F.A.Q.
How long have you been drawing?
Ever since I can remember, really. Although this is the most common answer ever given by all of the artists out there, it might be really true in my case. Being a child of two artists, and being raised amongst abundance of others, I can’t really recall the moment, I became interested in art. I can remember being able to draw palms properly (meaning – a shape with five fingers, not a circle with 6 or more "sticks";)), while still in kindergarten (5 years old).
During my early elementary school (around 1990, or 1991), I was introduced to manga and anime, which – in the end – totally redefined my view on the comic novels, popular art, and the way it can influence my works; I have been developing my own style since then.
How much time do you spend on one drawing?
It’s really hard to measure — sometimes — from the moment the first concept sketch was done, till the last touch of paint, a month or two can pass. The process of creation itself is a lot shorter, of course, and usually takes up to 20 or 30 hours in total, when doing a CG, and 8 or 12, when it comes to a traditional media, I am more familiar with.
What tools do you use?
When it comes to traditional media, I like to experiment, by mixing the usage of watercolours and gouaches, as well as pencils of various grading, coloured pencils, white ink, water-based correction fluids, acrylics, and different brews of tea and coffee, as well as erasers, ranging from Staedtler’s Mars Plastic eraser in pencil-shaped casing, through Faber-Castell’s dust-free block erasers, to Koh-I-Noor’s kneadable gums.
CG is done with a basic sketch, carried out in blue lead (mechanical pencil), and then, traced over with an inkpen (preferably 0.1mm/0.05mm-thick line). The picture is then scanned, and reworked in Adobe Photoshop (the blue sketch is removed by altering the colour-balance, to be exact), and then coloured — either in Adobe Photoshop, or Corel Painter. Wacom Graphire 4 tablet, and Razer Diamondback mouse are used for colouring.
What inspires you?
I won’t be original here; the main part of my inspiration comes from books I read, and the music I am listening to. Sometimes it’s a film, or a photography, I saw, too. The other main source of inspiration is the world that surrounds me; the sky, wild forrests, and animals. Although I am a rather hardcore gamer, video games rarely inspire me — I guess they’re brain eaters, not brain-feeders in my case.
Can I use your works for my website/blog/banner/etc?
My works are protected by the Creative Commons Licence, you can use and re-distribute them for non-commercial purposes, as long as it’s PROPERLY CREDITED. Modifications of my works are not allowed; if you want to alter the picture in any way, please, contact me for a written permission.
Any unauthorized usage of my works will result in a legal action against you.
Proust Questionnaire (edited and build-up version)
The principal aspects of my personality:
Open-mindedness, passion.
The quality that I desire in a man:
Strength of character, bright intelligence, compassion, wisdom.
The quality that I desire in a woman:
Sincerity, transparency of intent, empathy.
What I appreciate most about my friends:
Their reliability and willingness to help, if help is needed.
My main fault:
Ego-centrism and selfishness.
My favourite occupation:
Drinking coffee and listening to classic rock.
My dream of happiness:
Successful publishing of a graphic novel of my own creation.
What would be my greatest misfortune?
Blindness.
What I should like to be?
Gentle, emphatic, wiser than I am now.
The place where I should like to live:
Northern Ireland, Scotland or Wales, but Arabia or Siberia would be good too.
My favourite colours:
Pitch black, crimson, deep green.
The flower that I like:
Lilly of the Valley, and Black Magic breed roses.
My favourite prose authors:
Фёдор Михайлович Достоевский, Сергей Лукьяненко, Andrzej Sapkowski, J.R.R. Tolkien, Waldemar Łysiak, Andrzej Pilipiuk, Terry Pratchett.
My favourite poets:
Rafał Wojaczek, Charles Baudelaire.
My heroes in fiction:
Cahir Mawr Dyffryn aep Ceallach ("Wiedźmin" saga), Gregory House ("House, MD"), Szarlej, Urban Horn (from the "Hussite Trilogy"), Obi-Wan Kenobi ("Star Wars", both versions), Richard B. Riddick ("The Chronicles of Riddick" series); Rick Deckard ("Blade Runner");
My heroines in fiction:
Eowyn ("LOTR"), Motoko Kusanagi ("Ghost in the Shell"), Kara “Starbuck” Thrace (“Battlestar Galactica”), Achaja ("Achaja");
My favourite music genres:
Jazz, blues, classic rock, stoner-rock, glam-rock, klezmer, progressive metal, folk (mostly Irish, Scottish & Breton, Japanese, African and Balkan), or anything that suits my actual mood.
My favourite composers/bands:
Maynard J. Keenan, Pink Floyd, V.A.S.T., Motorhead, Black Sabbath, Paul Brody, Yoko Kanno, Kazik Staszewski and Led Zeppelin
My favourite painters:
My Dad, Leonardo Da Vinci, Caspar David Friedriech, Michael Turner, Masamune Shirow
My heroes in real life:
My Father.
My heroines in history:
Joanne d’Arc, Mata Hari.
My favourite names:
Nathaniel, Jacob, Ian, Magdalene
What I hate most of all:
Human stupidity and ignorance.
My favourite car:
1967 Chevy Impala
Historical figures that I despise the most:
Saint Paul, Augustine of Hippo, Thomas Aquinas, John Paul II.
The military event that I admire most:
Battle of Thermopylae, Battle of Stalingrad.
The reform which I admire the most:
Article 1-3 of the United Nations Charter
The gift of nature that I would like to have:
Night vision, similar to this of a cat.
How I want to die:
Knowing, my life was good. Without regrets.
My present state of mind:
Quite disturbed, actually.
Faults for which I have the most indulgence:
Words said in anger. But not, if they were reconsidered, and said anyway.
My motto:
"If you can’t be a good example, be a terrible warning."
Favourite hobbies:
Literature, RPG, art, medieval swordsmanship, cooking, H2H, manga & anime, army & firearms, Arabia, medicine, foreign linguistics, urban sabotage, anarchy, chaos, global conspiracy & stuff… generally i’m interested in almost everything.