semester.
Who or what inspires you?
My biggest source of inspiration comes from music, especially music from the hardcore and punk scene. Sometimes simply listening to music and avoid visual overflow is a great source to find inspiration. Music creates different emotions in your head which are getting converted into images which we think of and translate these images and emotions on paper. Drawing is my way of coping with my past and make it visual. In this sense personal experiences are also part of my inspiration.
Other than music and my own emotions, artists like Kingsley Fill, Francis Bacon, Jackson Pollock and several tattoo artists like Martin Jahn and DeathOnly are other sources of inspiration.
How do you approach a new project?
I'm constantly thirsty for new projects and for that cause I simply start a project and throw myself into it and see it grow.
What advice would you give to students who just started studying in your programme?
Don't just study the programme just for the sake of studying. Illustration should be your everyday life. Be thirsty, collaborate with others artists, exchange, ask questions and don't be afraid to make mistakes, launch private projects and combine them with your studies. Also: There is always time to draw!
Have you changed during your studies? How?
During my studies I matured and learned how to take my own responsibilities to succeed in my studies and prepare myself for the future.
Why did you choose to study in your programme?
Since a small boy I used drawing as a source of safety and isolation to go through childhood. Drawing became my second self and I gave my whole life away for art and especially drawing until today. Illustration is a rare study programme in a lot of art schools, where you can't just simply study drawing. So this programme was just the right choice for me.
What are you not going to miss in your studies?
Studying is a choice and I took that choice to work on my skills as an illustrator and grow as an artist for my future. There is nothing really, which I could name that I won't be missing. I came to this University with a purpose and finished it. Now it's time to finally grow and achieve my goals.
Studying is a way of completing educational purposes and ideally prepare yourself for your professional career. Obviously, this doesn't mean that studying is the only option to succeed in life. Studying or not if you truly want to complete your biggest passion and goals, you will take every necessary step to achieve what makes you truly thankful and excited in life. In this sense you shouldn't have any regrets or thoughts of things you wouldn't miss because everything is a good lesson to learn and grow from even if we experience some things as unpleasant. Sometimes those moments also teach us a lot of things.
How are you going to celebrate your graduation?
I will definitely enjoy a drink or two for my celebration but I got goals which are yet to be accomplished and my bachelor graduation is definitely one of them I can take from my bucket list. My work is not done yet though! This is the start to fully invest myself into my apprenticeship as a tattoo artist and start my professional career as an illustrator and artist, which I can't wait for!
