Meet Philipine! Known as ‘Phil,’ she is a 22-year-old artist and fandom member from France.
Describe yourself in three words.
In-the-moon. Perfectionist. Positive (extremely positive).
How long have you been drawing?
Like so many artists would answer, since I was able/learned to use a pencil, so I started very early in my childhood, but became serious about it when I was around 11-12 years old. I started taking drawing and oil painting classes and I’ve cultivated that passion since then. Drawing is a passion that you have to keep sharpening every single day and I have done just that, since it has become a way to express myself, so right now, I’d say I’ve been seriously drawing for 12 years.
What kind of medium or equipment do you use?
I use a lot of different mediums. I’m all for experimenting like scientists who play with their chemistry sets! I use aquarelle, color inks, “Encre de Chine” (black ink from China), pastels, pencils. But right now, or at least for the Shadowhunters fandom drawings, I use a Bamboo Graphic Tablet.
How did you get involved in the Shadowhunters fandom?
I started getting involved in the Shadowhunters fandom after the Season 1 hiatus on Tumblr. I had already created my blog, but wasn’t really invested in it. I fell in love with the Shadowhunters cast and wanted to draw them, so I guess it was at that moment that my normal drawing Tumblr blog became a full-on Shadowhunters fanart blog. I actually changed my URL to @phildrawsfanart for that and it is now a dedicated Shadowhunters fanart blog.
Who is your favorite character to draw and why?
Oh my, that’s a hard one! It’s like making you choose who you love more: your mum or dad! But if I’m being really honest on that one, I’d say that Alec is my favorite to draw (but he is close to Magnus). I can now draw him with my eyes closed. I know every curve and line of his face, every mimic and twitch of his versatile expressions, every little sparkle in his eyes; and let’s be honest, Matthew Daddario has lovely eyes! As for the why, Alec Lightwood is a very complex character, who is, for me, the most honest and open character about his feelings even though he desperately tries to hide and bottle them away to be the “perfect” soldier. He also has an interesting arc in Season 1 as well as Season 2, to which many people can identify with. And he has sass, like a lot, as well as an “I’m so done with everyone” attitude and body language that I adore.
What ships do you ship, and why you love them so much?
Well, that’s an easy one! Malec. Should I say more? Malec is the most honest and sane relationship I’ve seen in a TV show. It also portrays an LGBTQ and interracial couple: a sparkly, Asian, bi man and a tall, dark, and handsome gay man. What I also love about Malec is that they are a couple that “talk.” They share their thoughts, feelings, ups and downs of their everyday life. To me, that is the most important thing that you need to have in a relationship. Sure, you need physical attraction as well, but talking with one’s partner is more important in my eyes.
I would also like to add that the Parabatai come very close to Malec. I do not ship them romantically at all, but I ship their Parabatai bond/BROTP. The bond is a very unique one that I find so very, very interesting.
What has been the best part of your fandom experience so far?
My best experience in the fandom so far would be something that happens on a daily basis, and that is seeing the reactions of the people looking at my artwork! Especially the tags. My God, the tags are everything! Another extraordinary experience would be meeting new people. I’ve made a few online friends on Tumblr and recently on Twitter (yes, I have fallen to the Dark Side) and that is a blessing. So, this question is turning into my best experiences, sorry about that… Another amazing experience is seeing the fandom losing its shit and going crazy! For example: Episode 10 of Season 2. Can we talk about how we all went crazy?! That was just amazing.
Like what you see? You can follow Philipine on Twitter and Tumblr, and you can check out her portfolio website.
