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!
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