Artist Interview #3- Myself

Artist Interview by Myself (Cat Dianna)

What kind of artist do you consider yourself?
            I consider myself an ‘Anime/Manga Artist,’ drawing traditionally with pencil and paper. I sometimes draw in a realistic style, but it’s not my main thing.

What is your favorite art style to use yourself?
           My favorite art style is Anime/Manga. It is the style that flows the best for me. I can just draw and it doesn’t have to be perfectly realistic. It can be anything, and the flaws don’t really matter.

What is your favorite art style to view?
           Mostly, I enjoy the Anime style, but realistic is so beautiful too. I love paintings and sculptures.

What is your Favorite Genre of Literature to read?
            I like fantasy and stories to do with magic or supernatural occurrences. I like there to always be at least a bit of romance in what I read, just because I want to know which couple to root for.

From where do you draw inspiration for your work?
            Songs are a great source of inspiration, but anything can spark a want to create. I get ideas from the oddest things.

When, would you say, did you begin your artistic lifestyle?
           I’ve been drawing forever, and ever since I could pick up a crayon I would draw on everything. I’ve always held a passion for art.

When did you begin to use your current artistic style?
            It was in fourth or fifth grade, when I received a very bad book on how to draw anime/manga style. The book was not the greatest, with art that wasn’t anywhere NEAR what I would today consider ‘good’. Now that I think about it, I wonder why the artist ever agreed to publish it in a book order or at all. But, this book’s amateur style made me feel good about my art back then, because it looked close to the book. I felt it was good, but found later it was quite awful. Despite this, I’ve stuck to drawing, my passion.

Do you think that any other artists have influenced you and your art?
           Definitely. The people who have most influenced my art are my friends from my old home. The place I consider my home town, Kwajalein in the Marshall Islands, holds many memories. Mishy, Jii, and Ali were my best friends there, and we all drew anime/manga style. I love them dearly, and we have all helped each other grow.
I recently spoke to Jii over Webcam, and we showed each other our art. She herself has grown so much. She told me she thought it was cute that I kept my same style, improving it little by little.

Do you have any artistic idols, and if so, who are they?
            I have been influenced by my childhood art-idols, Flame and Arilla, from The Nutshell.

What is your favorite technique to use?
            Probably how I scribble when I draw the eyes, and add these scribbles to the iris.

Are your plans for your future art-oriented?
I plan to be an Art Therapist, combining my want to help people like me with my passion for art.

When creating a piece, do you ever get into a ‘zone’? If so, describe it?
            Yes, always. I seem to have a mode in my brain that hinders me from seeing flaws in my work as I create it. It also calms me. I can just draw and feel and create.

Anything you want to say to an aspiring artist out there?
            If you ever feel you’re not good enough, you’re incorrect. You’re better than EVERYONE who hasn’t tried, and will always be. For everyone who continues, you’re better than those who have given up.

Any last words for the interview?
Thank you for reading, all of you who read this!





My Art

Decisions...?

Note: I've decided this blog will include simple ramblings about art, if I can't create a blog entry that makes any sense.

How many times have I put pencil to page, but never pen?

I always fear the stroke of the ink, dark and permanent, will ruin what I have worked so hard to create.

My fear keeps me from going farther, though.

Maybe a tracing, simple and quick, will work?

Maybe I need a finer utensil?

Maybe I'm just silly.

It's just paper, just lines scribbled and scrawled.

But still, I fear. I have worked maybe a few minutes on a piece, it's simply a doodle. Yet, despite its simple, useless status, I cannot bring myself to destroy it. Or risk its destruction, rather.

I keep all my artwork, no matter how hideous, no matter how moronic.

I keep them. Maybe it's because I want to look back years from now and see my improvement.

Maybe... It's because I don't want these little pieces, little expressions, of myself to be lost. I've been pouring my heart little by little into these scraps of paper. On these worn, yellowed pages, smeared with graphite, I look upon a mirror or the past.

"A happy girl, in a happy world, with a happy life!" is scrawled upon one. Was I upset, depressed, distraught? That day, what did I feel? Obviously not happiness, not when this drawing was brought to physical reality.

"Sometimes... Sometimes I wish I knew why I cried..." The words are scribbled upon a different page. This one I remember. I wanted so greatly to make this one pop; it was part of a story I was writing. But again, the ink is a fear. I didn't want to destroy it.

My talent with ink has not improved at all over the years, due to its disuse.

But I cannot bring myself to slaughter countless souls, watch their paper edges bleed through to black as they are ruined. I just can't.

Maybe someday I'll grow a thick shell, and watch heartlessly as my pencil strokes are blotted out with smeared blackness forever by my own hand. Maybe someday these things of my creation will gleam beautifully in their freshly inked glory.

Maybe... Someday...?

Artist Interview #2- Mupa

Artist Interview with Mupa (MultimediaPanda)

What kind of artist do you consider yourself?

