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Infecting the World with my Art

I am one of the lucky audiences who have witnessed Artgerm’s talk. To be honest, I actually have no idea who that person is until the day I’ve seen him talk during the last day of AsiaPop Comicon 2017 held at SMX Convention, Pasay City.

Here are some of my notes during the session:

What is a visual artist?

- A person who communicate an idea in a unique visual language digitally. Fundamentals What does he need to know?

Art Fundamentals:

Anatomy

Lighting

Colors

Composition

Perspective

Aesthetics

Essential Skills:

Conceptualization

Digital Painting

Digital Imaging

*Digital imaging - photo manipulation Illustrations vs. Concept Art Concept Art - helps develop the product Illustrations - final product What defines a Successful Digital Artist? * Strong passion and commitment in art * Understand his market positioning and commercial viability * Great portfolio with distinctive strength & direction (Example: 1st 3-5 pages are important/it must show who you are; do not include anything that does not define who you are. Bring sketchbooks on interviews) * Solid art foundation with great flexibility in execution * Sensitive to trends and technology * Strong online following and involved with the art community “You should be the person who gives your own light.” “In avoiding art blocks, do daily sketches. Do simple things or draw things that come up on your mind” What’s Style?

Style is the artist’s visual preference to present an idea.

“Development of Style requires good art fundamentals.”

“Stepping out of the comfort zone basically means enlarging your comfort zone.” “Finding your style is like learning a recipe.” “There’s nothing wrong being inspired by other people.” Habits vs. Theories Style evolves from realism Simple Formula for Artists (Theory + Observation + Application) x Frequency of Practice Artgerm also answered some of the audiences’ questions relating to styles.

Q: Should I learn by imitating other artists’ styles? - you can. There’s nothing wrong. Q: What if others don’t like my style? - discover other preferences you and other people will like. Q: Who are your heroes? - Comics and Manga Q: How do you deal with art thieves online? - What can I do? Nothing. Many of them are clueless. They don’t know it’s illegal. Should I put watermark in every work that I do? No. It’s ugly. My advice? Do not put high-res artworks online. Referencing vs. Tracing We always draw with reference. We cannot basically draw without thinking or referencing. Can you imagine a color you haven’t seen before? There’s no problem with referencing. The problem is artists who do not know to reference. But are you enslaved by your reference? Like you cannot really draw something without reference? Then there’s a problem. Is it important to establish a fan base?

It’s not just about making a great art.

Every artist just needs his audience.

Turn your clients into your fans.

Let your fans grow up with you.

How can we build our fan base?

Making good art!

Choose project that will go viral

Showcase your work on art sites

Stay connected with social media

I am fascinated with his advice and thoughts. Here are some of my favorites:

The best time to post your art is now. No matter how your art sucks, somebody will appreciate it. When you are buying an expensive product, you’re not buying logically but emotionally.

And my most favorite!

It’s not how high you fly but how you fly high. Show people how you were once a noob until you unnoob yourself.

Artgerm on BUILDING fan base:

Take part in contests & publications

Make unique fan art

Engage in art community

Share and pay it forward!

I strongly believe in art community. He also encouraged his audiences to share their art with these: • Livestreams • Forums • Tutorials & Tips • Conventions • Interviews • Merchandises “Stay true to yourself and be authentic.” “My art and my life integrate.” What exactly is fan art? Presenting something new to the audience is fan art.

In making fan art always respect the original art/design.

Anything cute. Anything that brings back the childhood love.

After his talk, an open forum was opened and here are some non-verbatim Q&A:

Q: How do you discipline yourself in creating an art? A: Just like in games, you watch how people can play better with it. Q: How important is post-processing? A: It’s not really a post-process. It’s just part of the process. Q: How can your name a price for an art? A: Do not charge an amount that can make you feel greedy. Also learn about the pricing. Look everything in totality. Charge price that you feel confident but not above your worth. There’s also a development price. Like on how many hours can you finish it. But there are fixed prices. Q: How do you balance art and business? A: You have to learn. Some will screw you. There are four criteria I consider in accepting a project: (1) good money, (2) if not good money, but it is fun to work, (3) or it open opportunities, and (4) for charity. But I won’t work for anybody for free. You can charge cheap.

To conclude, he left his audiences with this quote:

“Art is never a subject or a profession. To me, it’s a lifestyle.“ (Artgerm, AsiaPop Comicon 2017)