Enjoy!
1. Starting from the beginning, how did you first get into illustration?
I’ve always been into art. My parents were super encouraging of it. When I was in elementary school I loved writing short stories and illustrating them. In middle school my best friend and I would doodle comics and video game ideas. In high school I got really into graphic design. I don’t think I realized ‘how’ I wanted to draw until I saw Samurai Jack for the first time. That was a big awakening moment for me. It made me realize that drawing was something I HAD to do. It wasn’t until several years later though that I finally felt it was something I could do for a living, and that was another big change. It’s a big thing when something goes from being your hobby to your profession.
2. Other then illustrating what stuff do you do like doing?
I really enjoy shooting and editing video. Since moving to California I’ve been doing a lot more traveling, and I really enjoy driving and learning about different places. I love museums.
3. When it comes to inspiration what kind of things do you look at? A lot of your work contains landscapes elaborate and exciting landscapes, do you use reference to real places or does it all come from the mind?
It’s a mix of everything. I love photo reference. I use tons of it. But I’m not sure I would be inspired to draw if I hadn’t seen a lot of cool things in real life. Often times what sparks the idea for a drawing is wanting to recreate a memory of some place that I’ve been. It’s usually just a feeling or a fuzzy image though, and that’s where photos come in handy for fleshing the image out.
4. Its evident that you have a clear, confident working method and technique when producing your work, did you develop this "style" or did it come naturally?
I definitely developed it. My method used to be just starting an image and then going into a rage if it didn’t turn out how I wanted. That got really tiresome and eventually I learned that I could increase my success rate if I followed certain steps. So now I always gather reference, do thumbnails, color studies, etc, before trying to paint an image. It’s made drawing a lot less stressful for me.
5. A lot of your work seems to include comic book/sci-fi esq imagery. These are all cool themes to be illustrating giving a lot for the imagination to play with. Is this what attracts you to them?
I think I’ve always been into science, and science fiction. My parents did a really good job of making learning fun when I was a kid. Besides art, I was also really into science, especially space and paleontology. I think it made my imagination really active and I still get excited about those things and like to incorporate them in my drawings.
6. Without giving too much away could you explain how you go about making your images?
My process basically goes as follows:
- Research. Gather images of location, lighting, mood, and detail reference.
- Thumbnail. I do some quick scribbly thumbnails in my sketchbook of the ideas in my head.
- Layout. Get on the computer and do a more refined drawing of the image in Photoshop.
- Color ideas. On top of my layout I do some really sloppy color ideas to get an idea of what the image will look like. I also decide on the lighting here.
- Cleaned up layout. It’s always a good idea to do another pass on the layout and refine it. I also mirror the image to check for mistakes.
- Block in final shapes. I usually start my paintings with flat shapes. It’s important to work on the image evenly, in other words don’t just focus on one area. I try to work the entire painting all at once.
- Add texture. I like picking out certain shapes that would look really cool with lots of texture on them.
- Add details. Once everything is blocked in, it’s easy to just start adding all those fun details to finish the piece off.
7. Some of my personal favorite pieces of yours are the work you did for Sym-Bionic Titan and the animation for the 08 Olympics. Do you see yourself getting involved in doing more work like this in the future?
Yes, I still plan to do background painting. I’ve been talking with Genndy about more projects he has which he wants me involved in. I also still work with Passion Pictures, who produced the Olympics spot. I enjoyed that project a lot.
8. Do you prefer to work on your own or in a studio/collaborating with other artist like with the Looks That Kill project? (which I'm dead excited about)
I definitely prefer collaborating. I get really bored with my own ideas and I need constant inspiration from other people.
9. Whats your opinion on the art industry at the moment? Is now a good time to be an illustrator?
I think this is the best time in history to be an artist. I can’t even imagine being an artist before the internet. It’s so easy now to find outlets for your work and other artists to get inspired by. Collaboration is so easy now. My friend Stephane, who does a lot of animation for me, lives in London. We’ve only met twice in person, but we’ve made 2 films together. Our music guy lives in France. My book printer is in China. But yet we’re all able to create things together. It’s really an amazing time.
10. Last but not least, what advice would you give to aspiring designers/illustrators?
Use the internet to your advantage. It’s great not only for self promotion and quick access to other artists, but also gobs of information and photos and stories which you can use in your art.
I looked through your portfolio and you definitely have some cool composition and design ideas in there. It looks like you’re still trying to find your voice, as there are quite a few different styles. Which is totally ok, when you’re a student it’s good to try lots of different styles and working methods. The only way you will find your own voice is through lots and lots of practice and experimentation. It takes a really long time to figure out what you want to say with your artwork, and to realize your own unique perspective on the world. But just keep at it! I think getting in touch with other artists is a really good idea. Good luck with everything!
Kevin
Kevin
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