Welcome, or welcome back, to my Stanford Pen Studio (SPS) series. If you haven’t seen my previous posts, I suggest you check them out to see the amazing work the SPS collective produces. This entry is spotlighting Yulia Glas who you can find on Instagram.
SPS Series Posts: SPS Overview | Brandon Lodewyk | Carla Nel | Di Möhr | Hanna Farmer | Kseniia Nel | Lana Le Roux | Lisa Strachan | Val Myburgh | Yulia Glas | Zelna le Roux | Initial Wrap-Up
Yulia is the fourth SPS artist whose work I purchased, although, unusually for my SPS purchases, none of the pens I have with her artwork were commissions. She currently specializes in anything nature-related, with a special emphasis on animals. Yulia also has a delightful array of paintings on/with gold leaf.
How did you learn about Stanford Pen Studio?
Ksenia Nel told me she had started painting pens, so I checked SPS’ Instagram. Some of the pens reminded me of my whales (clay sculptures — I paint stories on them ). So I told SPS about it! Di asked if I could try painting a pen of them! So I started with Hummingbirds on Gold Leaf, which was sold almost immediately (in a few minutes)! I could not believe it!
While Yulia may have been surprised that her debut pen sold so quickly, I’m not. If I had seen it first, I’m pretty sure I would have snapped it up.
How long did it take you to decide to work with them?
It was an instant decision! I have a problem in my art life. I get bored very quickly and can’t do the same thing over and over. I paint in many styles, I make jewelry, I make sculptures, I am an antique collector. I need a challenge! So why not paint pens! 
Hopefully painting pens is enough of a challenge that it will keep Yulia interested for a good, long time. After all, her work is stunning.
How do you feel about creating art on pens? And what was your first thought when you learned about it?
I was very excited about it! I wanted to challenge myself! I was in absolute shock when I received my first blank pen. It was so tiny. How could anyone paint on such a tiny canvas!
As you can see from the flat (canvas) version and the cylindrical (pen) version of Yulia’s Happy Summer Day painting, she’s managed the transition to tiny, three-dimensional canvas quite well. Make sure you check out Di’s video of this pen, too.
What do you consider the hardest part of working on pens?
Everything is hard 
Difficult to plan and sketch on it, as it’s rounded and you can’t see the full picture. Difficult to fit all you want! And of course, it is difficult to paint. 
Tiny brushes, tiny pens 0.03 mm — sometimes I had to paint with a needle! Sore eyes, can’t focus for long time, sore arms, hands, fingers.
And despite all of those hardships, it’s clear Yulia is loving the pen work she’s doing.
Has pen work affected your non-pen art in any way?
Yes it did! After painting with magnifying glasses with tiny brushes, when you get to a 1.5 x 1 meter canvas, you just sit and look at it, thinking, what am I gonna do with it? But as I said before, I like challenges. Also, I notice I’m adding too much detail, and I’ve started to use my tiny brushes and pens even on larger works.
Sounds like detailed art is addictive! I look forward to seeing how Yulia’s art, pen and non-pen, continues to evolve.
What is your favorite part of working with Stanford Pen Studio?
There are many! I just love how Di describes each pen! For me it’s an art on its own! I love how Di reacts when she sees my pens! Every time I give her a pen, I think she can’t get more surprised, but she does! And the same for me! I finish a pen and think, I can’t believe I did it! It’s my best pen, I can’t get any better. And then I paint another pen and I think the same!
I have to agree with Yulia, Di really has a way with words. Check out the videos for Yulia’s floral spirals and duochrome leaves, mosaic rainbow, and dragonfly pens. And, as evidenced by the three pens of hers I’ve bought recently, I 100% agree that each pen is absolutely fantastic.
Has your work on pens turned you into a pen person?
100%! SPS offered to let me paint a pen for myself, and it’s not easy to paint 1 pen. And every time I paint a pen I think, OK, I will keep this one… No, I would rather keep that one… or that one… or this one! Or all of them! And every time Di brings me a pen to see, I’m battling to give it back. I want them all! It’s only a pity that videos and photos don’t show their beauty fully!
Woohoo! We have another soul for the collective! *cough cough* I mean, excellent, we have enticed another person to the dark side. Erm… no, um… we welcome another person to the pen community! Yes, that’s much better.
Get an SPS pen with Yulia’s art!
See all of Yulia’s currently available pens»
I appreciate Yulia taking the time to answer these questions. I have 3 pens with her art, themed around our solar system, cats and books, and delft pottery style cats. I haven’t posted pen porn posts for all of them yet, so you’ll have to keep an eye out for those posts in the future.
What do you think of Yulia’s work? Do you own any of the pens she has helped create? If not, would you be interested in one? Let me know in the comments! I’d love to hear from you.
Thanks for reading to the end, I hope you enjoyed my post. Make sure to subscribe to my blog or follow me on Instagram so you don’t miss any posts. I generally post at least once a week.
Oh ❤️ Thank You Rachel! Fantastic post! 😘
Thanks for answering my questions! 😊
I am loving this series of blog posts. Clearly I am biased, yet even if you were writing about someone I had never heard of before, I would still enjoy reading your posts. Well done, Rachel!
I’ve had so much fun with this series! I’m so happy you’re enjoying it. 😁