Keane Angle –- Carbonmade user and creator of Appify -– put together a walkthrough of Carbonmade on Monday. Not only is the walkthrough well presented, but his story of Carbonmade coming to the rescue on a last minute job interview of his in New York is an exciting read. Little did Keane know that the lil' ol' web app he had recommended to his girlfriend a few months earlier would help him out of a jam. We appreciate Keane's score of 9.5 out 10, but are even happier that we were able to help land him a job.

Good day! How are things going?

Things are going really well, keeping busy.

How did you get your start in design?

I had a friend in the business and he occasionally threw work my way when he was swamped. I basically did the odd design gig while in art school to earn some extra bucks.

What inspires your work?

My Chinese heritage opened me up to eastern aesthetics early on and as I developed it became integrated into my work in different ways. I draw inspiration from classical Chinese and Japanese painting of course but also porcelain, lacquer, cloissonne, manga, anime, etc. and integrate them into a holistic visual language with various nuances.

What types of projects do you most like working on?

The kind where I have the most freedom to articulate my aesthetic and learn something new at the same time.

How would you describe your style?

Asian fusion tempered with a Western sensibility. Like a Chinatown restaurant.

Many of the organic forms you work with are broken into ribbons or bands. Are you thinking of the vascular system or is there another reason for this?

That's not a device that I consciously implemented but developed intuitively. The way that highways and roads can be likened to arteries and even rivers suggests a metaphor for the rhythm and flow of our environments in different contexts.

I am reminded of certain kinds of book illustration when I look at your work. Can you name any particular influences?

I was very interested in Chinese folk tales and myths in my early days of art school as way of investigating my heritage and that heavily informed my earlier work. I have also read countless books to my son throughout the last decade so I suppose visually expressed narratives has definitely had its influence. I also devour manga and anime and those are of course inherently narrative. When making a landscape painting I try to think of the verb or event in the work. There is always something happening in our environment and it can be subtle or extremely dynamic. It could be anything from different phenomena of light interacting with the landscape to a gentle breeze to pollination or even a combination of those elements. As for the characters that articulate these events I draw from early Taoist and Shinto beliefs that every living thing has a spirit. This is also perpetuated in a contemporary way in Disney movies, various cartoons, Japanese anime and children's books. I could certainly name a few obvious examples which are very inspiring such as Miyazaki's Spirited Away or My Neighbor Totoro, but it's really coming from hundreds if not thousands of sources great and small that are present at every stage of our lives that contributes to our tacit understanding of this kind of work.

What's in the future for you?

Well, design isn't really something that I still do now that my art career has taken off. I am preparing for a group show this fall in Toronto and I am involved in the Montreal Biennial in the spring and then I have a solo exhibition in the fall of 2009 at Parisian Laundry. I am open to exploring some crossover work though as it has some exciting possibilities, like the collaboration between Murakami and Louis Vuitton, or creating a children's book like Yoshitomo Nara.

Thanks for chatting with us!

For more of Rick's work check out his Carbonmade portfolio: http://rickleong.carbonmade.com/

Twitter is a little web app for keepin' up-to-date with your friends, and more recently for finding freelance work. It’s in effect a micro-blog where you post a "tweet" (140 characters or less) and everyone following you will receive the message. It's as simple as that.

People all around are falling for it hard: we’re following over 100 Carbonmade fans! Total insanity (but we wish there were more of you)! Through Twitter we're announcing small tidbits of news -– maybe even some sneak previews –- and we get to chat openly with anyone who's around. We dig it and we hope you join us.

Creative people are using Twitter to promote themselves. A designer friend of ours, Tim Van Damme, told us only a few weeks ago that over 50% of his new clients have found him through Twitter. All Tim does to promote himself on Twitter is update us about his day, what he’s working on, and his thoughts and views about life and design.

Your tweets help paint a picture of what you're about and we think that’s cool. It’s a great marketing tool for getting work, as word-of-mouth is the best marketing tool, bar none. It's not just for web designers either; plenty of the people we follow are rabid users of Carbonmade and display all types of work.

Come tweet with us! Follow us -- and we'll follow you back.

» Carbonmade
» Spencer Fry (Business)
» Jason Nelson (Code)
» Dave Gorum (Design)
» And anyone else mentioning Carbonmade on Twitter.

If you can suggest any topics you’d like us to Tweet about, e-mail us.

Good day! How are things going?

I'm good thank you.

How did you get your start in design?

I have always been interested in art since I was little. I am happy that I am passionate about art today and hope not to lose this passion in the future.

