Juli Jah: Dancing on the Isograph

Having hitchhiked from Lithuania to Berlin on a whim, Juli Jah - stemming from a background in architecture - has found a home in the capital city. It was by both circumstance and coincidence that her art met her passion for music, but now as one of the go-to designers for record labels in and out of Berlin, one could deduce that the two are inextricably linked. With a number of labels forming part of her repertoire, interior and exterior design too, the opportunities for creativity set against the backdrop of the city seem to be determining a career path. There are many components to the business of music, this business somewhat synonymous to Berlin itself, each feeding into its energy and raw output. Here’s one of them, Juli Jah: ‘the illustrator’, ‘the artist’, or just ‘the girl who likes to draw’ – you decide.

So for those that don’t know – you’re an ink and watercolour artist. You use isograph pens to create something that’s really quite special, though it’s not a well-known fact that your roots in fact lie in architecture, which in turn feed into your direction today… so does being an architect not appeal to you?

I’ve been drawing since a very young age; that was the reason my parents sent me to art school, I was only 9! Gymnasium in the morning - art in the evening. Then a year before finishing secondary school I started preparing for exams and luckily I got accepted to the Academy of Fine Arts in my hometown Vilnius, back in Lithuania. But I was only 18 and somehow it seemed to me that studying to become an architect would be a ‘safer route’ than trying to make a living outright as a sculptor or painter, for example. During those four years of studies I wasn't very happy though – I was looking for that something else…  illustration worked the best, it always had, and it became the language that I wanted to speak - the perfect way for me to really express myself. So I came back to the fine arts.

But I have no regrets that I did my bachelor in interior architecture, it’s impacted on the way I draw, it’s taught me patience, and as a result I’m more organised too - never a bad thing!

Would you ever change medium?

Watercolour and ink pens help me to reach the best results in what I am doing, but I’m also experimenting a bit with different techniques like pencils, oil paint, markers or spray paint. Creativity is a journey and I’d say that my journey is just starting…

So how would you define your current direction?

I really don´t care how people title me, whether it’s ‘the illustrator’, ‘an artist’ or just ‘a girl who likes to draw’. I love what I do, it’s what I do best, and in the end what I’m doing is what I am.

Is this something that you’ve known – you’ve identified with from the very beginning?

Obviously it's not some kind of dancing in the dark. I know what I want and I know that only hard work will bring me the results that I am seeking for.  It’s not all about talent as many people say, of course that matters but that’s not all that helps artists to create mind-blowingly insane stuff. 

My friends tell me that I am way too self-critical. But on the contrary, I think that there can never be enough self criticism, because that’s the only way I can progress and force myself to evolve, to then go on to be happy with myself and with what I create. Hard work (and soft drinks haha!) is the key if you ask me.

A lot of people would associate you with label artwork. Tell me about the very first piece…

Old love never dies… I’ve always had a deep love for electronic music: when you’re passionate for the concept that you’re working for, you reach good results. It was always one of my goals to work in the music industry (definitely not as a DJ or producer), and here I have a lot of freedom and the possibility to show my work, which is a reflection of myself, to thousands of people - whether it’s through the form of vinyl artwork, posters or flyers. It’s an amazing opportunity for an artist.

The first commission I got from a friend of a friend, some 5 years ago if my maths is correct. To put it quite simply, I was broke and my friend let me know that there was someone looking for an artist to produce the artwork for his label: 

‘Why don’t you draw something for him?’.  

I put together a first draft but the idea was killed so I had to start again. The finished design worked well - the vinyl was released with my artwork on the label. It’s crazy, just a few months back I had pretty much nothing, and then I started being commissioned for album artworks for different record labels, across Europe.

Most memorable exhibition that you’ve seen, and why?

Hoffmann Samlung: a private collection of Erika und Rolf Hoffmann. You can see many interesting pieces, and the exhibition is changed yearly. The works are exhibited not in a museum but in the house where Eva Hoffmann is still living. The piece that I liked the most, a short video showing two girls looking up at the birds flying around in circles in the sky. Huge rocks and a very dark and stormy sky as a backdrop. I felt fear - an unexplainable anxiety watching that, something like fight-or-flight response, but it was exciting! – enjoyable! - I couldn't leave. 

If someone were to ask me where I see myself in 5 years’ time, I’d struggle to answer – I don’t think that my present moment defines my future, nor do I want it to. Can I put the question to you?

I am pretty happy here at the moment, cannot imagine moving somewhere else. But I could also not say that Berlin, or even Germany is the last city that I will live. I’ve lived in a few different cities, and these experiences, they only make you emotionally richer. It shapes your view on life.

So back to your question, 5 years it’s a very long time, hard to say where exactly we’ll be then. But what I am sure about is that we will see each other from time to time, dancing, smiling and listening to Zip playing that’s for sure.

So finally, tell me about your best moment – whether it be at sunrise, sunset, twilight; morning, afternoon, or night in Berlin! I think I have a story for each ha!

You know this moment when you are on your own, walking down the street for example… and simply start smiling? This is it. Smiling with no reason, with a pure, honest, happiness in your heart, just enjoying the short moment of your life. Right here. Right now.