★ Smeargle's Studio Arterviews [Kiwi- post #91]

[strawberry]

Hey! This will be our main thread for hosting a forum adaptation of arterviews, which were previously done in an article format to those of you who have been around for a while or have checked out old stuff from The Smog/Smogon's Flying Press. There's a good bunch of artists who expressed interest in participating, so we'll be chatting with someone new each month from now on.

If you're curious on the current order list of artists, check here. Following the brief interview, the thread will be totally open for questions from you guys, so please feel free to participate yourself! I'm really glad that we'll be having these on a regular basis, and I hope you guys will enjoy them too.

First up is Kaiju Bunny! Consider checking her social media and other relevant links:

links

https://twitter.com/kaiju_bunny
https://www.deviantart.com/kaijubunny
https://ko-fi.com/kaijubunny
https://kbcchomepage.carrd.co/
https://www.smogon.com/forums/threads/kaiju-bunnys-art-den.3645870/

Let's get to it!
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tiki: You're a familiar face for most studio regulars, but let's start with the usual: how would you introduce yourself?

Kaiju Bunny: I'm a pretty socially awkward but bubbly person, all things considered c: I get excited pretty easily if you talk to me about something I really like or enjoy!

tiki: What would some of those standout enjoyable topics be for you? Any notable interests or hobbies apart from making art?

Kaiju Bunny: Ace Attorney has definitely taken the spotlight as of late, truth be told, lol. I'm also a fan of the Persona series, but gaming is absolutely a favorite passtime for me besides art n.n Lately, I've been playing WoW and Monster Hunter too c:

tiki: There's definitely a ton of choices to choose from as far as games go, but when it comes to Pokemon, how did you end up stumbling upon Smogon?

Kaiju Bunny: To be honest, I don't even actually clearly remember. Around the time of when XY first came out, I know I had stumbled across a couple OU jokes online and I wasn't sure what "OU" even really meant, so I did some digging and voila!

tiki: Back to the franchise itself before Smogon, how'd you get interested in Pokemon?

Kaiju Bunny: oh gosh, I think I always loved Pokemon. I had been watching the anime ever since I can remember and I was playing the main series games by the time I was in 1st grade, and while my passion for the series has definitely dwindled slightly, I still consider myself to be quite the fan c:

tiki: The anime was such a huge part of my childhood, super nostalgic to think back on it! A lot of newer artists on here end up picking up digital art by drawing mons for thread banners or their own art threads, was it like that for you as well or did you have some previous experience?

Kaiju Bunny: To be honest, I had always been one to doodle in my free time (my old High School Planners are literally flooded with sketches), but digital art was insanely foreign to me because I could never afford a tablet. Flash forward to 2018, and I actually discovered a free mobile app that was digital art! One of the first actual pieces I made was for The Workshop which was an Ubers Premier League banner, but looking back at it... You can uh, definitely tell I've made some improvements in style since then lol

tiki: You've definitely gotten some solid experience from all your art pieces thus far, anything you're currently trying to improve on?

Kaiju Bunny: To be quite honest, at some point, I really want to be able to perfect lineless art, but sadly, my goals for improvement are always changing because I see so many incredible artists and I always wanna be able to try their style ;w;b (though realistically it's pretty hard since doing art on a phone is admittedly pretty restrictive, oof)

tiki: it's good to maintain a healthy relationship with the art and artists you're surrounded by and use them as inspiration and learning opportunities. It must be so challenging working on a phone though!

Kaiju Bunny: Surprisingly, it's not too bad! With the program I use, I do have to normally work with a smaller canvas, which I feel is also a bit if a restriction, but if I try to do anything over 1500x1500, my program just up and crashes lmao

tiki: The effort that must go into making the best use of what you currently have is commendable. Do you have any advice for newcomers who're considering picking up digital art?

Kaiju Bunny: Never ever compare your art to someone else's. Wanting to integrate a couple techniques from your favorite artist(s) is fine and fun, but never get consumed with "man, my art isn't as good as (x)'s :("

I see this a lot and even experienced it myself starting out; it'll absolutely burn you out and make art not fun anymore :c your style is unique to you, embrace it! Always remember to keep practicing, make goals for yourself, and go at your own pace. I can assure you, it'll be way more enjoyable for you c:

tiki: Some sound advice. We brought up artistic improvement a bit ago, but do you have any future plans? Whether they're more general long-term art goals, or just other things you're looking forward to.

Kaiju Bunny: Looking forward to (hopefully) using a proper art tablet lol. I had actually gotten one Christmas, but fsr, it just doesn't want to work with my computer ;~; if or when I get it to work though, I think it'll definitely open my horizons a bit c:

tiki: i hope everything works out for you on that end! Is there any topic you might want to talk about that we haven't brought up so far?

Kaiju Bunny: If I could think of anything, probably the topic of art as a hobby vs using it as a means of making money, which I've seen as kinda a topic that gets swept under the rug so to speak a lot of times.

In regards to it, I wanna stress that I wouldn't actually recommend focusing on art for main income if you're just a hobbyist :c this isn't meant to be a dream crusher, rather, a word of caution. Only making art for money is another good way to get burnt out and can actually cause a bit of stress if you're not careful.

This isn't to say don't take money for any pieces you make though, I myself do commissions on the side as a side-hustle n.n' people will naturally search you out and support you as you make your journey through being an artist, but remember to have fun as you go along with it c:

tiki: That's a big one for sure. It mostly comes down to everyone's individual circumstances, but it's definitely good to use this as a gentle reminder to stay practical and be aware of where you're at and how far you want to go when it comes to earning money off of your art.

Our studio regulars will have an open floor to continue asking questions following our chat, and we'll wrap this up with the old arterview classic: what's your favorite pokemon?

Kaiju Bunny: Definitely Mew :^) small tiny floating cat of immeasurable power. Plus how it sounds in the first Pokémon movie is absolutely adorable.

tiki: Alright, thank you for taking some time off for this interview!

Kaiju Bunny: Thanks for having me! :D was a lot of fun!
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Some of KB's work!

 

[Astra]

What is your go-to dance move if you were hypothetically pushed into the middle of the dance floor at a club?
What is your favorite recyclable material and why?
If you had to replace your blood with another liquid material, what would it be and why?
Why doesn't she like me back?
What is your favorite water bottle brand and why?
How long do you have to seat until you get the urge to stand up?
Will you follow me (@CriticalAstra) back on Twitter?