            I consider myself a flexible or multimedia artist. I like to try all sorts of mediums as much as I like to vary my styles and such. Mostly I vary between realistic and 2-D styles.

What is your favorite art style to use yourself?

            I quite enjoy the 'Anime' style. I don't see it as the same as a cartoon style... while both or very flexible, one provides a truer anatomy style.

What is your favorite art style to view?

            I actually don't have a particular favorite style of art to view. What I draw doesn't always depict what I like to look at. I love photography, paintings, 3-D art, sculptures, architecture, Color or black and white. I like it all.

What is your Favorite Genre of Literature to read?

            My favorite genre of literature is Fantasy. I believe it is the most creative, considering one is usually fabricating an entire world and bringing it to life, along with the creatures and characters within it.

From where do you draw inspiration for your work?

            Everywhere. Everything, in my mind can be a trigger for inspiration, it may not happen all at once, but say for example a car drives by. I may not note the make and model, but the color will strike me, and it might reflect in my next piece. I also tend to do a lot of Role Play and other types of games which inspire new characters and stories.

When, would you say, did you begin your artistic lifestyle?

            Around the age of 7. I actually used to hate drawing, because I couldn't “do it right.” Of course, that was long before I learned there was no right way to do any sort of art. It was much longer still before I learned that most children stop drawing when they are young because they realize that what they are drawing isn't appearing as what they see or think it should look like.

When did you begin to use your current artistic style?

            I think it was around middle school. I really started getting into some (lame) anime then, and began wanting to mimic that style, except better.

Do you think that any other artists have influenced you and your art?

            I think it'd be a lie for any person to say no to this question, unless you lived in a box for your whole life and never even went outside.

Do you have any artistic idols, and if so, who are they?

            Vincent Van Gough and MC Escher. Incredible artists. Seriously.

What is your favorite technique to use?

            A favorite technique I like to use is... well. I actually don't use it often, but I do really like cross hatching. I use it a bit in my rough works to mark down where I'll shade.

Are your plans for your future art-oriented?

            Absolutely. I was actually going to school for Animation, but I had to step back and start smaller. For now I am Majoring in Communications Graphics, and after that, I will be Aiming to be an illustrator.

When creating a piece, do you ever get into a ‘zone’? If so, describe it?

            I suppose I do. Usually everything around me becomes dull and quiet, and the only thing I'll be focusing on are how to depict the image in my mind on the picture plane in front of me. Usually what I draw Never comes out how I imagine it, but I usually find something I'm comfortable with and work with it.

Anything you want to say to an aspiring artist out there?

            Don't ever think your drawings are 'bad' compared to someone who's been doing it for forever and then some. Always acknowledge that there are many different skill levels and styles out there. Also, don't say “I want to draw as good as that person.” I said that for a long time, towards artists I believed were better than me. Now I realize that for one, these artists are simply more practiced, and secondly, I don't want to draw as good as them… I want to draw better than them.

Any last words for the interview?

            Let your dreams guide you.

Mupa's Art

Emotions::.

Warning: I kinda zoned out when writing this. It’s pretty obscure, just to let you know.

Art is an outlet for emotion. As the creativity begins to pulse through the artist, their hands flow in rhythm with their thoughts. A painting emerges from life’s pain, sorrow, joy, anger, love. All things come together as simple pencil-strokes become roses blooming in a fresh spring dawn.

Life is full of wisdom and ignorance. Eyes may look, but do they see? Ears may hear, but do they listen? One looks upon a simple child, yet sees their dreams and future. One hears the piano playing next door, yet listens to the pianist’s smile through the song.

Rain is falling, but what does it mean? Singing, the pastels upon the canvas illustrate the calm felt as this pitter-patter hits the windowpane. The violin rings with emotion, flowing from the soul. Along the horizon, summer’s breath of storms drifts toward an unknown end.

Dreams inspire their holder, and from this is born soul and life. Every stroke along the canvas, every line in graphite or ink, every word scrawled across the page, holds within it glimpses of a soul. Whether an artist created a piece with any true purpose in mind, whomever looks will see a resonant tone of their own soul mixing with that of the work. Simple emotions become the world. A single, absent thought creates newfound life. Right and wrong are drawn into an abysmal realm, which, within time, renews.

Artist Interview #1- Hope

Artist Interview with Hope (Ghost-the-Echidna)

What kind of artist do you consider yourself?

I consider myself mostly an amateur comics/humorous artist... while I haven't done a lot of comics lately, I do draw a lot of humorous drawings.

What is your favorite art style to use yourself?

I like using a sort of mix between anime and an american sort of cartooning style... I promptly name it... CARTOONIME.

What is your favorite art style to view?

            I admit I've become an anime dork, so I honestly love reading manga and looking at pictures in that style... but I also rather enjoy the superhero comicbook sort of style, as well. It's something I've never done, myself, so I find it beautiful.

What is your Favorite Genre of Literature to read?

            My go-to choice is typically along the lines of a romance comedy, or something that only has one of those two genres. But I also settle for some other genres, like action and adventure, especially if in a fantasy-based realm or universe. I stray away from sci-fi, personally, and don't usually like horror.

