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

Zovi, appreciate you joining us today. To kick things off, we’d love to hear about things you or your brand do that diverge from the industry standard.

Sometimes I look back at all the things I’ve had the chance to experience: live abroad, learn new languages, live illustrate for small and big companies, write and draw stories and comics. I didn’t go to art school, which is always a little bit of a source of insecurity for me and also a fantasy of a lost paradise. But it also pushes me to give back as much as I can, by being as honest and authentic as possible in my life and in my illustration work.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I make comics, illustration, and graphic recording. I work as the NYC subway (MTA) illustrator, I freelance as a live illustrator (graphic recorder), and I do comics (my first book came out this year in France and Canada). I studied Accounting and Chinese because,,, It just happened that way. But after starting my first job as a Marketing Manager for a Media platform in Shanghai, I felt so depleted. I gave myself 3 months to try illustrating (I had always been drawing), and after teaching myself the basic Adobe Tools and working for friends, the 3 months became 6, and 9, and 12. The friends became word-of-mouth prospects, returning clients and new opportunities opened up. I ended up working as a comics artist for a famous Chinese IP, Tuzki, owned by Turner. I then moved on to Ernst & Young, doing live illustration for the meetings and brainstorming workshops of major companies. I now am the MTA’s Lead Illustrator. My first graphic novel came out earlier this year.

I’m proud of my journey and feel extremely lucky and grateful for each of these experiences. But my comics are the most personal thing I do right now, so that’s what I think is most important to me right now (even though it might not be what I’m most known for!). In particular, I’ve been drawing daily comics for a few months that have helped me and are helping me through dark times.

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

In 2019, I had been living in China for almost 10 years. I had gotten to learn the language (I was born and raised in France), the culture, I had an interesting job doing live illustration for a major firm, and I had also founded a comics collective that put out zines and organized events all the time. I was also singing in a Gypsy Jazz band. I was busy and I had great people around me. My partner then was planning to move in with me, from NYC to Shanghai, I went to visit him in NYC in January 2020 to make sure we were on track and on the same page. But as soon as I landed in JFK, COVID hit China and Shanghai shut down. After a few weeks of reflection and debate, I decided to stay in NYC (remember, I had no US work papers, and had only packed for 2 weeks!).

It’s been a crazy journey, but I was able to navigate the paperwork issue (and am still very much in the process), I found work as a freelancer first and then as an in-house illustrator as well as side hustles, and I also published a book -my first graphic novel- about this whole story. That book might be a very subjective depiction of how a stubborn, hardworking, and loving Capricorn can sometimes blindly, but literally move mountains to make things work, but it is my story of resilience.

Do you think there is something that non-creatives might struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can shed some light?

I’m an artist, and I’m also a business owner. Along my journey, at different times, I have felt misunderstood by both creative and non-creative people. Now I understand my process better.

I have two modes when I create: one is focused on the value I can bring, especially in my Graphic Recording work : when live illustrating, I want to capture the essence of the moment, and also interpret what is being said, twist it, so viewers can remember it and question it. This mode is also what I use when doing illustration work, for example in my work as the MTA illustrator: doing art for people who ride and work for the subway is a mission I believe can change a ride, a day, habits, a mood. A perspective. It is not just a “business mode” per se, I am not just focused on return, but on the value I can offer and also on what I can learn. The more I learn, the more I can bring that knowledge back into my work.
The other mode is the exploration mode. I explore materials, lights, cities, people, I explore my own self and the world through comics and painting. The exploration mode, for me, has to be quite detached from my “earthly life and basic needs”. It needs sacrifice, I have to make time outside of schedules for it, and I have to create conditions that are free of worry. This mode is absolutely necessary for me to feel balanced, whole, and to be able to actually keep the first “mode” going – they both feed off each other.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.zoviism.com
• Instagram: @zoviism / @zovi_live_illustration
• Linkedin: Zovi Ong

Image Credits
Images credit: zovi ong, Tom Bryan