Siberian tattoo artist Daria Miller does not admit to limitations on creativity. The most painful thing for her is to wait until the right moment for the act of creativity. This is why a microstock portfolio is so helpful to her. As soon as she comes up with an idea for a new sketch, she immediately embodies it and uploads a new image to her portfolio.“Every day I rejoice the opportunity to create what comes out of my soul. And, as a perk, I also get paid for it,” she explained.

For Daria, her own illustrations became a tool for self-knowledge. And although she rarely indulges in self-portraits, in each of her sketches an attentive person will find references to the mental state that this artist was experiencing while creating her picture.

For example, one of her favorite works depicts a man carrying an imperturbable female head. “The huge female head carried by a man is an illustration of my inner world; my two components. My ‘heavy’ side likes to immerse itself in a philosophical maze, falling into a total prostration. Meanwhile, the other is grounded and reminiscent of life here and now,” Daria said, describing the concept of this painting.

Daria's illustrations have several distinctive features. She uses a very limited color palette (commonly just white, black, and red) and thin lines.

Almost all of her work depicts careful thought that is a little detached from what is happening around us. The illustrator claims that she creates works during periods of crisis and they help her find spiritual harmony.

Daria commented on her artistic technique: “I’m committed to this style because I see the world this way. There are periods when I live in a state of inner joy and perceive everything in white light, but my paintings are born during periods of existential crisis.”

This Siberian artist was surprised that her illustrations could be used by companies. Before starting her microstock portfolio, she found minimalist graphics and allusions to 20th-century artworks (the Vienna Secession ones in particular) to be difficult to use in modern advertising.

“I admire the works of Gustav Klimt. For me, Klimt’s work represents the ‘white color of life’: love, motherhood, and family.” That’s how Daria explains her admiration for this great painter of the previous century. However, some of his works were illustrations for advertising posters, too."

Daria admits that sometimes she feels that two natures coexist in her: joy and sadness. To portray the positive state of her soul, the artist turns to the creative legacy of Gustav Klimt for inspiration. And when she feels the urge to speak to her audience about more tragic things, the Northern Renaissance painters become her artistic and ideological guides.

“Once you see Bosch’s paintings, you can hardly forget them. The symbolism soaked in tragedy, the bottomless depth – all that is very close to me. You can have a look at what the genius of the Northern Renaissance created to understand what I think about when living the ‘black’ palette of life,” Daria told us.

According to Daria, her artistic style was most influenced by the Salvador Dali paintings that she saw when she was four years old. Surrealism became her creative method as soon as she began her own artistic practices, and surrealist ideas can still be seen in her recent works.

At the same time, Daria's main focus is not to develop a particular style. First of all, she sees her illustrations as a way to heal her soul: “When a person strives to realize their potential, they tend to bloom from within. If they try to contradict themselves, they don’t achieve anything but fear and discontent.”

Daria Miller's portfolio contains many more intriguing features. For example, her characters often have stylish outfits and easily recognizable facial expressions, despite the fact that their eyes are covered with sunglasses.

Daria is sure that every person is able to express themselves with the help of a pencil, and their signature style shows up as soon as a person enjoys the freedom of creativity and self-expression.

“Believe in yourself! Faith from the outside is not as powerful as it is from the inside. Feel it! When you see what’s close to you, something will click inside. And believe me, this feeling is very difficult to miss,” recommended Daria.