 

[Kaiju Bunny]

What is your go-to dance move if you were hypothetically pushed into the middle of the dance floor at a club?

I genuinely don't know dance moves PFFF, but probably something that incorporates loosely based hip hop moves LOL

What is your favorite recyclable material and why?

Uhh, cardboard. Don't ask why because I will not be able to give you an answer :')

If you had to replace your blood with another liquid material, what would it be and why?

Assuming there are no ill side effects, mercury :^) Just sounds cool af

Why doesn't she like me back?

Have you asked her if she likes you back? If she said no, try and still be a friend for her, but move on and find yourself someone who enjoys your company more; know your value, king.

What is your favorite water bottle brand and why?

JUST Water. Water that comes in a carton. Bonus that people ask almost every time: "Is it really just water..? That's kinda suspicious." Def recommend.

How long do you have to seat until you get the urge to stand up?

Realistically... Probably like 5-6 hours. I'm standing for roughly between 6-10 hours per shift at my job, so I take any chance at sitting as a blessing lmao.

Will you follow me (@CriticalAstra) back on Twitter?

Done

 

[Zephyri]

o/ kaiju!

what are you looking forward to from bdsp?
what are your art goals for the next ~3 months?
what shows/anime would you recommend to a hypothetical bored-out-of-his-mind 14 year old (not me ofc)
if you could have any pokemon you wanted irl what would it be and why (cant be mew)?
if you could be any pokemon irl what would it be and why (still cant be mew)?
if you had to wear one piece of clothing forever what would it be and why? (under no circumstance can you take it off. if you do, you will spontaneously combust)

 

[Kaiju Bunny]

what are you looking forward to from bdsp?

Assuming this is Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl, I'll love to see how they incorporate contests on the Switch, ngl. Also the Underground, omfg.

what are your art goals for the next ~3 months?

Getting my art tablet to work ;~; Also hoping to practice more human anatomy tbh.

what shows/anime would you recommend to a hypothetical bored-out-of-his-mind 14 year old (not me ofc)

Hmmmmm. Tv show, def The Amazing World of Gumball, if you're able. For anime? I...Hecc, I don't watch much anime, but all that's coming to mind is Mob Psycho 100 :^

if you could have any pokemon you wanted irl what would it be and why (cant be mew)?

Furret. Floof. Also warm. It's adorable and probably cuddly af.

if you could be any pokemon irl what would it be and why (still cant be mew)?

Ditto :) Able to transform into any 'mon, even get an associated goofy face plastered on, win-win.

if you had to wear one piece of clothing forever what would it be and why? (under no circumstance can you take it off. if you do, you will spontaneously combust)

A tank top :3 spaghetti strap one.

 

[strawberry]

This month we're joined by MiniArchitect! Please feel free to check out his art thread here, and follow up with any questions you might have after giving the post a read.

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tiki: You've been doing art around the forums for quite a while now, but for those who aren't familiar: how would you introduce yourself?

MiniArchitect: I'd say I'm a graphic designer who's been playing Pokemon all of my life. My biggest focus is logo design, but I'm trying to branch outside of that comfort zone and focus on illustration and character design too. I like to think I'm an approachable person, and I just try to make peoples' experience in Smeargle's Studio at least a little bit better!

tiki: Your work for various logos during your tenure on Smogon has become quite well known, and you even cover a lot about your own process in some of the posts in your art thread. Do you have any advice for people looking to improve their logo-making skills?

MiniArchitect: Logo design can be a surprisingly different beast from other art forms; it's usually less about how artistically advanced it is, and more about how clearly you convey the required information.

To improve your skills, you'll want to study typography, first and foremost; you want to be able to have your text displayed in a creative and visually appealing way. It can be easy to just rely on a basic font to place text over an image you've already drawn (and I'm guilty of doing that sometimes too), but the most interesting logos are those that are built with the type in mind beforehand.

You should also experiment with using limited color palettes. Using only a handful of colors will force you to abstract the subject you're drawing in a way that makes it look good within the limitations of a logo. It isn't a strict rule that logos should only use a few colors, but most of them that you see in the world stand out using just one, two, or three colors.

And just like any other art format, find designers whose work you enjoy, and try emulating their styles and see what works and doesn't work for you! One of my biggest influences around here was Zracknel, who took his inspiration from classic sports logos, so you'll see a lot of that coming through in my own work.

Finally, you should be willing to go through a fair amount of experimentation to find the kind of logo you want. I often end up drawing pages of thumbnails, sketches, and rough ideas before I settle on a logo design that I'm confident in and want to move forward with. There's the rare instance where you'll have a solid idea that works from the get-go, but in most cases, you have to arrive at a final design through a process of repetition and iteration on your existing ideas. So if you're having trouble conceptualizing your design, stay persistent! Jot down as many ideas as you can, determine which of those ideas you like best, and come up with ways to blend them together to make something better.

tiki: Some great advice! I'm sure our studio regulars will find these pointers useful. You mentioned that you're looking to branch out to illustration/character design more often, what are your experiences on that front thus far?

MiniArchitect: Well, to be frank, I still don't have too much experience in that regard. I've done illustrations for Smogon of course, and I like drawing fanart of Pokemon, but I've seen so many illustrators and character designers across the internet doing cool and interesting artwork, and I've spent so much time steeped in the artwork behind some of my favorite games, that I just want to try my hand at it too!

What that has realistically looked like for me is that I've been studying human anatomy and learning how to draw people in different poses and situations, and trying to build up my skills to the point where I feel that I'm capable of designing original characters and producing more in-depth illustrations. But I'm not quite at that point yet.

tiki: The very first steps are always a huge time investment and learning experience, I'm looking forward to your progress! Now, let's take a step back and talk about Smogon for a bit. How did you end up here, and what made you stick around after all these years?

MiniArchitect: I first made an account on the forums in 2014, around the time when a lot of my friends from the Trivia room on Pokemon Showdown started migrating here. I didn't really know anything about the forums at the time, so I explored around and naturally ended up finding Smeargle's Studio. I browsed through everyone's threads and started leaving comments every now and then, and once I discovered what opportunities there were to contribute, I thought it would be a good chance to make artwork to put toward something practical! I made pieces for The Player, The Smog (as it was known at the time), and social media posts for a while, but dropped off pretty drastically around 2017 when I was going through some turmoil in my personal life. I ended up coming back around 2019 once I felt more comfortable participating here again.

