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Q: Who are your influences? A:
My earliest were Boris,Frazetta,The Hildebrandts and Michael Whelan. In
my twenties I began noticing some of the T.S.R artists such as Brom, Jeff
Easley, Fred Fields,Keith Parkinson and Robh Ruppel as well as freelance
artist Donato Giancola. |
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Q: Do you have any hobbies? A: I've always been into model building, mostly horror models. I'm an avid fisherman. In my late teens thru my mid twenties I played lead guitar in a metal band. I still practice for fun. My biggest weakness though is Nintendo.The computer also takes up a big chunk of my time. |
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Q: What type of music do you listen to while working? A: Anything from classical, jazz, big band, ultra lounge and the Carpenters to techno, metal and soundtracks. My
favorite bands? : |
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Q: What did you do before becoming an illustrator? A: Let's see. I folded newspapers at a sweet shop on Sundays, I landscaped at a condominium complex, I was a silk screener, a photo retoucher and then in 1991 I began my illustrating professionally. |
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Q: What kind of schooling /training did you have? A: I've been drawing since I was very young. I attended Kean College of New Jersey, took every art class available and then went on to take continuing ed. courses at Parsons of New York, The School of Visual Arts and the New York Academy of Figurative Art which I still attend every so often. I've never received a degree and was never taught to paint in school.I learned on my own through observation and trial and error(lots of hard work). I also partake in life drawing classes on ocassion. |
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Q: How long does it take to complete a painting? A: The painting itself , for a book jacket, requires anywhere from 7 to 14 days. The process beginning with sketches , photoshoot ,approvals ,possible manuscript reading and occasional changes made to the final drawing add another week to the total time required. |
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Q: Do you use photo reference? A: Yes. Absolutely, to different degrees depending on the subject matter.I most definitely use images from books and magazines to achieve realism for creating creatures, animals, scenery, you name it. As for the people, I almost always photograph models or friends. I do not trace the photograph but merely use it as a starting point for lighting and detail. I enjoy drawing the figure more freehand, adding exaggeration. I refer to the photo for anatomy , light , shadow, clothing folds and occassionally skin tones. Photos are absolutely necessary for hightened realism. |
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Q: If you were not an illustrator what would you be? A: If I hadn't decided to take my art seriously in my mid twenties I might have tried to pursue a music career although the life style never suited me. Over the past several years I've become more and more interested in sculpting. |
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Q: How did you get started as an illustrator? A: In my early twenties I tried to get work by walking my portfolio around to all the New York publishers. That didn't work too well. I started getting work when I began sending out 8x10 color prints of my best portfolio pieces with a short-but -sweet cover letter. I would follow that up with a phone call. The company addresses are usually located inside the book or on the back of the product. I would call information for the phone numbers and then ask for the art director's name. You should always address your cover letter to the art director. Try to look at the type of art being used by a given company and be objective in determining whether or not your style suits their needs . Conventions such as Gencon, Dragon Con, World Con and World Fantasy Con are also great for stirring up clients. |
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Q: Who is the one author you would love to illustrate for? A: Robert A Heinlein |