Makers Monday… Meet iHeart Pop Art

Today we introduce Jared from iHeart Pop Art to you. Find out more about his colourful prints and products…

Please introduce yourself and your brand….

Hi! My name is Jared Orlin and I’m the creator of iHeart Pop Art. When I’m not immersed in my day-job in PR and content marketing, I enjoy creating pop art and abstract photography prints. Under the tagline “Digitally-designed. Professionally printed”, I love to present well-known, every-day or common images but with a surprising twist on them. Everything I create, whether that’s a print with a mirror effect of the Brighton Pavilion or the distorted and slightly disturbing “Botched Barbie”, is about seeing things we “know” in unexpected ways. And then reflecting that back in eye-catching wall art.

How would you describe your style and your products?

Bold, bright and colourful! My prints are meant to be conversation pieces, the kind of artworks you’d be proud and excited to show off to friends and family. As you’d expect, I’m heavily inspired by Andy Warhol’s celebrity pop art but I’m also heavily influenced by MC Escher, particularly the use of symmetry of repeating patterns. My prints span a few different collections and styles, with the main focus on pop art prints devoted to Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II, plus other famous faces, including Elvis Presley, James Dean, Marilyn Monroe and David Bowie. I’m also hugely inspired by my series of Japanese lucky cat prints (they’re my logo design!).

What do you enjoy most about your work?

I love interacting with buyers and helping them find the right artwork for them. One of my happiest artist moments was helping a lady in London who wanted to surprise her partner with a Christmas gift of art made from photos of the two of them. She came to me with a plan to fill a large empty white wall in their apartment and that I’d be working with her supplied photographs. What started out as a simple canvas print evolved into a gorgeous gallery wall of eight individually crafted prints of the two of them and their beloved Jack Russell. It was so gratifying to brainstorm ideas and designs, find the right colour scheme, and see it all come to life, but most importantly, to find out how much joy the final product has given them both. Sounds cliché but it’s really exciting knowing the story behind the prints and why people are drawn to a particular design.

Do you have a best seller or favourite to make?

My most popular design is, hands down, “Rainbow Queens”, a pop art design featuring 9 panels, each with Queen Elizabeth II’s face against a cascade of different background colours: red, orange, yellow, green, blue, pink, purple… It’s really eye-catching! Fun fact: I recently sold a print of this design to a person in America who lives on a street named Windsor Drive. They’re obviously a fan of the royal family!

What are your plans or ambitions for the future?

I’ve just launched my website and would like to grow my presence there. I’m also keen, now that we’re out of lockdown, to start selling more in person or at select stores.