It's been nice this entire time being able to keep up with other artists and friends in this community, and see how they've grown over time and to measure my own growth as well. Smogon has just been a great outlet for me to make artwork that's serving some kind of purpose, whether that be for an article, a community event, or just to show off some fun fanart in a tightly-knit community.

tiki: It's really fun to think about just the amount of time we've spent on here and how the things have changed over the years. How about Pokemon itself, when did you get interested in the franchise?

MiniArchitect: I've been playing Pokemon for literally as long as I can remember! My parents got Red Version for me a few years after it released in the U.S., and it must've been one of the first video games I ever played. I was so young that I can't recall much of my experience with it though, other than grinding through the Elite Four over and over again to get my Blastoise and Zapdos up to Level 100.

tiki: Mhm, do you have any games or shows that you're currently enjoying?

MiniArchitect: No games that I'm actively playing right now, but there are a few I've bought already and hope to play soon! I've got New Pokemon Snap, Neo: The World Ends With You, and Xenoblade Chronicles: Definitive Edition calling to me, among a few others in my backlog. I don't watch too many shows either, but I've really enjoyed the Marvel shows on Disney+. I've also been watching Star Trek: The Next Generation a lot lately; I'm a big fan of sci-fi in general, and it was a series that both my parents loved, but I was never was around to watch it. I'm on the last season now, and have been loving it so far!

tiki: What are some of your plans for the future that you're looking forward to? Whether it be just in general, or art-related.

MiniArchitect: I'd like to continue practicing my art and make more interesting work. I mainly focus on vector art, but I want to also learn how to use more common tools for raster art, such as Clip Studio. Or even physical media, like ink, Copic markers, or watercolors. Unrelated to art, and going along with the last question, I also want to get caught up on the games and shows that my friends have been telling me to play/watch.

I've also wanted to start learning another language! I used to know a decent amount of Spanish after taking four years of classes in high school, but it's been so long since I last used it that I've forgotten nearly all of it. I'd also like to learn sign language; I have a family member who's mostly deaf, and they've been learning sign language too, so I'd like to support them by learning it myself. Couldn't say how soon that's going to actually happen, since I know it'll take a lot of dedication, but it's a long-term goal to work toward.

And this isn't really anything I'm actively planning, so much as it is an ambiguous thing that I want to do someday, but I've always wanted to develop some kind of tutorial series to teach people how to draw. I wouldn't say I'm confident enough in my skills to do that just yet, but someday!

tiki: Wishing you all the best with those goals! Is there anything else you might want to talk about that we haven't covered yet?

MiniArchitect: Well, since I don't have many other opportunities to soapbox about this, I'd like to talk about the process of learning to draw, and the unique challenges that come with it. This will probably sound like an exaggeration, but I feel like drawing is one of the hardest creative skills you can commit yourself to. Part of that is because of the very technical nature of drawing, but more significantly, it's due to how easy it is for mental roadblocks to get in your way.

On the internet, there’s a constant exposure to other artists that makes it incredibly hard not to compare yourself to them. Platforms like DeviantArt or Twitter allow easy access to tons of other artists who might be making the same kind of work you're making, and when you're seeing those artists all the time, it's almost inevitable that you'll start comparing yourself to them. But those are people who might have wildly different amounts of experience than you. Like Kaiju said in her interview, you can’t fixate on whether your art is as good as someone else’s that you found online, because there’s a never-ending stream of artwork you’ll find that’s better than yours. You have to think instead about what you can learn from those artists, rather than the difference in quality between you and them.

Another part of the problem is that when you're learning, you just don't have much direction; it can be really hard to know how to practice in a way that's conductive to your improvement. The simplest way to figure that out is to follow examples from other successful artists; read books published by notable artists about how they draw, follow tutorials on Youtube, things like that. My biggest problem when practicing was that I didn't understand any of my fundamental skills, things like perspective, drawing in three dimensions, gesture, etc., and I had to be taught those things before I could start practicing them.

Unfortunately, I think some artists believe that they should be able to learn entirely on their own, and that there's shame to be had in looking up tutorials or taking advice from others. At least, I used to think of it that way; for a few years after I seriously started to learn to draw, I hardly knew what I was doing and almost nothing I drew would turn out like I wanted, but it felt embarrassing to look up tutorials because it felt like admitting I was too stupid to figure out how to draw on my own.

Of course, this is a really toxic way of looking at it. Drawing is a skill that isn't designed to be learned alone. You're meant to take in the knowledge that originated from generations of people developing the craft, and learn how to do it by following their example. If you spurn any attempt to take advice, you're just going to needlessly stunt your own growth.

And finally, no matter what your skill level, it can very hard to have confidence in your own work. It’s easy to hyper-fixate on every little blemish in your own artwork, and when all you can see is everything that's wrong with your art, and conversely, everything that's right with the art of your peers, it's demoralizing. You wonder what's wrong with you, why you can't be as successful as everyone else in your community, despite all the effort you put in. I stopped drawing almost entirely for a good year or so, because I had just become disillusioned with it, and it only seemed to be making me feel worse about myself.

It was a change in perspective that made me start to enjoy drawing again. You have to view drawing as a continuous series of learning opportunities. Whenever you draw something, you should analyze what you did right and what you did wrong, but you can't view the things you did wrong as impossible to overcome. Everyone draws things wrong the first time, or even the first 100 or 1000 times. You just have to try again, but rather than just doing it over and over again the exact same way, try to understand what your mistakes were the first time, and make an effort to correct them. Look up how other people draw the thing you’re trying to draw, and maybe emulate the way they do it. You won't do it right immediately, but you will slowly become better and more consistent. You'll notice your mistakes more, but as long as you're viewing them as opportunities to improve yourself, that's not a bad thing.

And I think that’s how you build confidence in your artwork; by seeing it as a gradual path toward improvement, and treating your mistakes as steps along that path. In my opinion, at least.

tiki: It's a topic worth going on about honestly! You should have a healthy relationship with learning, creating, and looking into the experiences of others always have merit, so i think everyone'll appreciate you writing about this in more detail.

We do have the hardest question of all left to wrap things up, what's you favorite pokemon?