From where do you draw inspiration for your work?

            Mostly from whatever music I listen to, I always see images or random "music videos" when I listen to different pieces of music or songs. I tend to illustrate those ideas. I also grab things from stuff I read, usually comics, or things I hear about. Also, tv shows, too, usually if they're about amazing subjects, like, say, technology, or the supernatural, or any out-of-the-box stuff like that.

When, would you say, did you begin your artistic lifestyle?

            I've honestly drawn since I was very, very young. My parents gave me notebooks and crayons when I was probably just a few years old. I've seen a box of stuff I used to have or I've made over the course of my life, that my mother saved, and she showed me this notebook full of scribbles and colors, and told me, "this was your first notebook." It was likely when I was about two or three, and since then I've always just been an artist.

When did you begin to use your current artistic style?

            It's been evolving and growing and getting better ever since I was that age, too, so I really couldn't tell you when exactly my current style was born. As of late I've been trying very hard to pay better attention to anatomy and proportion, so my style's looked a little different compared to when I didn't pay attention to such things. I'd say maybe I've had this style for a few months or so. But that's just a guess.

Do you think that any other artists have influenced you and your art?

            Ohh, yes, definitely... I draw my cartoonime style because I've grown up reading manga and watching few animes. I used to watch Pok'emon like it was a daily soap opera I could NOT miss once, it was my first real introduction to anything in the Japanese cartooning style, so the artists for that there show are likely to blame for a lot of this.

As well as that, the artists behind the concept art and logo art for Sonic the Hedgehog greatly influenced me, even if I was not drawing furry animals with cool shoes. Some have told me that I draw similar eyes to the Sonic animals, and that my style once looked like Sonic the Hedgehog style, even if I was drawing just people.

I also greatly love Disney-style anything. I try often to use reference from Disney movies because, one, I watch them so often, and two, it's just a lot of fun, as a style.

The variety of characters you will find in a single Disney movie is a perfect amount of diversity for any cast, and it's something, especially for a comics artist, who must create MANY characters and draw them all the time, to look up to.

Do you have any artistic idols, and if so, who are they?

            Walt Disney, hands down... He's been with me for a long time, as an artist and as a hero to my childish sorts of dreams. Ha. As well as him, Stan Lee is another hero of mine. Pioneering comics (not to mention the entire Marvel universe) is something that he's done, and without him, maybe the comics business would not be as astounding as it is, and maybe I wouldn't even want to do anything with comics.

What is your favorite technique to use?

            Sadly, I'm not much of a traditional artist, so I do not use much of the techniques learned about in basic art classes. I don't paint, I don't use fancy material, I don't even really use the pencil for all too much but sketching. But I do sketch, and once the sketch is done, I scan it using the scanner, put it on the computer and use a program called Paint.Net to edit and modify it digitally.

A great majority of all my finished work is digitally edited, and that's how it's been for a very long time, now.

Are your plans for your future art-oriented?

            Oh, yes. Since the end of Jr. High School I've determined and worked hard at making sure my future consists me working with my talent, and my big dream is to become the author and illustrator of my own comics.

When creating a piece, do you ever get into a ‘zone’? If so, describe it?

             I do get into a sort of trance when I do my sketching. It's a lovely sort of calm... to me, drawing is a way that I unwind, and it's my time to just drop everything and focus on one thing, and that one thing never lets me down or makes me feel any negative way.

            It's especially helpful if I've been in a bad mood of some sort.

Anything you want to say to an aspiring artist out there?

If you're an artist, and you love what you do, don't ever stop, man. I've been an artist forever and I doubt I'll ever do anything else with my life! This is my passion... and if you're the same sort of artist as I am, it's yours too. So don't ever give up on it for anything. People might tell you, as I've been told, "there's not much in an Art Degree," but don't let that dampen your spirits...

Any last words for the interview?

            Art is inescapable. We've had it for YEARS. And years to come! I doubt we will be removed from that equation. Rock on, little artists. Rock on!

Hope's Art Page

Standing here, gazing forward from start::.

Hello, and welcome to Art; Uniquely.




Now, all my life, I've been artistic. I've loved all forms of art, whether it be visual, written, sung, etc.
Of course I'm not the best artist in the world. I have much I must practice. But I've decided to create this blog in the mind that I would tell different artists' stories and allow their works to become known.


For this blog, I will also do critique on certain pieces, and feature a different work every week. Some will be written, some will be drawn, some will be painted, some will be digitally created, and some may even be a song or lyrics.
Now, I will only use artwork with permission from the artist. 


Of course, as an anime artist (drawing in the cartoon-like japanese art form), I know many more other anime artists than I know those of other art forms. If anyone would like to ask that their art be featured, I would love to hear from you. My only requirement is that the artwork you wish me to feature is appropriate for a highschool classroom.


Now, I'll begin my previously described posting next week.


Thank you for your time!