We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Loossi Hou a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Loossi, thanks for joining us today. Did you always know you wanted to pursue a creative or artistic career? When did you first know?

I’ve been passionate about drawing since I was a child. After graduating from university, I worked at a company in Beijing, doing graphic design that had some connection to drawing. However, after a few years, I gradually became weary of the repetitive nature of commercial design. During my spare time, I picked up my passion for drawing again.

As I delved deeper into my exploration of drawing, I began to wonder if I could combine my drawing skills with my graphic design experience to enter the illustration industry and make a living from it. So, I decided to quit my job and became a freelance illustrator.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

My creative work is divided into two main categories: commissioned illustrations for clients and personal illustrations that I create and share on social media. Clients usually find me through referrals from previous collaborators or through social media, inviting me to create illustrations or graphic designs for their brands or products.

I’ve worked on projects such as illustrated advertisements, editorial illustrations, logo designs, and posters. When working on commissioned projects, I start by listening to the client’s needs, analyzing the effects they want to achieve and their goals. I then combine this with my own aesthetic perspective to offer professional suggestions, working together to establish a general direction. For each project, I typically provide 2–3 sketches for the client to choose from, followed by ongoing communication and refinement to ensure we achieve a result that satisfies both parties.

In my personal work, I focus more on expressing emotions and observing everyday life. I love using bold and vibrant colors to evoke emotions and create a sense of connection between my work and its audience. I also enjoy using my art to showcase the most interesting aspects of small, everyday objects.

Currently, most of my illustrations are created digitally using a tablet, computer, and Photoshop. In the future, I plan to experiment with various media and materials to further expand my creative process.

How can we best help foster a strong, supportive environment for artists and creatives?

In my view, the best way society can support artists is by respecting original artwork and valuing the work and services of art creators.

We’d love to hear the story of how you built up your social media audience?

Building my audience on social media has been a gradual process, and consistency has been key. I focused on regularly posting content that I was proud of and that aligned with my style and goals as an artist. Each post was carefully curated to showcase my best work, and I made an effort to choose themes and subjects that would resonate with my target audience.

Engaging with the community was another important step—responding to comments, interacting with other artists, and sharing insights helped me build genuine connections and expand my reach.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/loossi_hou/profilecard/?igsh=MWVlaWluanRoaXNyNQ==
• Twitter: https://x.com/loossihou?s=21&t=iqr7B_xaBm6RedrMySG2jQ

Image Credits
Illustration by Loossi Hou