MiniArchitect: Diglett. No question about it. It's got a simple, goofy design that makes it impossible not to love! I'll also cheat a little bit and pair it with Alolan Dugtrio, because Game Freak just slapped some wigs on its bald heads and called it a new form, and it's so dumb that I can't help but love it.

tiki: I forgot Alolan Dugtrio was a thing that existed, not sure how i feel about that one. Tank you so much for taking the time to answer these questions! I'm looking forward to any additional questions everyone at the studio might bring up following our post o/

MiniArchitect: Of course! Thanks for having me :)
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Some of Mini's work

 

[Shadowshocker]

nudges Architect

What was your most favourite work done for Smogon - team logo, article art, commission, etc. - and would you be able to take us through the design process, and why that work holds a favourite spot for you?

 

[Zephyri]

heyo mini!

youre super well known for how you give feedback to newer artists; how do you go about giving critique and what do you think are the biggest mistakes people make when doing so?

are there any artists on this site that you've looked up to? what specifically about them has impressed you over the years?

your current work shows a ton of improvement since when you first started on this site; what would you say was the most important factor in your development as an artist?

any shows/animes you could recommend?

whats your favorite type of pizza and why is it pineapple?

 

[MiniArchitect]

nudges Architect

What was your most favourite work done for Smogon - team logo, article art, commission, etc. - and would you be able to take us through the design process, and why that work holds a favourite spot for you?

Thanks for the question! I think my favorite piece of artwork that I’ve made for Smogon was the Shinto Ruin Serpents logo that I made for Shiloh last year. At the time, it had been 4 or 5 years since the last time I had made a proper logo. I had done some practice with logo design in that time, but never was confident enough to make anything new and complete.

But I feel like I improved enough in that time that the new logo came out really well! I experimented with new techniques to get the color layout right, and while I do think it looks busier than I would have liked, I'm really proud of how it turned out! Particularly the color choices, and how well I was able to render Giratina itself, which took a lot of time to learn how to do. It holds a special place for me as the first major logo I had done in a long time that I was happy with, and felt to me like a substantial display of my own progress.

I already did a writeup in my art thread detailing the process of designing the logo as best as I could, but I'll recap here, and try to add a little more insight while I'm at it:

Design Process

First, I did some small thumbnail sketches with quick ideas for what the logo would look like. Rozes said he wanted the logo to look something like this artwork by Justasuta, so I had a strong baseline for what the design should be. I should note that while I only did a few thumbnails for this particular design, sometimes it takes a lot more sketching and experimentation to work toward a design you like. So just keep doing thumbnails, and you’ll eventually get to a design that works!

The biggest hurdle for this design was just learning how to draw Giratina in the first place. I ended up filling this entire 18x24in. paper with drawings of Giratina’s head, mostly just trying to figure out how those gold plates fit around its face! I referenced anime screenshots, manga screenshots, and even pulled out my copy of Pokemon X so I could see Giratina in the Pokedex’s 3D model viewer to try to figure it out. In retrospect, I probably spent way to much time on this in comparison to the rest of the logo design, but it goes to show that persistence does pay off! I eventually learned how to draw it in a way that looked good, and was able to translate that to the actual logo itself.

Once I learned how to draw Giratina, I could finially move forward with drawing the actual logo. It’s important to note that you absolutely do NOT have to draw your logos this big, and this is the only time I’ve ever even done that.

I also chose the font I planned to use for the text beforehand (called Built Titling, for reference), so I could draw the text here in a way that roughly matched the font. I don’t always do that; I think in most of my logos before this one, I would wait until I was digitally rendering it to try out different fonts. But deciding on it beforehand eliminated some of the stress of deciding upon it later, so I think this was a smart move in the long run.

Regarding the trainer silhouette in the middle of the “Shinto Ruins” text: originally we were going to have that there in reference to the original artwork the logo was inspired by, but we decided to scrap it as we went forward with the design.

Once I was satisfied with the drawing, and Shiloh was okay with it too, I brought it into Adobe Illustrator and traced over the drawing with vector shapes in flat colors. I stuck with some relatively simple colors just to get the digital version presentable. After talking it over with rozes, he wanted the tendrils to look more angular, so I made that change. I think the sharper angles of the tendrils, despite not really making sense from an anatomical perspective, gave the logo a more intimidating vibe, so I was on board with it!

Here’s where I tried something new. I knew what color scheme I wanted the logo to have; I wanted red and yellow highlights that stood out, so I went with a few shades of purple that would complement them. But I wasn’t sure how to place those colors in a way that looked right. I tried fiddling with the colors in Illustrator, but I felt like I wasn’t getting anywhere. So I opened the flat-colored logo in Photoshop with my drawing tablet, and painted over it with those colors. Adobe Illustrator can be really restrictive when it comes to just drawing in colors loosely, so having the freedom to paint those colors in anywhere I wanted in Photoshop made the process of experimenting with the color layout a lot more fun and painless.

I think the hardest part of laying out the colors was trying to color the tendrils. I didn’t want to just leave them a single color, so I brought in streaks of the lavender from Giratina’s body and red from its spikes to accent the tendrils. I feel like this helped bring more cohesion to the logo by distributing the colors more evenly across the whole thing, rather than concentrating them in specific parts.

Once I was happy with the layout of the colors, I brought that paintover back into Illustrator and traced new shapes over it until the vector version was a sleeker rendition of the paintover. I also decided not to stick exactly to the colors I used for the paintover; I changed the yellow to more of a mustard yellow than the bright neon color in the paintover, and I pretty drastically changed the colors of the text and the box that enclosed it because I felt like it wasn’t emphatic enough. I actually had a pretty hard time figuring out what to do with the text at this point; even though I knew what font I would use in advance, coloring the text using the pre-established color scheme in a way that it didn’t just blend in with the rest of the logo and stood out was difficult. I used a lot of outlines and a half-fill for the word “Serpents” to help it stand out more.

Zephyri I'll answer your questions in a separate post as soon as I can!

 

[MiniArchitect]

youre super well known for how you give feedback to newer artists; how do you go about giving critique and what do you think are the biggest mistakes people make when doing so?

It can be hard to critique others’ artwork, often because I’ll have an immediate response of “I like this art” or “I don’t like this art”, and I can’t exactly identify why I feel that way. To give a useful critique, though, you need to be able to state specifically why you feel the way you do. Try thinking about basic qualities of art, such as the composition, the use of colors, the quality of their linework, how closely it matches the referenced material, and how those things affect the overall quality of the piece. Even if you can’t think of anything you actively dislike about someone’s artwork, you can always try to propose ways that they could emphasize the things that already work. For instance, if you like the way someone shades their drawing, you could suggest that they add more contrast between the light and dark colors to exaggerate the difference between them. Or if you like a character’s pose in a particular drawing, try thinking about if the drawing would look more dynamic if they pushed the gesture of the pose a little more.

