Atomic power plant engineer by day, graphic designer by night

How Andrew Krasovitckii broke into the design world

Andrew Krasovitckii has a secret that would surprise his co-workers if they found out. This happily married father of one may be a successful and highly respected engineer in an atomic power plant by day, but after his 9–5, Andrew loves nothing more than to create fabulous graphics for Envato Elements.

“My colleagues from the office do not know that I am a professional designer. I’m not hiding this fact, it’s because they don’t take such things seriously and regard them as a whim. How wrong they are!”

A dream deferred

Andrew, who hails from the beautiful city of St. Petersburg in Russia, says that though he always loved drawing and as a youngster dreamt of work that involved drawing, he abandoned his childhood dream when he became an adult and studied engineering instead.

One day, however, he heard about design marketplaces and decided to try his hand creating something he could potentially sell.

“In the beginning I tried out several graphic styles. I drew flowers, backgrounds, animals, etc. Then I discovered infographics, and fell in love with creating complicated geometric shapes, working with shadows, thinking about symmetry. Maybe it is connected with the fact that I am a technically-minded person.”

Taking the plunge

Andrew, who goes by the name Andrew_Kras on Envato Elements, admits that the transition to becoming a designer wasn’t an easy one. He not only had to learn how to translate his drawings into vector but also had to get over the rejection he initially received when he first tried to penetrate the design marketplace.

“There are no words to describe how upset I was, but instead of giving up I got a very strong desire to become one of the most popular illustrators out there. I learned current trends, found out the customers’ needs, and success didn’t make me wait too long.”

What makes a good designer

Since becoming a designer, Andrew says he’s started to pay closer attention to details and has a much better understanding of what’s necessary to become a good designer.

He believes that it is vital to be aware of contemporary tendencies in design, to understand the role various visual elements like colour play in making or breaking design, and to grasp what customers want and fulfill that need better than the customer could ever imagine.

“I try to create original, complex works of good quality that are easy to edit by the customer. It is very important for me to know that the customer will not be disappointed after buying my work, that he could easily edit it as he sees fit.”

Staying motivated

Andrew believes though that his success as a designer ultimately comes down to his wife’s support of him.

“She believed in me from the beginning, when it was crucial for me. I still remember how she rapturously praised my first works and felt proud for me. This gave me strength to move on.”

He says that even now she still praises his work, which keeps him motivated.

“She looks with delight at my new works every day and says the same words each time: “Where do you get enough imagination to come up with all this?” After these words I want to surprise her and draw new works every day.”

Find more of Andrew’s work at Envato Elements.