ISHAAN PADUKONE
Grade 10
ILLUSTRATIONS AND GRAPHIC DESIGN
My introduction to design and design software began in middle school. During the COVID-19 lockdown, while doing online schooling, I learned Photoshop, Illustrator, and the basics of 3D modeling. My mother gave me an online subscription to Skillshare Academy, where I took a label design course. This led me to create labels and packaging for various food products I made. Additionally, in 5th grade, I took a graphic design course as an after-school activity, which further fueled my passion for design.
Since then, I’ve been creating small graphics and logos for myself. In December 2023, I started doing freelance work for family friends, designing posters, business cards, stickers, and menu cards for their small celebrations.
Drawing in the Procreate software on my iPad is something I really enjoy. I also love to doodle on my school notebooks and, occasionally, on my math test papers when I’m deep in thought. Thankfully, my teachers have been kind enough to overlook these doodles—at least, I hope they find them funny! From a young age, I’ve been inspired by reading Calvin and Hobbes. This inspiration led me to create small comics with my own original doodled characters like "Bossman," "Germy," and "Cloudy." Someday, I hope to turn these into a comic strip or even a book.
Design has become a significant part of my life, and I look forward to continuing this journey, exploring new techniques, and creating more unique designs in the future.
In 2023, my father wrote 100 small stories of his childhood memories and published those into a book. He encouraged me to create illustrations for the book and I drew 93 simple illustrations and designed a coverpage for the book. I kept the illustrations in a simple Black and White line drawings to keep the feel of 1970's.