Personally, when I’m providing critique, I always try to look for at least one quality that I like in someone’s work, and at least one thing that could use improvement. Gushing over how much you love someone's art is nice, and it can be very affirming to the artist themselves, but it doesn’t necessarily give them an idea on how they could do better. Similarly, only harping on the negatives of someone’s art can feel mean-spirited, especially if it isn’t backed up with suggestions for what could be done differently. The main thing to keep in mind is that you’re trying to encourage the artist to keep drawing and get better, so you should think about whether or not your critique is accomplishing that. If your critique is just "I don't like this" or "I like this other thing better", then that's not encouraging; that's just being dismissive.

You should also be mindful of the environment in which you’re trying to give critique. On a lot of internet platforms, including Smeargle’s Studio, many artists aren’t explicitly looking for critique; some are just drawing for fun and aren’t prioritizing improvement. And that’s okay! Lately I find myself just trying to provide positive reinforcement; since most people are just doing this for fun, there’s no reason to drag them down by telling them about the negatives of their art. I think most artists just want to know that people are enjoying their work and that the effort they invest in drawing something is worth it, so I like to leave comments affirming that their work is good, and that they should keep up the effort.

With that said, as an artist, you should always be prepared for people to give some frank opinions every now and then. You can’t control the environment you post your art in to the degree that you shut out people who want to help you. This is more of a message to the artist receiving the critique here, but I feel it’s important to keep in mind: most people who critique your art aren’t trying to be mean, or drag you down. Especially around here, I think most artists are pretty polite, and just want to share their knowledge and experience! It can be disappointing sometimes to hear someone criticize a piece of artwork that you're proud of; I’ve been on the receiving end of that plenty of times, and trust me, I understand how that feels. But you can’t take that as an attack against you personally.

are there any artists on this site that you've looked up to? what specifically about them has impressed you over the years?

I’d say the most influential artist on Smogon for me personally is Zracknel. He has the kind of skillset that I always wanted to have! His logos are professional and attractive, and really sell Pokemon as a competitive sport by drawing upon design trends from real-world sports logos, like NFL, MLB, and NBA teams. I used to spend a lot of time reviewing his thread over and over again and studying his logos to better learn how to make mine.

P.S. if you’re reading this Zracknel, please reupload some of those old images with broken links in your logo thread, it’s a crime that we can’t see so much of your wonderful design work anymore :(

Nastyjungle is another one of my favorite artists here! Her work is so varied across the board, and she gives everything a unique sense of texture that I wish I could replicate in my own work. She also just kinda draws whatever she wants without restraint and has fun with it, which has resulted in a lot of unique Pokemon work and personal work that I really admire.

One other significant name: anundeadboy is another fantastic vector artist who not only makes incredibly sleek, modern-looking logos, but applies his design sensibilities to other illustrations, too! He’s so creative, and I’d love to be able to draw things as engaging and interesting as he can!

There are plenty of others I could go on about, but I don’t want to look like I’m sucking up, so I’ll leave it there. But there are plenty of great artists on this site whose work is worth seeing and studying! If you're a newer member of the site, you should absolutely browse through some of the old art threads that are still up. You'll definitely find some gems there!

your current work shows a ton of improvement since when you first started on this site; what would you say was the most important factor in your development as an artist?

Thanks for the kind words! I said something similar to this in the interview, but I think the most significant thing I ever did for my development was recognize that I hadn’t learned a lot of the fundamentals of making art: things like perspective, how gesture drawing works, understanding 3D space, understanding how shading works, etc. While I had drawn a lot of pieces that I’m still proud of in my early time on Smogon, I wasn’t able to draw things consistently, and there were so many more instances where I tried to draw something and was too disappointed with how it turned out to post it anywhere. So I started looking up tutorials for the most basic of art concepts, and sort of did a soft reset on my art education to learn those things again and try to internalize them through practice.

I’m still not totally satisfied with my art, and I can tell there are a lot of areas where my art falls short of what I want it to be. But I’m trying to take that in stride, and use that as motivation to practice and improve myself further!

any shows/animes you could recommend?

I’m not too into anime, so this’ll be a pretty mainstream recommendation, but My Hero Academia has to be one of my favorite anime series I’ve ever seen. It’s consistently interesting, its characters are all well written and feel relatable to at least some degree, the story is almost always engaging, and it presents such an imaginative and fun world, with very different character designs that all seem to work together seamlessly. It’s great! Though I’m really behind on it at the moment, so I’ve gotta get caught up.

Gurren Lagann is also a fantastic anime; it’s just a super exciting show where the hype is almost always turned up to 11, and has a way of luring you in and getting you invested, even in it’s most bizarre moments.

Outside of anime, and as I mentioned in the interview, Star Trek is a cornerstone for any sci-fi nerds, and I almost regret not watching it sooner. If you have access to any of its iterations, you should watch them! So far I’ve watched most of the original series and The Next Generation, and TNG is definitely my favorite of the two, but both are still worth watching today.

Some others that I’ll mention but don’t have the time to get into are Avatar: The Last Airbender, Castlevania (the Netflix animated series), Arrested Development, and It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia.

whats your favorite type of pizza and why is it pineapple?

I know you’re trying to get a rise out of me, but it won’t work! Luckily for you, I do genuinely like pineapple on pizza. But you can't beat the classic pepperoni. It's just such a perfect topping to go on pizza and nothing can truly outshine it.

 

[Fusion Flare]

1. Do you like how I walk?

2. Do you like how I talk?

3. DO you like how my face disintegrates into chalk?

4. what are some of your favorite sinnoh pokemon? i'd prefer a number of like 3-5 or so, but its up to you, really?

5. what's your favorite and least favorite pokemon villains and rivals?

6. How did Diglett take the top spot for your pfp? Favorite Pokemon perhaps?
(tikiedit: but the last question of the interview is always who's your fav pokemon how did we miss this ;_;)

 

[MiniArchitect]

1. Do you like how I walk?

2. Do you like how I talk?

3. DO you like how my face disintegrates into chalk?

I... have no idea how to answer this. Is this a reference to something? Please have your chalk face checked out by a doctor.

