Who are you, and what do you do?
I'm Minna - I'm an artist, more specifically a painter. I split my time between painting works on canvas for exhibitions, and large scale murals (both indoor and outdoor). I've been creative ever since I was tiny, but as I got older I turned more towards art as a way to deal with daily stresses - it became an enjoyable meditative practice of sorts. Eventually it evolved into a way to make a living, and I've been doing this full time now for the last 4 years.
What hardware do you use?
For murals I use a paint roller to lay down the base coat colour onto a wall, then round cutter brushes to paint the rest of the design. This is my favourite mural brush - it's great over rough surfaces like brick and helps me to achieve clean outlines which is integral to my work. They also last ages. Catch me with one of these in my hand. I also use large canvas drop sheets instead of plastic ones as you'll have them forever (obviously a lot more sustainable).
For canvas paintings - I generally paint on good quality stretched linen canvas with acrylic paint. My favourite paint is Matisse Structure - expensive but worth it. I use smaller acrylic bristle pointy tip brushes - no particular brand. To protect the painting once it's finished and dry, I use a spray matt varnish. I usually frame with a dark wood timber float frame - I like dark wood as opposed to black or white as they give my paintings an earthy finish.
I also use a 13 inch MacBook Pro (Intel version).
And what software?
I use Photoshop CC 2019 for design work, mostly to edit hand drawn mural concepts. I also seem to spend most of my life on Gmail. But to be honest, most of my work is pretty analogue.
What would be your dream setup?
A beautiful big light and plant filled studio with lots of different shelves and storage spaces to keep various materials in order - paint tins and pots, brushes, canvas, paper - etc etc etc. I'd like a huge table in a naturally bright lit position that I could work on large canvases at. A space to the side with some big comfy armchairs, coffee table and kettle for tea breaks and emails. A good speaker system to play music and podcasts through. A bed for my dog Mirka too so she could hang out. I'd also love a van so I could cart my mural gear and canvases around better - right now my car is in perpetual chaos. All in good time!