Don’t you love it when women. Daniela Olaru does too. This 20-year-old artist and student at the University of Ferrara, Italy, creates sketches, paintings, and graphic designs—usually of women’s faces and bodies—that are so uniquely her own. Her Instagram is home to artwork and photography that is both intimate and mesmerizing, beautifully capturing the dreaminess and complexity of womanhood.
Daniela grew up in Moldova under the care of her grandparents until the age of nine. She considers herself lucky to have been raised by her grandfather, an artist and musician, who always encouraged her creativity. “I started drawing in a very natural way, also inspired by the letters that my mom sent me from Italy which always had a drawing attached to them. I think that if I had started drawing later on I would have seen gradual growth, but having always drawn I don’t know what the beginning was. And the fascinating thing is that I don’t even know what the point of arrival is. As long as I can draw, evolving will be inevitable.”
The artist draws inspiration from personal narration and her external surroundings. In short, anything and everything can be a source of inspiration – including visual art, photography, music, and books.
For Daniela, art is both a form of escapism and relaxation, which lends itself to internal and external reflection. “I always start drawing thinking I’ll go with the flow but then I think about things to add and it always ends up being a direct reflection of what I’m feeling in that moment and what happened to me that day.”
Daniela’s list of interests is never-ending, but her profound appreciation for music is at the top, and she hopes to find some time to get back into piano playing again. Next to add to the list— which, given her talent, sounds promising— is animation, which was inspired by the artist Daniel Zvereff.
Her following can be ascribed to her many captivating drawing videos, but gaining followers was never Daniela’s intention. “Instagram is such a safe place for me that it’s not my goal to attract that many people all at once— if it happens I’m not gonna cry about it, but let’s say that’s not why I post things. In fact, I often stop posting because of life stuff and I lose followers, but I’m happy to say that has never affected me and I wanna keep it that way.”
But Daniela is thankful for the following she has accumulated because it means there are 12.8K people (and counting) who have an affinity for her life and art. “I just want to share little things about my life, which coincidentally includes some drawings and paintings. I am grateful to have the following that I have because I feel like the people who follow me do it because of who they are and their interests align with mine, which is amazing.”
SHEESH! had the privilege of interviewing Daniela Olaru about her art, social media, and creative opportunities.
How would you describe your art?
My art is pretty intuitive and spontaneous— perfectly contrasting my extreme perfectionism. It’s used mostly to tell things to others without ever really revealing anything. At least this is where I am now, it might change tomorrow.
Do you have drawing rituals, like listening to certain music?
I adore rituals! Mine are never too defined but I put on some music, I turn off the big light in my room and turn on some smaller ones— very unproductive since I have to see what I draw. As for music, I listen to what I want to in that moment, I have no distinction between what I listen to during the day and what I listen to when I draw.
What is your favorite thing to draw? Is there a piece you’ve made that is special to you?
I love to draw people, especially women because I love women and I see myself in them, and vice-versa. One of my favorite pieces, after two years, is the one I made the day I turned 18. The caption says, “I want to break 18 into two perfect parts made of 9 each and add numbers to them, to be a little bit of everything.”
How do you stay creative?
It’s a question that I can’t really answer. I don’t like to force things so if I can’t draw, I don’t. I would pay to have a solution because those long periods when I don’t make anything always end up being the worst. I archive too many things which I then forget and lose. The only thing that works for me is to stop and actively remember— despite it being difficult— that if there is something we should spend our time doing in this life, it should be what we like to do, even if what we like to do isn’t what we are good at. But music, books, and movies are always helpful, too.
How many drawings would you say you’ve made? Do you still have all of them?
I have no idea. Right now I’d say I have more than 500 for sure. They are all over the place and I even lost some here and there. I do care deeply about a couple of them. It’s never about their complexity but rather what they mean to me.
Do you have a certain career path for your art, or do you want to pursue a different field?
I’m getting into both graphic and product design right now and I’m happy that I decided to choose this for university because it’s something that contains countless of my interests and I am truly learning a lot. At first, I thought I was going to do Fine Arts but, just as I never took any drawing classes, I don’t want to force anything when it comes to my drawing. I want it to remain as natural as it started and I want it to follow me and my career rather than being financially dependent on it.
As a kid, what was your dream career?
I wanted to be an actress 100%. I was certainly inspired by the films I watched with my grandparents, which 90% of the time were Indian— there was a lot of Bollywood in Moldova for some absurd reason. I used to get dressed up as different people every single day and my outfit choices were interesting, to say the least.
How do you seek out opportunities? Can you talk about the project you did with Orion Carloto?
I think I should seek more opportunities, but the truth is that I don’t at all which is very unproductive… it’s hard to make time for it right now, or are these just excuses? I made an illustration for Orion back in 2016ish and she loved it, followed me, and asked me to use it as the heading for a monthly segment she used to do for Local Wolves. And then later on she reached out to me with her idea for the “I cry a lot, but it’s for the art’’ shirt. Thinking about it now, a direct proof of the fact that I’m dumb and don’t seek out opportunities is the fact that I didn’t want to take any money for the drawing because I love Orion. And the funny thing is that my economical status is not really enviable. My mom is raising two daughters all alone and the university occupies most of my days, which does not allow me to work— very common in Italy given the education system.
What are your views on platforms such as Instagram or Tumblr as a means to share art or to find inspiration?
Socials in general, when used mindfully, are such a powerful thing and I believe they can be an amazing way to connect, inspire, and get inspired. It’s not a very innovative thought but I find it very true. We just all have to remember to detach ourselves from social media, to let platforms just be a tool, not the reason why we create or do things— if it’s not our job.
Did sharing your art come naturally, or did you have to work up to it?
Back when I started sharing my work I didn’t really know what I was doing, I was mainly influenced by the people I followed and I was trying to mimic everyone, which I think is extremely normal at the age of 15. Then it slowly faded away and around 2017 I started sharing things because I wanted to, without any claim or goal in mind, which holds up to this day.
For more of Daniela Olaru and her art, follow @danieladaisies.
To read about other cool artists, check out Timakkuma and Yen.