4. what are some of your favorite sinnoh pokemon? i'd prefer a number of like 3-5 or so, but its up to you, really?

Gen 4 has so many great Pokemon designs that it's hard to narrow them down! I love most of the evolutions they added to previous mons, but some of my favorites are Gallade, Roserade, and Electivire. As far as original Gen 4 mons, Torterra is just one of the coolest ones out there, and I really like Rotom; It's cool how much respect Rotom has been given in the series since Gen 7, too.

But I know what you want to hear, and yes, I do have a soft spot in my heart for the vine man himself, Tangrowth. I'm thinking of adding him in my BDSP playthrough as long as Tangela is available early enough!

5. what's your favorite and least favorite pokemon villains and rivals?

Favorites: Really like Guzma and Lusamine as villains! Guzma has such an over the top personality, but you can tell he's just a kid who took a wrong turn in life and wants to be liked by people, even though he's too proud to admit it. Lusamine also has a massive superiority complex that, though heightened by Nihilego in the story of Sun/Moon, still has believeable impacts on her family, and it feels narratively satisfying to take her down. I'm a little bitter about how they changed her motivations in Ultra Sun/Moon, though; they don't feel as personal and interesting as they do in the original games.

Rivals, I'd say the Black/White crew of Cheren and Bianca. Both feel like believeable people who are learning what they want to do in life: Cheren wants to get stronger, but he isn't rude or outright criminal about it like Blue and Silver respectively. He learns how to be a better person over the course of the story, and has an understated character arc that I think pairs really well with the themes of the story. Bianca is also a new kind of rival, in that she determines that she doesn't want to follow the path of a trainer that she thought she wanted to at the beginning, and decides to become a researcher instead. Which feels like it makes sense, since that's another major profession in the Pokemon universe, and also is a creative narrative conclusion that no other rivals in the series had at that point.

N is also great, but do I classify him as a villain or a rival? I'd say he counts as both. He's such a strange character, but I feel like it makes sense given what we learn about him through the course of the story. I also think his gimmick of only using pokemon you find in the wild in whatever area you battle him is neat, and narratively makes sense given his reluctance to capture Pokemon.

Least favorites: The whole X & Y cast, sadly. The concept of a villain team had just gotten old by Gen 6, especially after the more interesting villains of Gen 5, and I feel like Lysandre is hardly developed as a character, and his motivations are kinda dumb. Plus, the admins of Team Flare are all so forgettable, which only sours me on his team even more. Your rivals in X and Y also don't add much. I think they wanted to replicate the feeling of adventuring with your friends that Gen 5 had, but Tierno and Trevor barely have any character traits to speak of, Shauna is a slightly better but still underdeveloped as a character, and Calem/Serena just feel kinda bland. I feel like they wanted to do the Bianca thing with Tierno and Trevor where they want to do other things with their life than be trainers, but they're both just so unendearing as characters that I don't feel much for them.

6. How did Diglett take the top spot for your pfp? Favorite Pokemon perhaps?
(tikiedit: but the last question of the interview is always who's your fav pokemon how did we miss this ;_;)

Diglett is indeed my favorite pokemon, but it wasn't always my pfp. I used to have a Shuckle with a rocky helmet that I was really proud of at the time:

And I think for a while I used this Snivy as an avatar?

But something about Diglett just... resonates with me. He's simple, but has a lot of heart and personality, and he's just fun to draw

 

[strawberry]

For October's arterview, we're talking with ausma! You can check out her various socials here and her art thread here. Feel free to add questions of your own after reading

tiki: Hey ausma! How would you introduce yourself to our studio regulars?

ausma: heya!! i'm a really avid pokemon fan and smogon contributor who does a fair bit around the site; i lead the ou forums and ou c&c, as well as moderate the sm section. however something a lot of people don't really know about me is that i'm really into drawing. i've been a character, banner, and logo designer for about a decade now, in fact, and it's something i take a lot of pride and passion in doing.

in real life, i'm a 19 y/o college freshman who is aiming to go into a neuroscience, psych, or bio major, but im not really decided yet; as a person, i'd like to think of myself as a lax, friend-type of individual that you can go to to get advice, hang out with, or talk to. the safety, enjoyment, and inclusiveness of our community is of utmost importance to me and as such i really value everyone's ability to express themselves and feel important!

tiki: An avid pokemon fan! How/When did you end up getting interested in the franchise?

ausma: funny thing is, i've been into pokemon for pretty much my entire life. ever since i was around 4 years old actually (really young). i'm not quite sure what drew me to it at the time, but i was completely hooked from my experience with the gen 4 games and from there i've just, really been into it. i think it's just how incredibly colorful and full of life the franchise is that got me so absorbed, and then getting absolved into the artistic and creative direction as i got older to really keep me hooked. even if i dont like all of the games in recent years, i have so many memories playing the main series games and a ton of spinoffs when i was younger that saying it had a gigantic influence on my life would be a criminal understatement.

tiki: I'm sure a lot of us can relate. What about smogon specifically, how did you end up stumbling upon the forums?

ausma: i stumbled onto smogon mainly as a byproduct of a lot of video-watching honestly. i vividly remember way back when i was younger and i was playing with the smogon formats on a super old simulator known as pokemon online, not really knowing what they were for but playing them anyway. of course i had no clue what i was doing; i thought head smash hydreigon was incredibly sick at the time.

later i stumbled onto pokeaimmd's videos in my recommended one day after watching some verlisify, and i binged those for the longest time, which ended up getting me into showdown. i found the forums through showdown links, again not really knowing what they were for, but after a bit of lurking i ended up making an account in 2016. my posts were incredibly sparse and i was a very underground player that mostly was contained to the showdown ladder until about late 2019 when i wanted to get more involved in the community as sword and shield came into the picture. from there my experience with the forums just... stuck. not quite sure what made me stay as long as i did, but.. here i am haha

tiki: Let's move onto the art side of things, how long have you been doing digital art? Any advice for those who are still just starting out?

ausma: i've been doing digital art for a really long time too. i started out with ms paint and for the most part i moved onto newer resources and methods by watching how my friends and inspirations did things. i initially didn't really do linework or anything of that nature, and my work was really messy and lacked any degree of consistency, though as i discovered new sources and methods, i progressively managed to develop into something a lot more consistent and recognizable. to actually answer the question, i've been doing digital art a little shy of 10 years too!

