16. Josephine Rais on the Perks and Pitfalls of Freelancing

Josephine Rais is an artist based in Berlin with a main focus on digital illustration. Having a background in product design and a Master’s degree in strategic design, Josephine’s broad skill set allows for a multidisciplinary approach to her illustration work. Being forced to go freelance after not landing an agency job led to her working for clients like Adidas, Apple, Coca-Cola, Samsung and Die Zeit. 

Josephine’s favorite subject to draw is people. She loves capturing the raw emotions and unique energy that Berlin has to offer in her dynamic portraits. Playing with distorted perspectives, she creates bold sceneries of every-day life situations and her diverse protagonists appear on products, animated screens and large-scale murals. 

Instagram has given her many opportunities and opened doors for her when she first started out, but, she says, it doesn’t support realness. The platform is seeking a portrayal of perfectionism that’s impossible to attain. But as long as we’re all playing along with it, planning our grids and feeding the algorithm, she fears that things probably won’t change. 

On the final episode of season 2, Josephine talks about the art of tufting, why German clients tend to be the (surprise!) least friendly, the importance of knowing your limits as a freelancer and saying ‘no’ — and she shares all the secrets behind her vibrant color palettes. Another really inspiring conversation with one of Berlin’s coolest illustrators! Listen, learn and then tell everyone you know about it. 📢

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SHOW NOTES: 

• Follow Daniel Stuhlpfarrer on Instagram (Type & graphic designer)
• Check out Philipp Basler on Instagram (Digital artist & motion designer)
• Vicky’s studio: The Boys Club Berlin (A co-working collective of independent designers in Berlin-Neukölln)
• Josephine is represented by The Different Folk
• Hire Josy: [email protected] 

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FOLLOW JOSEPHINE: 

Instagram: @josephinerais
Website: josephinerais.com
Behance: be.net/josephinerais
TikTok: @josephinerais

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If you liked this episode, please subscribe and leave a review.
And follow Paid 2 Draw on Instagram and TikTok. 

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Hosted by Viktoria Cichoń and David Leutert.
Music by Amanda Deff.