"Every kid inevitably starts drawing, and I am the kid that never stopped," says Oriana Stoici. The self-taught artist is only 20, but Oriana is wise beyond her years. At an age when young adults are often seen grappling with life’s numerous choices, Oriana seems sure and driven. This Adelaidean's unique brand of drawings – big lips, beautiful eyes, and quirky hairstyles - are winning hearts on social media. Her creations are mainly a mix of Copic markers and coloured pencils, but she also experiments with paints.  Her quirky art has seen her get many requests from people who want her to draw portraits of their loved ones.  

Oriana has been drawing since she began holding a pen, but her art truly became important when she turned to it for comfort during her dark days. “Grade 12 was a tough time for me, I couldn’t cope with examination pressures, and was stressed and overwhelmed. I remember having these cue cards lying around. To vent my frustrations, I took one of the cards and started drawing. When I finished, I never felt more relaxed! That’s when I knew art was the only thing I wanted to do,” says Oriana.

Oriana says her art can be categorized into two sets: graphic or Copic art, and commissioned work. Though she likes the commissioned work as it keeps her afloat, she loves graphic art. “Graphic art enables me to create unique pieces of work. Graphic pens are expensive, but the result looks like a digital printout. That combined with the right use of colour pens and pencils, makes the artwork look magnificent, and computer generated," she says.   

She further explains, “Those markers are alcohol based, and the colour will run if it is used on a normal paper. For maximum results, a blending paper should be used. It is a costly affair as both the markers and the blending papers are expensive. I try to fund my graphic artwork with the money I get from my commission work."

Her commissioned work includes creating portraits of people. “I get requests from people to make portraits of their friends and family members which they give as birthday gifts. That’s not my main style, but I do enjoy doing them. It also enables me to earn some money that helps support my other style,” she explains.

“When I started out most of my art had a slightly negative connotation as it reflected my mindset. Nevertheless, they were unique. One of my first pictures was brought by my aunt who thought it looked lovely, and from there I started getting numerous requests - all based on word-of-mouth advertising,” Oriana adds. The commissioned work usually takes Oriana three days to complete. But she keeps a buffer of three more days in case of any mistakes.     

Oriana's loves drawing women’s faces. “There is a great scope for experimentation there.  With a man’s face, that becomes difficult. You can put flowers on a man's head in a painting, but it ends up looking like I am making a statement," she says.  Her biggest inspiration is artist Michael Hussar. “He dabbles in oil painting and has a weird style. People in his paintings have swollen lips, and small eyes, making the painting look messy but incredible. I think I got a penchant for fat lips from his paintings,” she adds.

Oriana’s parents were adamant that she finishes her education before opting for artwork. “I decided to do Psychology, but didn’t get through. And, then I enrolled for digital art classes through Open University. Initially, I liked it but soon it started adversely impacting my mental state. I barely met anyone as all my courses were conducted online and not in a classroom. I would spend days cooped up in my home. Finally, I lost interest," she says. 

"My parents, on realising that University studies were affecting my mental state, became supportive of myartwrok," Oriana adds.

The articulate young artist is extremely grateful for the support she gets from her family. "My dad knows I have been trying to start a YouTube channel. And, as a surprise, he brought me a professional camera! That was a very touching gesture. My aunt and uncle are my biggest supporters. They are constant egging me to do better. It is because of my family that I have managed to slowly create a niche for myself," says Oriana.   

Follow the young artists' art on Instagram.