as for advice: i really want to double down on how absolutely important it is that you use references and experiment.

references have a really poor reputation among newer artists because of how they're used. while tracing directly from them isn't really helpful, references are invaluable tools that help you not only learn how to execute things like poses and learn anatomy, but are also necessary for helping learn and apply details and methods. they can also be amazing for seeing how different components move in relativity to one another, which is something that helps me improve my work to this day!! it really comes down to how you use them, in short. don't trace from them, observe them, and let them help you execute your work.

experimentation kind of goes somewhat with references, but i'd like to talk about this because it plays into how we actually learn in the first place. as a self-taught artist, the big reason i was able to really incrementally grow into a consistent artist from an ms paint doodler is because i was willing to try new things. what those new things are, are actually up to you! whether that's trying a new lineart style, a new coloring method, a new shading style, different palettes, different tools, having the mentality of "i want to try this out" alongside utilizing references and practicing was the big reason i was able to grow in the first place without outside feedback. that being said, don't be afraid to be given feedback either. perspective is insanely valuable and i feel it's an amazing way to provide an outlet for experimentation if you don't know where to start. if someone says "maybe you could try to make your lineart pop out more", that's a great place to try some things out! maybe you'll find something entirely new that you'll like. :>

tiki: The stigma behind references is really unfortunate if you don't end up informing yourself, it's the main avenue for learning about drawing just about anything at the end of the day! You do not want to skip out on that.

Is there anything you're currently looking to improve upon yourself, as far as art goes?

ausma: lineart and expanding my coloring styles, for sure. i feel like my positions, expressions, and general art style are fairly solid, but i really dislike how flat and somewhat stagnant my lineart and coloring feel compared to the more dynamic kind of styles that i see from a lot of artists i look up to. i really want to try different palettes and try to learn a monochrome/minimal coloring style to really give my art more flexibility, for example. persona 5's minimalistic palette, patterning, and color compositions are an ideal for me as far as coloring style goes and i'd really love to have the ability to do something like it!! as for my lineart, i really want something that feels fuller and greater weight. my current lineart style works well with my softer, fluffier kind of artstyle, but truthfully i feel like it could use more pizzazz since it feels kind of lacking in terms of impact.

tiki: Speaking of artists you look up to, do you have any favorite ones from smogon?

ausma: there are a few for sure!! monomite is a really huge one, i absolutely adore how incredibly versed, detailed, and dynamic their work is, between coloring, linework, composition, and their beautiful designing. i'm a huge fan of cleffa's work too, outside of her being one of my closest friends, the sheer degree of growth her work has undergone in the past year has been beyond inspiring for me, and seeing that improvement first hand has really helped push me to newer depths too. i love your and lifeisdank's work a lot for how incredibly vast and unique your coloring/shading styles are. lastly i'd like to shout out an artist that actually hasn't seen too much activity outside of the megas for all pet mod: inkbug!! his work and how expansive it is is breathtaking to me and he's definitely one of my favorite on the site for how much he's capable of doing and how his art style is pretty much goals for me haha.

tiki: Pokemon and art are clearly a big part of your life, any other hobbies or interest you'd want to share with us?

ausma: there’s quite a few other things i like!! aside from pokemon im very much into splatoon, hollow knight, and persona 5. i’m planning on getting into persona 4 golden once i have a bit more time and i am beyond pumped for splatoon 3!! i also really enjoy things like team fortress 2 and overwatch.

games aside, i’m also a very avid writer and character creator, with a few old webcomic concepts under my belt. this i suppose could fall into art too, but it’s not discretely drawing and is its own medium so i figured it’d be worth mentioning.

tiki: Webcomics, how exciting! Wishing you all the best with those projects. Is there anything else you'd like to talk about that we haven't brought up so far?

ausma: thank you a lot!! it's stuff i was kind of struggling with for a while, but im hoping to pick up the pace with my creative projects again since they mean so much to me as both an artist and just a person as a whole!!

truthfully, i've been enamored by all of the art i've seen as of late on smeargles. so many budding, interested artists are getting more involved in forum-wide projects and it's incredible to see, because art is something incredibly personal to me and i think it can be a super constructive, positive experience. however, i think the big thing i want to bring up that's really important, at least for me, is that art is not an obligation: it's a hobby. i see a lot of people stress out about having to improve and become more "skilled" in a pinch, and in a way i don't blame newer artists for feeling that way since there's a lot of emphasis put upon people in recent times to become skilled and versed, otherwise their value is in a sense diminished. i want to say that the value of your work and your contributions as a whole are not determined by what other people around you think of your work, but yourself. remember that creative hobbies are meant to be fun and fulfilling for you. the moment it starts to become stressful or feel like an obligation, it's important to be able to step back and give yourself room to breathe. in short: have fun, and make your experience your own.

tiki: Great sentiment to end it off on. As for the usual - what's your favorite pokemon?

ausma: very tough question; it’s hovered a lot between 3: meowstic, fennekin, and whimsicott. if i had to say though i think fennekin! i have a lot of really personal memories with the fennekin line in general and it’s just so cute and incredibly well designed, it makes me feel very happy looking at it and its evolution line!! ofc though i just love fluffy and cute things in general so whimsicott and meowstic are definitely up there and are bonafide Ausma Classics, but i think fennekin edges it out due to personal experience and just how iconic it feels to me, personally :>

tiki: I love all of those 3 as well! Thanks for taking the time to chat a bit, we'll leave this off to the studio regulars for any additional questions they might have. o/

ausma: absolutely, thanks for having me!! i look forward to seeing everyone’s questions!

ausma's work

 

[kolohe]

i'm a huge fan of cleffa's work too, outside of her being one of my closest friends, the sheer degree of growth her work has undergone in the past year has been beyond inspiring for me, and seeing that improvement first hand has really helped push me to newer depths too.

WHAT. wOWWWAH… i am just a little fricking goblin… THANK YOU !! ausma

onto my questions;

how do you feel about the artistic direction of the new pokemon games? are they good to you, or do you think they need to improve? in what ways?

do you listen to anything specific while drawing? furthermore, whats your favorite video game soundtrack?

lastly, but arguably the most important; who’s the imposter, looking sus? and, who can we trust?

 

[spell]

ausma top 5 people on smogon oat you're 1 of the 2 people i respect fr

questions:


If you could take one aspect of the Pokémon games and change it, what would you change and how exactly would you change it? Are there any character designs that don't strike your fancy?