What inspires your work?

I have always been interested in art and take inspiration from my daily life. And, of course, from other artists. I think every artist has a different point of view, and a distinct style and process that come from their own personal history and experiences.

What types of projects do you most like working on?

I really enjoy working on projects that I can do a lot of research and come up with creative ideas.

Your Personal Work (Carbonmade project) involves images of entrapment. Is this a theme you're consciously working through?

As mentioned, the most important theme for me is to express my feelings through my work. One of the reasons why my work tend to be dark is because I have constantly been struggled with themes and ideas. I want to be honest to my work, so my work will look different (like happier work?) depending on my feelings I guess.

You seem to be interested in the organic relationship between the human body and its surroundings. Would you care to comment on that?

I like to draw figures and work on narrative. I always try to create an image that has a story in it. The relationship between the figures and their surroundings really help me to create a scene in my work.

How would you describe your style?

I do not think I have a certain style yet. But I really enjoy experimenting with various forms of media, hoping to find new avenues to express myself in the future.

What's in the future for you?

I hope to keep trying on new things, not to be afraid of making mistakes, enjoy what I do in the future.

Thanks for chatting with us!

For more of Yuta's work check out her Carbonmade portfolio: http://yutajazz.carbonmade.com/

Good day! How are things going?

Hello, it's still shiny and bright summer now here.

How did you get your start in design?

When I found that watercolor, crayons, marker and pencil could make my playful funtime in my childhood, then I was very interested with a catchy visual materials stuff, example like movies either from Asian and Western. Since then an inspiration, experience and experiment was become a part of my starting point for creating artworks till now.

What inspires your work?

Anything God's creation, world artists, cultures, colors, fantasy, sci-fi and real life was my main part of inspiration.

What types of projects do you most like working on?

It which can give me full chance for experiment some interesting new perspective. I like creative project which can have balance between artists ideas and the client preference guidance.

How would you describe your style?

It's kind of flow or moving moments, attractive, action and bright colors. And also variations of abstract, expressive loose brush and realistic. I like both traditional or digital way of making artworks.

What's in the future for you?

Have more good projects and can share my humble inspiration.

What is the inspiration of the image above?

The Pandora idea came from the philosophy of the battle between good will and evil will. I change the mood and idea with my point of view from commonly pandora myth to relations about the live path choices by fill the symbols of good or evil reflections, shine and dark, light and shadow also adding some new elements of sci-fi and retro. My conclusion here was pandora choose the better condition of life and goodness.

Are you interested in working on graphic novels?

Right now I'm much more prefer the book cover or little series illustration project rather than graphic novels.

Thanks for chatting with us!

For more of Rafi's work check out her Carbonmade portfolio: http://raz.carbonmade.com/

A few days ago we introduced search to the Carbonmade portfolio listing. This first release was a bit limited, but we've fixed all that! We've updated it. You can now search through more facets of your portfolio. These include: your name, city, state, country, areas of expertise, skills, and title. You can also include "+" to group two search terms together (e.g., Fashion + New York).

Also, as an added benefit to our paying customers your portfolio will appear higher in the results than non-paying folks. So, if you want to up your chances of being seen now is a great time to upgrade!

Here are some interesting searches we've come across:
» Illustrators in Tel Aviv, Israel
» Web Designers in Poland
» Designers who know Ruby
» Copywriters in San Francisco
» Photographers in Detroit, MI

Good day! How are things going?

Hello! The summer is long and hot. I can't wait till school starts again and to stop working with food.

How did you develop your interest in the figure as a form of artistic expression?

I suppose it's an interest I've always had. I enjoy how people show their emotions or try to hide them. I think the personalities of my friends really inspire me to see people in a different light. Actually, when I used to be a waiter, I was a people watcher. There was such an array of characters that would come in to eat; I suppose my interest in people relates to my interest in the figure.

What inspires your work?

The concept of religion really inspires me. I also like taking simple things and making them more beautiful and appealing. I have a thing for typography and I try to incorporate it into some pieces. As for history, I find that Art Nouveau inspires me design-wise and in their depiction of the human form.

How would you describe your style?

I think that my style is mainly figurative and full of emotion. I like to exaggerate body parts, particularly the neck, and depict some form of inner peace within my figures. I suppose my palette has become more vibrant, perhaps because I can't be bothered to mix my colours; on the other hand, I find that there's something thrilling about vibrant, bold colours. I also think that self portraits are one of the hardest things to master, so I like to do a lot of self portraits. Because of that, I guess that my figures resemble me.

