Second up on the new run of MemberZooms is rey-o.

How did you get involved in art and illustration?
Like most folks, it started when I was a kid. A big influence was my grandfather, who showed me how you could create worlds simply by drawing them. Later in life, I was at a point in high school where you had to make a decision as to what you ‘wanted to be’ in life. I briefly courted the notion of going into business, but my heart won out and I decided to embrace art and illustration. I went to a college with a vague knowledge of how you could make a living in the the visual arts and took up the B.A.A. Illustration program at Sheridan to learn more.

Are you a full time artist or do you have a day job, or neither?
I’m a recent grad, and so right now I’ve been focusing full time at getting my career started. There are many things I’d like to do, and so working full time is not entirely out of the question.

What inspires and motivates you to create art?
One thing that motivates me is the idea of having a ‘dialog’ with viewers, when they look at my work, in a way it’s like we are having a conversation. I also like the notion of exchanging ideas with other artists through our work, so this is also a kind of dialog.

I’m inspired by lots of stuff, pretty much anything! Like the weather, or hearing a funny word, but I think that’s a boring answer so….specifically, I’ve been inspired by the idea of ’simplicity’, and how I can extend that to the themes and execution of my work. This dovetails nicely into your next question…

How did you develop your unique style?
In school I was exposed to a variety of techniques and media, everything from painting to computers and a bunch of other crazy abstract things. It was good to take in everything, but it also served to confuse me more as to what I wanted to do and what direction I was going. I wasn’t very comfortable or happy with much of my work in school.

Finally in my last year, thanks to my peers and instructors, it all came together. They helped me find that essential spark and joy in art – the same joy that we all have as kids . For me, this was the simple act of drawing, a kid with just a pencil and some paper. This is where all the vitality in my work comes from. So drawing is what I have been focusing on, everything else, from design, to photoshop and painting, is all in service of the drawing. I have been slowly introducing back into my work more painting, so I would say I’m still developing, in fact, I hope I never settle and I’ll continue to improve!

Could you explain your typical production process, from initial idea to finished piece?
Once I figure out the concept, I’ll start scribbling out thumbnails. Once I settle on that, its final time, and this is where I figure out many of the details. This means making a lot of adjustments (mistakes) as I go along, but I like the spontaneity it affords me, even if it does mean having to start all over again from time to time.

I like working on good quality paper, since it will take erasing, paint and ink/tea. It’s important to take a few breaks, so that I can come back to the work with fresh eyes. When the drawing is all done, I’ll scan it in. I might have to scan in several pieces, since I often work large. At this point I make a decision, continue working on it with the computer or leave it as is? Some pieces look fine, and others I might add a few things to bring in the focus. I never go out of my way to fully render things on photoshop, it’s always just a matter of balancing and accentuating what is already there in the drawing.

What is the greatest challenge you have faced to become an artist?
Self-doubt. In a career where so much depends on commitment, doubt can be debilitating.

What do you like best about Amateur Illustrator?
I like checking out the work from people all over the world. The work I see on AI is different than what one might typically find on other visual arts networking sites, and I appreciate that variety. It is also valuable to be apart of a community, sharing work with others is a great way of improving.

Is there any one thing you would like to see on Amateur Illustrator that we don’t have at the moment?
I like the recent update AI went through, the clean interface allows the work to take center stage. I can’t really think of anything right now, but if I do, I’ll let you know!

Thanks rey-o for answering my questions. Check out rey-o’s website for more.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, January 29th, 2008 at 2:20 am and is filed under MemberZoom, Interviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.