No vacation is complete without at least one caricature. Either from the theme parks or the men and women who take their talents to the streets, they’re cherished memories. It was the street artists who first inspired Cartoon Portrait’s Andrew to do what he does now. With him, all it takes is a click and bam, a wonderful caricature of you and yours can be delivered to your home. He’s no one-trick-pony though. Andrew also does wonders with his yellow portraits as well for Cartoon Portrait. We talked about all he’s done, can do, and what’s next from the man with the colorful pen in Ukraine.

Kendra: Every creative remembers the one piece that made them feel like they could make a career out of their art. Mine is a tenth-grade writing assignment. What’s yours?

Andrew: When I got a big order for a company calendar with themed caricatures of employees for each month and the flow of orders on Etsy continued to grow. I understood that this part-time gig could become a real job and even a business.

Kendra: Did you come up with a lot of US pop culture in Ukraine?

Andrew: Before the collapse of the Soviet Union we didn’t have much pop culture and comics, but they have gained popularity now.

Kendra: When it comes to your art you do yellow characters and also caricatures. How did you land on these two stylings?

Andrew: I create new listings based on the demand from customers and caricatures and yellow cartoon characters are very popular in my shop.

Kendra: What were you doing with your creations before you put them on Etsy in 2015?

Andrew: Before joining Etsy as a seller, art was a hobby for me. I believe I’ve changed the artist role and I have an entrepreneur hat at that moment. I’m managing a team of artists. Like Alex and Eugene who help to create the artworks for our valued customers. You can also see Natalie’s avatar in the shop About section. We appreciate her during the holiday rush. We have a tough time in Ukraine and the possibility to create new jobs for fellow artists in Ukraine inspires me even more than the art. There are a lot of talented artists here and I plan to add more designs in collaboration with other artists. The next will be wedding invitation illustrations and illustrated save-the-date cards.

Kendra: How is the art scene in Ukraine for you?

Andrew: For the first time ever I went to the Comic-Con in Kyiv this year. While super crowded, I met a lot of artists there. Many of them plan to open shop on Etsy.

Kendra: What are your plans for your art in 2019? Do you plan on attending any of the big comic conventions around the world?

Andrew: I will surely attend comic conventions abroad as well to get inspiration for new art styles and ideas.