Hi, I am Iva from Art Side of Life!
I love helping people be creative and make awesome art!
Hey there! I am super happy that you are here! ♡
My name is Iva (rhymes with “viva”), and I’m the artist behind Art Side of Life®.
I make illustrations, create Procreate classes, tutorials, Procreate brushes, license patterns, work on client projects, and make YouTube videos.
After many ups and downs trying to improve my art skills while juggling studies and then full-time job, I'm happy to say that I'm now a full-time self-taught artist with 15 years of experience in the creative field.
I worked as a concept designer at an advertising agency, an illustrator and art director at a toy company. Now I work as a freelance illustrator, content creator, and art instructor at my studio. I've also been invited as a guest instructor to various events and multimedia schools.
I've had the chance to experiment with various mediums and techniques, including traditional ones like watercolors, acrylics, gouache, and oils, as well as digital tools like Photoshop, Illustrator, and Procreate. I've tried out loads of different art supplies and resources too!
These days, I'm particularly drawn to Procreate. It's an amazing platform that makes digital art super accessible and fun for beginners, while also helping more advanced artists refine their creative process. I just love sharing the joy of making art with others, and Procreate is a fantastic way to do that!
My mission is to help you grow your art skills and make awesome art through practical classes, tutorials, and brushes. I also want to share my experience with art tools, supplies, and resources to help you along the way.
While I didn't begin my art career until after completing my Business University degree (unlike many who have been drawing since childhood), I now have the pleasure of making art every day.
And I truly believe that you can experience the same joy and fulfillment from art and illustration as I do, all while learning something new along the way. So why not have fun with it and challenge yourself to learn as often as possible? The possibilities are endless!
More than 100,00 students from all around the world!
Through years of experimentation and exploration, I've discovered my passion for certain techniques and art tools.
Now, as an art instructor, I am thrilled to be able to teach a variety of traditional art techniques using watercolors, acrylics, and gouache. In the world of digital art, I specialize in illustrating on the iPad with Procreate, as well as digital painting in Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator.
Creative enthusiasts like you enjoy my classes on topics such as drawing people and portraits, art fundamentals like composition, perspective, and color and light.
Additionally, I run online and offline workshops that cover a wide variety of creative areas, including illustration, acrylics, watercolors, patterns, digital art, and concept art.
Here is what some of you guys say about my classes:
Fabulous teacher
"This class is wonderful. I learned so much about character illustration and composition and saw my style improve with each lesson. Iva is a fabulous teacher. She breaks down every imaginable type of pose into clear and simple steps and provides variations, as well. She provides lots of inspiration and encourages you to incorporate your own style into your illustrations, The class is quite long but definitely worth your time and effort. I highly recommend it to anyone who wants to develop or improve their illustration style while participating in a fun and enjoyable class."
- Helene Gold
Most helpful class
"This is the most helpful class I've ever taken on Skillshare! I have been using Procreate for a couple of months, but without knowing the shortcuts, gestures, and additional features, you really miss out on most of the utility that comes with the app. After being discouraged by my slow learning curve on the app, I found this class. It really is a perfect "Introduction to Procreate" class and I think everyone using the app should skip the trial and error and just take this class instead. The instructor is very clear and demonstrates everything she explains with examples. I also appreciate the conciseness of the lessons. I was too excited to get started on my own work and use what I learned to take a long class full of too many examples and too much explaining. So if you tend to get a little impatient taking classes that drag out and want quick, clear instruction, this class was made for you. Finally, I would recommend this class not only to illustrators, but to anyone using Procreate. I predominantly use procreate for lettering and art, and the instruction and examples in this class translate beautifully to other disciplines besides what the instructor uses it for. I look forward to taking more of Iva's classes!"
- Sierra Overby
Artistic breakthroughs
"Amazing course!! One of my favorite teachers on skillshare. All her classes are very descriptive, in-depth, relatable, and applicable! I always have an artistic breakthrough with the foundation each course sets. Thank you for sharing your knowledge!"
- Vanessa Young
Worth every second
"This is worth every single second. The advice based on personal and other artist experiences made an outstanding mix of tips for artists of any level. Also, another cool thing is that Iva uses words and a way of explanation that is super simple at the same time that it is useful. I would also say that this course complements in a very good way the Artside of Life Youtube interviews.Highly recommended course. Thank you, Iva! Keep it up with the humbleness of sharing the gems of the creative careers!"
- Manuel Fleytas
Some interesting facts about me:
So whether you are here to inspire your creative career or paint for fun in your free time, I am happy you are here!
I believe everyone can make awesome art, and I want to help you learn how to do it too! We can have fun and make beautiful art together every day!
Hugs, Iva ❤️