What medium do you prefer to work in?

I love working traditionally, preferably in pencil, ink or watercolours. I find that usually I don't have the patience to sit in front of the computer to do digital work. I find that when you work traditionally, it's more of an organic, expressive experience, while digital media is more of a structured approach.

What do you consider your major influences to be?

When I started college I had never done any life drawing before and I found that drawing the nude figure really changed the way approached my work. My teacher, Stan Hughes taught me many different ways of seeing and depicting a figure and I've learned a lot of different techniques during my first year at Sheridan College. I also find that my boyfriend Jordan is a constant inspiration to my work.

What's in the future for you?

One day I hope to get a book published but for the time being, I want to focus on portraiture and caricature. I'd really like to be able to capture people's emotions and personalities based on a simple portrait.

Thanks for chatting with us!

For more of Taryn's work check out her Carbonmade portfolio: http://geetaryn.carbonmade.com/

The two biggest requests we get are for search and for a detailed help area. Well, we've added both. With search you can look up people's names, locations, and other tidbits. And with the Help area of Carbonmade -- see the tab above -- you can get answers to the most frequently asked questions. It's divided into three sections (General, Billing, and Settings) and covers almost anything you're looking for. If you do have problems that aren't covered there, please do shoot us an e-mail. That's all for now, but more is on the way.

Good day! How are things going?

Quite well. Thank you.

How has photography changed your life?

It influences my life. That’s for sure. First of all I would classified it as a sort of an escapism form in my case.

How did you get your start in design?

I’ve been interested in photography since I remember. Composing pictures has been my passion for 2 years.

What inspires your work?

Ordinary life pushes me straight into the photography. Sometimes I’m inspired by other photographers.

What types of projects do you most like working on?

Definitely landscapes with emphasis on trees. I like taking photographs in the neighborhood and in the distant places as well.

How would you describe your style?

There is a symbolic flavour with a note of onirism in it. Let’s call it "THE SYMPHONY of my SYM-ONI". I’m just joking. Can you see any style in my works?

What's in the future for you? Are you interested in any other mediums?

I’m really into photography so, no.

Would you say that photography brings out elements of mystery in what we see?

Absolutely. I’m keen on creating mysterious trails of sentiments. The dawns of autumn help a lot.

Is there any symbolism in your emphasis on trails?

The Trail is something special. It contains the elements of holidays, free time & adventure. In my projects the trail is a path which goes across the unsettled regions of my mind. The trail helps you to discover the flavours & beauty which are deep in us.

Thanks for chatting with us.

For more of Dawid's work check out his Carbonmade portfolio: http://dawidtarkowski.carbonmade.com/

Alright! How are you doing today?

I'm good thanks! It's grey and gloomy in England but my little studio is full of colour!

How did you get your start in design?

Since I was little, art was always my favourite subject. I studied Illustration at Loughborough University and since I graduated last year I've been going for it as a Freelance Illustrator! I had some sucess in competitions at University, and my very first proper commission was a double page spread design about depression in the big city, which was really interesting to work on.

What inspires your work?

Oh, so many things! Mythology and religion as subjects, and I also love science and reading about what makes the world go round. I guess I would say I'm interested in the things hidden beneath the surface. Artists that inspire me range from the Japanese master printmakers like Hokusai and Hiroshige; to European artists like Da Vinci, Herge and John Piper, who has amazing colours and lots of beautiful textures! Primitive sculpture, ancient pottery, modern comic/manga stuff like Hellboy and Flight, designer vinyl, Miyazaki, old japanese toy robots. So much stuff! I enjoy people that do thier own thing.

What types of projects do you most like working on?

I don't think I've ever had a project I hated, there's always something new to be discovered in every topic I think. Saying that, I especially enjoy projects that I can really sink my teeth into; where I can do lots of research and really get to the heart of the matter whilst finding out lots of interesting things.

How would you describe your style?

Hopefully as unique! I love to see my 'thumbprint' on the page, see the lines that I scribbled or the paint drops I smudged. I like my work to feel vibrant and have an atmosphere, thats what I am always trying to achieve.

You've really taken the time to tailor your portfolio; do you think it helps?

I'd like to think so. We spend lots of time on our artwork, why not try to make your portfolio as unique as your art? And it's fun to play around on Carbonmade to experiment with different ways of showcasing it. I want people to enjoy flicking about my portfolio, and be able to find everything they want to see really easily. If they can, then everyone's happy!

Thanks!

For more of Carly's work check out her Carbonmade portfolio: http://carlydraws.carbonmade.com/