Illustrator Ori Toor creates gibberish, freestyle worlds where you'll enjoy getting lost

A freelancer whose clients include Adobe, Apple and Samsung, Ori Toor loves nothing more than to doodle. His pieces in his 'Gibberish #24' series can take days, even months to create. "I can sometimes understand what was going through my mind at the time," he tells Creative Boom. "It's a bit like analysing your dreams. There's logic but it's a very personal one, although I hope it's relatable somehow on a subconscious level."

Each artwork starts organically with no thought as to how it might develop. "The process is just opening a new file in Photoshop and starting to draw lines," he explains. "I don't do any construction lines. I just draw. It's all improvised because I find it more fun that way. Colouring is the same. Dropping colours with the paint bucket and changing them a lot until I'm happy."

As for the ideas behind Ori's art, he says the best inspiration comes from everyday things, or what he likes to call "boring stuff". He continues: "Sometimes I look for inspiration online but always realise it's a mistake. I work best when my head is empty. Overthinking never did me any favours."

Looking closely at one of the artworks in Gibberish #24, we immediately notice the multi-coloured eyes, staring back at us. But then we spot a strange pink creature lying on an unusual metal object with a red cat...or miniature robot...sitting on its open end. After that, the attention gets lost in all the little narratives that run through the piece.

But this isn't a recent favourite. Ori tells us that The Cracking really inspired him: "I took a break from colours and focused on lighting and atmosphere," he says. "I didn't understand it at first but my partner says it's a self-portrait of me working at night. I'm super attracted to night lights. There's something romantic about working at night by yourself with some nice music and low lights. Brings me back to my student days. Not sure what Pickachu is doing there, though."

Perhaps this shift reflects his reaction to the recent pandemic? "The lack of being outside definitely had a mental toll that eventually influenced the work," he adds. "I definitely need a vacation."

Rather wonderfully, you can grab one of Ori Toor's creations via his shop where he regularly drops limited-edition, high-quality prints. Or simply follow his work on Instagram.