With our new Artist Profiles series, we're pulling back the curtain on the illustrators who bring our characters to life. Each installment features one of our artists in their own words; their background, their process, and what they hope players notice when a card they've drawn lands in someone's hand.

First up, we're catching up with Grant Yun, a renowned Digital Illustrator who's brought some of the most iconic Vibes cards to life.

1. Tell us a bit about yourself and how you got into art. Where are you based, how long have you been making art, and who or what shaped your style?

I started working professionally as an artist a little over a decade ago, mostly in freelance. I initially began my practice while attending college at the University of Wisconsin in Madison, Wisconsin. Prior to this, I spent the majority of my childhood creating artworks and shooting photography.

My style has been shaped slowly through my own education over the past decade. Initially, my works had been grounded primarily from my inspirations in American regionalism and pop art movements. Over the years however, specific artists and more niche art movements from the 1900s into the present have continued to inspire me. By viewing my works and its change and development throughout the past 5-10 years, you can get an understanding for how my inspirations have slowly shaped my practice.

2. How would you describe your art style in your own words?

Previously I had called my style Neo-Precisionism as inspired by the precisionism movement from the early 1900s.

In recent years, I have been calling my work vectorize-realism as a way to better help my audience understand the basis for my practice. With my background as an American born artist who is constantly exploring themes of realism specific to the United States, I have also self-identified as an artist deeply connected to the American realism movements of the past.

For a deeper in-depth read about my style, please refer to my medium article.

3. What's your process like? Walk us through how a piece goes from idea to finished art (tools, medium, software).

The majority of my works are created on Adobe Illustrator in native vector format. When I first undergo an illustration I will often create some very rough drafts on paper, or might not have any prior draft at all. Often I do not know what my final work will look like. There is a photographic component of some of my works as I focus on balancing abstraction and hyperrealism.

4. Which Vibes card(s) did you work on, and do you have a favorite? What made it fun or challenging?

Over the past year I have illustrated Quiver the Flightful from the new Birb & Pengu set, in addition to the Popcorn Penguin Promo Worlds Championship 2026. Personally, I had the most fun creating Quiver especially as it is the first set featuring the Moonbirds IP. I have always wanted to connect with the broader web3 community and illustrating for Vibes has been one of my dream come true opportunities.

Quiver the Flightful, and Popcorn Penguin Worlds 2026 Promo, by Grant Yun

5. What's something you want players to notice or appreciate when they see your art on a card?

I have been proud to have a unique style that I spent years polishing. I hope the moment a player stumbles across my card they know exactly who the artist behind the work is!

6. Where can people find more of your work?

X: @grantyun2

IG: @notimetoburn

Website: https://www.ribbonriven.com/

Huge thanks to Grant Yun for kicking off our Artist Profiles series. Stay tuned for more amazing artists!