Illustration Master Class 2012 Recap (June 2012)

The Illustration Master Class was incredible! I thought it was going to be a one time thing; but on the second day, I knew I had to start saving to come back next year. The students and faculty were amazing; it was such a great atmosphere to be around so many other Artists. We got to just nerd out all week over art. At first it was a little scary not knowing anyone but by the end of the week I felt like I had made around 100 new friends. Such a friendly fun group of people. Miss you guys.

The class and faculty of IMC 2012

The wonderful Faculty. L to R, Top row: Iain McCaig, James Gurney, Donato, Dan Dos Santos, Greg Manchess, Front row: Irene Gallo, Scott Fischer, Doug Alexander, Brom, Rebecca Guay, Julie Bell, and Boris Vallejo

It's in Amherst, MA so it wasn't close. I took a ferry to Seattle, then 2 flights to Boston where I rented a car with 2 others and drove to Amherst. Next time, a more direct route will do!

On the first day, we had our sketches critiqued. There were 3 critique groups. Iain McCaig, Rebecca Guay, Dan Dos Santos, and Greg Manchess were my critiquers. I was expecting to have to redo everything but luckily that wasn't the case. I made some adjustments to the sketch and on the 3rd day, started painting. Finishing the painting that week wasn't a huge priority of mine; I mainly wanted to soak up all the lectures and try to experience as much of the IMC culture as I could. It was great walking around the other studios and seeing what everyone was up to. I was in the digital studio but there were 2 traditional studios as well.

What can I say about the week other than it was amazing. Listening to all the great lectures, hanging out and becoming friends with the students and faculty, even the cafeteria food was great.
Some highlights:

Learning how important good reference is! I had used reference before but not to the extent of using models, costumes, and lighting to get a great photo. It makes such a difference!

Portfolio critique by Dave Palumbo, a Freelance Illustrator and Doug Alexander, an Art Director at Blizzard Entertainment. So helpful! Doug went through every piece and told me what had to change. I pretty much have to either tweak every piece or just take them out. This is what I wanted to hear! I had never had a critique before but I knew my portfolio wasn't where I wanted it to be, so it was great finding out exactly what was wrong with it and what I need to work on.

I really want to improve my drawing and Iain McCaig gave me some great advice "Draw what you love for at least an hour a day". Sounds so simple right? But I know I wasn't doing that. It's so easy to draw what you think you should be drawing instead, which takes the fun out of it. If you draw what you love, then you get excited to draw and that's what will drive you to learn and improve. It shouldn't always be a chore. I also got some exercises to improve my line quality. So that is my main goal for this year - draw better and any free time on top of that, I'll paint. Great drawing is sooo important; Paint can't cover up a crappy drawing. 

Since I've been back, I've been loaded with work. Some overtime at my main job and also a freelance job creating 25 small illustrations. So I haven't had anytime to continue with my Tarzan piece which still needs work. I will finish it though! I'll also be doing a massive clean-out of my portfolio and will take a bunch out and tweak others.

Figuring out where I want to take my art is also a huge desicion I need to make. There are so many areas to get into: Illustration, Concept Art, Gaming, Film... Since I'm a Game Artist now, I thought that staying in gaming would make the most sense but I seem to be more interested in Fantasy Illustration and Concept Art for films. We'll see what happens; right now, I just want to focus on improving so that when I go back next year, I'll be on a different level and will be armed with a new and improved portfolio. :D

I posted more photos in an album on my Facebook Page.

See you all next year!