Stellar Freestyle Illustrations by Matei Apostolescu

Matei Apostolescu is a freelance illustrator living in Bucharest, Romania. He started out as a graffiti artist and migrated from web design to illustration and most recently clay modeling and animation. Matei’s work, a fusion of different media: drawing, vector, photography, manipulation, even clay modeling, has been attracting constant attention and praise over the years, due largely to his ablity to turn what at first glance may appear to be pure randomness and chaos into a revealing and strangely soothing visual experience.

For every single piece he creates, the goal is to keep the work freestyle/fun as possible. As complex as this artwork might seem, Matei prefers to add much detail into his art. His creations have been described as ‘incredibly dense, exploding with intricate detail and filled with swirling, wildly complex shapes that compete for attention.’ Yet his approach is simple:

“I believe in freestyle. To me inspiration is having the courage to explore the world, and especially yourself and the processes that take place in your own mind. Magic stuff starts to happen by itself simply by translating your experience from a medium to another. I see style as something in a continuous evolution.” - Matei Apostolescu

In recent years Matei’s work has been shown at a variety of exhibitions in Atlanta, Berlin, Bucharest, Istanbul, London. In 2009, he was featured in Taschen’s latest “Illustration Now” collection as one of the best illustrating artists active in the world today.

Without further ado let’s check out Matei’s work. Enjoy!

Note: All Rights Reserved by Ji Lee.