A work for La Peste magazine from Mexico. (Photos courtesy of Sarkodit)

Busy and bursting with dreamlike compositions, artist Sarkodit’s illustrations animate themselves through a collage-like mishmash of characters — some grotesque, some cute and some that are completely absurd.

Although Sarkodit — real name Aditya Purnama — has worked as both artist and graphic designer for branding and advertising companies, his brand has grown with the steady amount of commission work coming in, including for ELLE, The British Council and Ultra Milk. His particular artistic touch has also gained him a good amount of fandom, with over 13,000 followers on social media photo sharing application Instagram.

Sarkodit has a particular penchant for the color phthalo blue, a darkish crystalline grayish shade of blue which represents a part of him that often wants to “hide” from the world as well as another part that wants to show itself to people.

This may well be because of his influences, including artists such as Dadu Shin, Lisk Feng and Clive Barker — all of whom utilize a strong focus on colors. He has called his headspace as being surreal, hypnagogic and imaginative, which are apt descriptions for his style. He is also influenced by his natural surroundings, having lived in a small town in West Java as a youngster, which he says seeps into his work.

“When I am working on an artwork, it is as if I am giving birth to a new figure or a new world, one that doesn’t exist. And, perhaps, people who view these artworks are somehow hoping that they will become acquainted with these characters that I have bred. Or when I visualize a new setting or a particular story, perhaps viewers feel like they are served up a new, dreamlike world,” Aditya said.

Having drawn since he was a young boy, Aditya has always found a connection to illustrating, because it was where he felt the most comfortable and he knew he could express himself freely.

“After I began studying visual communication in college, I was able to turn my messy drawing into something that became my strength.”

It has only been three years since Aditya has had the courage to step out and declare himself a professional artist, and to support himself through his art.

Utilizing both manual and digital means, Aditya most often uses acrylic and ecoline materials to translate the good and bad of everyday life — “but mostly the bad”.

“For my personal works, I am often inspired by my anxieties and from the feelings that I have. Most of which derive from the less-than-fun experiences of everyday life. Still, I am also inspired by the books and films I read, that I feel connect to life somehow.”

Mood is therefore an important element for Aditya. He prefers working in lightly lit places, and with moody music as accompaniment.

“I would not know how to describe my art though,” Aditya said. “But I tend to go with a friend’s description of it as being witty and yet wistful.”

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