Pixel-perfect precision: The isometric art of David Wildish

David Wildish is an illustrator and UX/UI designer known for his playful, highly detailed isometric worlds filled with pop culture nods, retro charm, and next-level precision. In this interview, he shares his journey into design, how a life-changing experience shaped his career, and why Affinity has become an integral part of his creative process.

Tell us a little about your path into the creative industry. Where did it all begin for you?

I’ve been into art for as long as I can remember, ever since I could hold a pencil. But I was actually a latecomer to the professional creative field. I struggled with concentration at school, always wanting to spend my days doing art rather than anything else. I then got a little sidetracked during and after my college years by the early 90s rave culture.

My creative story really began at the age of 25, when I fell seriously ill with meningitis. After very nearly losing my life, spending a month in hospital, and going through three months of recovery, things were suddenly put into perspective. I knew I wanted to do something worthwhile. So during that recovery time, I focused on building up my portfolio and started applying for jobs.

My break came when a design agency in Bath gave me my first job setting recruitment ads. That might sound boring now, but at the time it was a dream come true. The job didn’t last long, as the company lost a major client and went bust, but it gave me my foot in the door and some valuable experience—something I’ve always been very grateful for.

How did your career progress?

After that first lucky job in Bath, I gained a mix of experience, including working for The Early Learning Centre where I focused on packaging art. I then moved into the publishing sector, spending about ten years with various publishing houses. That gave me a solid foundation in layout and color, along with advanced skills in design software.

When my younger brother went solo with Wildish & Co, he gave me a six-month opportunity to help kickstart my freelance career and step away from the 9-to-5.

During that freelance period, I rented a desk at Pixel Pixel Ltd in Swindon. While I started out freelancing from there, I quickly began picking up client work for the studio and brought in my much-needed knowledge of print design. I also jumped at the chance to learn web and app design, and before long, I joined the team full-time as a designer.

After that, I joined ProCook, where I’m now the Lead UX/UI Designer, focusing on improving the user experience of their website. I use Affinity for all our icons, photos, and web assets, alongside Figma.

What first drew you to Affinity?

I’d been an Adobe user for many years, but always felt like I had to battle the software to make it work for me. I was ready for an alternative. I discovered Affinity during the beta days and was hooked from the very first use. Everything about it just felt right.

Which Affinity tool or feature helps you most in your work?

The Pen Tool in Affinity is simply perfect, but one of the first features that really got me hooked was how easy it is to mask objects within each other. It makes things like shading a breeze, while still allowing you to add an outline to the masked object. Illustrator can do this too, but not as quickly or as easily. It’s a feature that really resonated with my style and gave me the ability to work much faster without wasting time on extra steps.

We love your isometric illustrations. What drew you to working in an isometric style?

Isometric work has always fascinated me. I’ve collected books and magazines featuring pixel art and isometric illustrations, and I’ve always loved the worlds people create through them. Once I discovered the isometric grid feature in Affinity, that was it—I was down the rabbit hole. When you have the power to build entire worlds, it’s hard to stop!

What kind of time goes into detailed pieces like Pixel Falls?

It’s hard to put an exact time on a piece like that. Personal work is different because there’s no sign-off or publication deadline, so I tend to keep tweaking and obsessing over the details until I’m happy. Pixel Falls probably took around two weeks, whereas smaller pieces, like my ice cream van, took less than a day.

How do you come up with new ideas?

There’s no magic to it, I’m afraid. My head is usually swimming with ideas, influenced by all parts of my day. I’ve always got a mental list of things I want to create bubbling away. The tricky part is finding the time to get them all out onto an artboard.

Can you describe your overall approach to design?

Probably quite self-indulgent and obsessively neat. That might be a hangover from my publishing days, where my creative director was obsessed with accuracy and pinpoint measurements in layouts.

That mindset has definitely carried through to my isometric work. When I get stuck into a piece, I lose myself in the process and often check every single line and path to make sure it’s as neat as possible. There’s a good reason for that, though—if any of my artworks are ever scaled, I know they’ll look just as sharp at 100% as they do at 1000%.

Do you have any routines or habits that help you stay productive?

I’m a big believer in lists—writing down targets and checking them off at the end of the day. It really helps me stay organized and keeps my mind on track (otherwise, I tend to go off on tangents). Music is another great tool for focus. There’s nothing better than blasting some good old-school Jungle or D&B to get me in the zone.

What has been the biggest challenge in your career so far?

Changing direction from print design to web design has probably been the biggest leap I’ve made in recent years. Web design never stands still—it’s a constant evolution of rules and design standards. That said, I’ve found my background in print design often gives me an advantage. The discipline I developed there helps keep my artwork consistently sharp.

Is there a moment in your career that stands out as especially meaningful or memorable?

Working a four-month onsite freelance contract for Dyson in Malmesbury was definitely a highlight. I was commissioned to illustrate a selection of British design icons, all handpicked by James Dyson. These were illustrated and produced in large format, then installed on entrance walls, labs, conference rooms, and meeting spaces as part of a major HQ redevelopment and investment program. It felt pretty amazing to spend my days drawing cars and iconic British airplanes, while the full-timers were busy plugging away at their “real” work.

Another proud moment was seeing a piece of my work featured on the Affinity site. Having used Affinity for so long and been so passionate about it, that meant a lot.

Explore more of David’s incredible illustration work on Instagram.