Interview with Digital Painter of the Month Victorior

Vic, also known as /Victorior is one young and talented digital painter and illustrator. I am most certain he develops a chain of fans wherever he goes. His artwork are not only inspiring but cheerful, fun and whimsical. It is a joy to observe every new piece that he creates as they each hold their own stories with rich characters, symbolism and unique elements. Vic tells us a little about himself, and his work, read on to find out more about this gifted artist.

Tell us a little about you and the history behind your alias.

Hey! I’m Vic. I live in Thailand and I’m 25 years old. I am a 2D and concept artist. My services include concepts for animation, game, illustration and character design. I graduated in 2008 in Fine Art (traditional painting, oil color). In 2009 up until now, I started to learn CG (Computer Graphics) by myself which is digital painting.

Some of us artists do not even know how gifted we are because we have never seen ourselves as artists, when did you first realise this is the approach you wanted to take and how did it come about?

The first time when I noticed that I love art was when I watched “Toy Story”, a film about animation in 1995. It opened my eyes to the world of fantasy and imagination. Since then I always said to myself that I want to be a part of film animation and making the characters come alive.

Who and what are your inspirations?

The big inspiration is surely “John Lasseter” and “Hayao Miyazaki”. When I started digital painting “Bobby Chiu” became my inspiration for my illustrative style. From animations, I got a lot of inspiration such as the way I imagine things and the story telling. Another artist that has become my biggest inspiration is “Felideus”, he is a very great artist and very kind, I have learnt so much from him about CG.

Has there been anyone that has greatly influenced your work?

I love Pixar and Ghibli so much. Then I tried to find the space in the middle between both western and asian cultures. Pixar gave me the bright and very wonderful influence of color , and character design and Ghibli gave me the fantasy and dreamy influence. I then found my own unique style and have I been developing my style until now.

Your artworks are quite dreamlike and personally when I view them I feel like a kid high on candy and always manage to smile. Can you tell us a little about your style?

As I mentioned earlier, my style was greatly influenced from Pixar and Ghibli and I have combined my personal aesthetic to create something unique, such as my childhood dreams. I love designing to make simple forms, which creates a child like style. What I try to make unique about my work is my imagination. I love illustrating to make my art fun and enjoyable this is why some of my illustrations are mixed quite a bit with a sense of humour.

What are your favourite tools to work with and why?

My favourite tool is Photoshop and Wacom Intuos4 because they are convenient and easy to manipulate to make my imagination come alive. It can be done by just using a PC or MAC.

Can you give us a little insight as to what goes on in your mind when you create your pieces? Where do your ideas stem from?

I think what is special in my work is when I create it. I don’t make sketches or think so much about the composition or elements, my imagination and ideas just flow while I am painting but I always have a main point or theme when I start to paint. For the main point and theme, it comes from anywhere and from anything, it is dependent on if I can feel it or not. And it is probably true that I paint everything I love.

Which of your pieces are you most fond of and can you tell us a little about them?

I think I can get so many things out of my personal works. My skills improve by learning in each piece of work but the most special and personal one to me is, “To The Waterfall”, while I was painting “To The Waterfall” I was really happy and enjoyed painting it. I learned a lot about the composition and perspective. The composition and perspective were consistent and it was supported by my concepts and ideas.

What are your greatest achievements?

I think the greatest achievement is that I can do what I love everyday.

I have seen some of your very detailed commissioned works, what has it been like to be commissioned and how did it start?

The commissioned works that I did were done for an aquarium location in Bangkok Thailand, it is called “Siam Ocean World” I design them for print ads. I got the connection from the studio, they gave me a chance to sketch ideas and they were approved, then it took me nearly two months for the completion of two designs.

What are your goals as a digital artists and what plans do you have for the future?

I want to make animation in the future

How did you find Shadowness, and what you made you join?

I was invited by my artist friend to join and share work together. I love to share my imagination and my dreams so I suddenly decided to join this very warm and nice place!

You are young artists and quite an inspiration to many young artists too. What advice can you offer to those who wish to be as successful as you who wish to delve deeper into digital art?

The first thing is that I am just a beginner in this industry and I have been developing my style for two years and doing it as sacrifice. I just found what I love and do it to the best of my ability, so I will suggest to everyone to do the the same that I did. “Find the main subject that you love and express it with your best”


You can also find Vic on twitter at: @VictoriorCG
And on Facebook: Imagination of Victorior

Nov 10th, 2011