ON ART

EC: From looking at your own work, there seems to be a development of styles, from digital painting to collage and composites. What medium are you most comfortable with?

RJ: I am most comfortable developing digital work, but I still have to use my own drawings and mark making. I think it is very unhealthy as an artist or designer to allow the machine to take control. Computers and the software should be treated no differently to the pencil. I avoid filters and anything that will make your work look 'photoshopped'.

EC: Explain your process of working.

RJ: I refer to the process as ‘crashing the paintwork and spilling the pixels’. I tend to work very quickly with tiny scamps that are often only understood by myself - just a suggestion of dynamics and composition. Then I produce marks in my sketchbook, scan it all in and begin exploring their strengths via the channelling process in Photoshop. If need be, I’ll print these experiments then redraw over them. Often I’ll discover happy accidents and go with the flow, developing a more spontaneous piece. If need be, I will refine and start blocking out shapes to give the image more clarity.

I tend to work a lot with photography to ground my images. Sometimes the photo is more dominant; it just depends on the feel of the image and subject matter. Digital painting is something I have only just begun to develop further the past six months. I’m very excited about continuing to integrate some of the techniques I use more frequently.

EC: You’ve produced a fair amount of your own visuals for Erth Chronicles so far. Is there any preferred method or style of working that you are more comfortable with?

RJ: At the moment, digital art. I’m loving custom brushes and the Wacom tablet.

EC: Research is an integral part of the design process - do you feel that this helps inform us and our work? What would you use as an example of an ill informed design?

RJ: Research is God. Some people have bigger brains than others though and can clearly store more information - we’re not all Stephen Fry, but it should be a very natural process to want to inform ourselves. I tend to think of Philippe Starck’s lemon squeezer when looking at ill informed design. From an aesthetic POV it looks beautiful and is clearly ‘informed’ by 1930s sci-fi. But I feel personally it is ill informed in terms of functionality. Have you ever squeezed a lemon on it?

EC: How important is working in your sketchbook - from the smallest thumbs to fleshed out sketches and speed paintings?

RJ: Very. The more informed you become, the less you tend to work in your sketchbook from a commercial POV. Personally, I have a sketchbook on me most of the time. You never know when an idea strikes; I have a brain like a colander.

EC: Do you have a favourite character so far and is there anyone in particular you are looking forward to developing further in the next books and further artwork?

RJ: Well, that is very hard to answer as they are all my children. I guess it always comes back to Lomax for me. He is integral to the story as a supporting character to Pirian. He’s my nod to Clint Eastwood, a hero of few words but a strong presence all the same. In terms of core development, I am of course looking forward to developing Pirian further throughout the Trilogy. He is our central character and grows significantly throughout the course of the story.

EC: Finally; Rojin or Newtonian?

RJ: Rojin in spirit. I just need to involve myself in the gardening more.

Interviewed by Lars Rasmussen

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Part I