Monday, June 11, 2012

Nokomento






Tell me a little bit about yourself. Where did you go to school, and what extra-curricular activities did you take up? What helped prepare you to become the artist that you are today?



I enrolled under FineArts, major in advertising in UST and joined the Illust guild to learn more about illustration. I met a lot of people who were as eager as I was when it came to comics and illustration.


Whether in High School or in College I always hung out with a group of like-minded individuals, during breaks we would come up with short stories and illustrate them, making amateur comics. They may be short and crude but we did them on a near daily basis that I believe helped us all improve.



What inspired or convinced you to become an artist?


As a child my parents would let me watch Disney cartoons and movies, over time I would watch anime' myself and I would draw down my favorite characters because I always wanted a picture of them with me. I guess it stemmed from that need to have them with me at all times that drawing them down myself was the best way achieve that. It was also fun to draw them in different poses and make up stories for them. 


What is a typical day for you, and who are the people you work with?


A typical day would start by finishing illusts in the wee hours of the morning and finally turning in at just past dawn to waking up for lunch and resume working on more illusts till sunrise. rinse. wash.repeat. 


What are some of the things that you have worked on?


I've been commissioned to provide character illustrations for various indie comics and games. I have also created and sold my own indies during Komikon with my group, Inkjinks. 


How do you go about an illustration, what goes through your mind, from start to end?


Normally various ideas and layouts and filtered in my head, the ones I like most get hastily doodled onto whatever sheet of paper is nearest to me. (I also keep a mini sketchpad and 3 pens with me even when I go out.) I also tend to redraw or or position the layout of the image so the end product usually ends up slightly different from what i initially envisioned. 


Could you talk about your process in coloring your art (if at all), as well as the types of tools or media that you use?


I have various ways of coloring my art, I have tried cell shading, monochrome, and the latest being paint overs which use the lowest layer count (usually one to three layers ). I have actually uploaded one of my processes to youtube ([link]) and I've posted several .gif animations of the simpler ones. found here-->([link]) scroll down for the others. You may have to wait awhile for them to load.


What are some of the things that you do to keep yourself creative?



I doodle a lot. Enough to fully stock a small bookstore with the amount of sketchpads I've ravished. Another thing i like to do is listen to music or play rhythm games. I also enjoy watching dance and choreography videos, be it real people or computer generated models. It helps me understand how people move around and the limits of anatomy. 


Lastly I like to browse art communities around the net. there is so much inspiration to keep one going. But on some days, creativity decides to take an impromptu vacation there really isn't anything you can do. and forcing yourself to continue would only hurt the quality of the work.



What is your most favorite subject to draw, and why?


I love to draw the human body whether in various poses such forced perspective or just plain standing there to be models for my latest fashion diva moment. I notice that I usually have problems with just making a body stand still, I always have to make it move in some way.


Who are the top illustrators whose works excite you the most?


Oh, there are just too many to mention. every single artist we come across will affect our works in some way. But I've always drawn inspiration from YiLee, Falcoon, and Daisuke Ishiwatari. 


What are some of the neat things you have learned from other artists that you have worked with or seen?


I've learned and relearned everything from basics to the advanced techniques from being with some of the GunRev ([link]) members, rather, I am forced to learn more so that I may keep up with them OTL..


What are some of your favorite websites that you go to?


Normally DevArt, Tumblr, and manga reading and webcomic sites. If I want to feel inferior Pixiv or CGHUB is a good stop and lately I've been redirected to Weibo.


What wisdom could you give us, about being an artist? Do you have any tips you could give?


I always say to give your 300% in everything that you do. That, and never stop drawing. Best to draw new things too. Can't hurt to expand your artistic capabilities.


If people would like to contact you, how would you like to be contacted?


Uhm, peacefully? Haha, I always check my notes and messages on my DevArt site. [LINK]


Do you have any of your art work for sale (comics, prints, or anything)? If so, for fans of your work can know where and when to buy it?


I always have stock on my indies during conventions. I also hold commissions when the workload is light.





         

          

         




If you were a pilot in a mecha story, would you rather go solo (like Gundam or Daimos), or be a part of a an assembling giant (Voltes 5 type, and if yes, which part) and why?



I'd rather ride my robot dragon like Van Fanel in Vision of Escaflowne.
It seems neater. 


That and I'm not really fond of mecha. Sorry.




Got an Artist?

Do you know a Filipino artist who makes exceptional Japanese manga style illustrations? If so, leave his/her name and any other info about him/her on this post.