Five minutes with artist and designer, Jake Stollery

Andrea Hobbs talks Hisense and colour inspiration with Jake Stollery at the Formula One Rolex Australian Grand Prix 2017.

Growing up, what inspired you to get into digital art?

When I was 14, I watched The Matrix and after seeing all the incredible visuals I thought, “Wow, I have to be involved with something like this!” That moment is what inspired me to get into digital art and creativity. Technology is constantly changing and so can art — it’s where I have found my passion.

What did you study at university to get you to this point?

I studied 3D animation and visual effects at university, however pure visual design was what interested me the most.

So I went for a walk to be inspired, to try and find where the cool designs were, as that’s what I wanted in a career. I walked into a clothing store, and saw all these t-shirts with awesome print graphics on them. I thought, “Woah! Someone has to do that job!” Then, I got in touch with that clothing company, and said “Hey I’m about to finish uni, here’s my portfolio, I’d love to work for you guys!” As luck would have it, they had an opening and got in contact with me within the week.

From there, I ended up working on clothing graphics and textile design. I’ve been in the fashion industry ever since.

What’s the creative process of Jake Stollery? Where do you draw your inspiration from?

I appreciate the variety in creativity that you’re permitted when working with technology — it’s constantly creating new opportunities for creative expression. For me, it’s the type of work that I’m doing which has an influence on the process I use.

To me that’s what I find truly exciting about what I do. I can be doing video work one day, a 3D printed sculpture the day after and then work on a piece of jewellery the day after that. The process is always changing. Variety in process is what keeps the hard work fun and interesting.

As for my inspiration, I honestly get it from everywhere, all around me. But my true love is tech. Technology moves at such a fast pace, there is no time to get bored. It’s constantly pushing me to do new and creative work. That’s why I love Hisense so much. They are always evolving their display technology, so it’s a privilege to work with them.

How long have you been collaborating with Hisense?

This is my third project with Hisense. Previously I created visuals across five of their displays for this awesome product launch they had. Our first collaboration though, was at a Melbourne Fashion Festival and we’ve been friends ever since. I used one of their first 4K ULED displays, when 4K had just hit the market. It’s been inspiring to watch their brand grow and grow to where it is now!

MORE: Want to know more about ULED technology? Read our guide here. 

Wow that’s amazing — so you got in touch with Hisense?

Yeah, totally! I give talks to students every now and then, and what I always say to people starting out is “you have get in touch with the people you want to work with”. No one knows you exist until you put yourself out there.

You created an incredible installation for the Red Bull Racing suite at the Formula One Rolex Australian Grand Prix. What is this installation all about?

The artwork is called ‘Lightspeed’ and the creative challenge here was to produce a work that referenced the Red Bull Racing motorsport heritage and Hisense 4K ULED colour display technology.

We’ve all seen the photography of cars and their tail lights as they trace long red lines of light down a highway. In this piece, I wanted to evoke their sense of movement. The waves of geometry represent the aerodynamic form of the F1 cars.

I took the creative licence to make everything more colourful and energetic, to show off the vibrant colour reproduction of the Hisense displays. The colours look so intense have a powerful visual punch to them.

Why is colour so important to you and why do you continue to collaborate with Hisense?

What I love about colour is that it can add so much visual interest and variety to a work. Colour can just be so engaging, it’s part of the visual spice to life!

The Hisense 4K ULED displays use HDR technology and give the colour more expression, from being incredibly subtle to powerful and vibrant. Non HDR panels display only sixteen million colours, whereas Hisense HDR can produce over a billion colours! As an artist, this creates a colour palette that is so vast and rich, it’s an absolute privilege to work with these beautiful marvels of technology.

MORE: Want to learn more about HDR? Check out our guide here.

What advice would you give to other Millennials who want to work in the field they are passionate about?

People won’t know who you are unless take the initiative to put yourself out there. Rise above rejection and challenges.

For more information on Hisense TV technology, click here.