I know you love writing and contributing for OU in general, but what was your favourite analysis/post/anything OU-related thing you have done on this site?

Why on god's great green earth do you still listen to such song's as ♪ UNDERTALE THE MUSICAL - Animation Song Parody and Official Among Us In Real Life Official Music Video - Rebecca Zamolo Shorts... you knew this was coming.

and lastly, is it true that your among us K/D/A is world-famous?

 

[Kaiju Bunny]

Eee, I was waiting for this interview! cx
Your art is always such a pleasure to see, ausma; every character you make is so expressive, and I genuinely wanted to say it upfront to you!!

Few questions for whenever you're free, fren :

• I (and a few others) know you're pretty into Persona (who can blame you :^)), but have you touched on SMT to any extent? Why or why not?
• Where did your famous "doing ur mom" phrase originate from?
• Is there anything you'd tell your younger self (say 5 years ago)? If so, what would it be?
• Which video game do you think has the best art style? (feel free to take this as vaguely or specific as you'd like)
• Another Art Trade when

 

[ausma]

View attachment 375440
WHAT. wOWWWAH… i am just a little fricking goblin… THANK YOU !! ausma

onto my questions;

how do you feel about the artistic direction of the new pokemon games? are they good to you, or do you think they need to improve? in what ways?

do you listen to anything specific while drawing? furthermore, whats your favorite video game soundtrack?

lastly, but arguably the most important; who’s the imposter, looking sus? and, who can we trust?

I LOVE YOU BESTIE GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR

1: how do you feel about the artistic direction of the new pokemon games? are they good to you, or do you think they need to improve? in what ways?

this is an interesting question; to be honest, i'm somewhat in the middle about it? in general i feel like the artistic direction of the latest pokemon games has been much more flashy than it has been in the past. we've been seeing much more complicated pokemon designs, especially considering the ultra beasts, eternatus, and the much more in-depth origins we see with both designs and pokemon concepts. pokemon characters have something fairly similar going on, where complexity and much more expansive palettes being pretty big staples of modern-day pokemon artistic design. i feel like they're good in their own ways, and make modern pokemon incredibly distinct in comparison to earlier generations and in a way much more expansive, but in some respects i definitely think it can be overdone and even sloppy to an extent. so i guess to answer the question more formally, it has some ups and downs.

2: do you listen to anything specific while drawing? furthermore, whats your favorite video game soundtrack?

i'm a gigantic fan of video game ost; i think it really helps that most of it is instrumental, allowing for it to transcend the creative confines of the original game; yet, so much of it is atmospheric and you can control the vibes on a whim. i guess to further upon this into the second part of the question, i am a gigantic fan of listening to the hollow knight, persona 5, and celeste osts while drawing, and in general those 3 are easily my favorite.

3: lastly, but arguably the most important; who’s the imposter, looking sus? and, who can we trust?

ඞ

Among Us in real life (sus, sus)
Among Us in real life (sus, sus)
Playing Among Us in real life, spaceship with my crew
Gonna split up, spread out 'cause we all got tasks to do
Gotta find the imposter as they try to sabotage
Who can we trust in this Among Us entourage?
Heard a sound, turned around, looking up, looking down
Then I find a dead body
Gotta blow the horn, emergency discussion, who should we believe?
Can't decide, so, now we leave, not sure what I'm about to see
Will it be a dead body? Still have a task I must complete
Who's the impostеr?
Looking sus, who can we trust?
Who's the imposter?
Looking sus, who can wе trust?
Who's the imposter?
Looking sus, who can we trust?
Who's the imposter?
Looking sus, who can we trust?
I'm a ghost, I'm my biggest fear, got killed by the imposter
I was playing in the game, but now I'm just a watcher
I'm paying attention using my 360 vision
If it gets quiet, I listen
Make sure there's nothing I'm missing
Who's the imposter?
Looking sus, who can we trust?
Who's the imposter?
Looking sus, who can we trust?
Who's the imposter?
Looking sus, who can we trust?
Who's the imposter?
Looking sus, who can we trust?
It wasn't me (or me)
It definitely wasn't me
No one can be trusted because someone is lying
We still have tasks to do, so, let's split up so we can win
Everyone is sus so let this last round begin
There's an imposter among us
Trying to take something from us
We're still over here working
While she's just ghosting above us
Someone's under suspicion
Sabotaging our mission
Doing my task in the kitchen
Until I stop, look, and listen
Who's the imposter?
Looking sus, who can we trust?
Who's the imposter?
Looking sus, who can we trust?
Who's the imposter?
Looking sus, who can we trust?
Who's the imposter?
Looking sus, who can we trust?
I'm the I-M-P-O-S-T-E-R, that's me
While everyone's doing tasks, I'm going through vents on a killing spree
Yeah, I'm sus in Among Us
We can discuss whoever took your life
But if you think you're running this game, oh-yeah
That's me holding this knife
I'm the imposter
Looking sus, who can we trust?
I'm the imposter
Looking sus, who can we trust?
I'm the imposter
Looking sus, who can we trust?
I'm the imposter

ausma top 5 people on smogon oat you're 1 of the 2 people i respect fr

questions:


If you could take one aspect of the Pokémon games and change it, what would you change and how exactly would you change it? Are there any character designs that don't strike your fancy?

I know you love writing and contributing for OU in general, but what was your favourite analysis/post/anything OU-related thing you have done on this site?

Why on god's great green earth do you still listen to such song's as ♪ UNDERTALE THE MUSICAL - Animation Song Parody and Official Among Us In Real Life Official Music Video - Rebecca Zamolo Shorts... you knew this was coming.

and lastly, is it true that your among us K/D/A is world-famous?

hello top 1 user omicorio happy to accommodate

1: If you could take one aspect of the Pokémon games and change it, what would you change and how exactly would you change it? Are there any character designs that don't strike your fancy?

i think the big thing i would change about modern pokemon games are linearity, without a doubt. pokemon has always been historically very strong when it comes to artistic direction and making the universe as a whole feel lively and deep, but i feel like something it's always slouched on was impact, and a huge way we get impact in pokemon is by giving our adventure meaning. meaning, though, transcends story; there's a reason that every pokemon game is nostalgic to someone, and that's because every pokemon playthrough is a unique, personal experience. though, while i personally would love to see richer storylines a la pokemon black and white, i personally don't think that storylines are what define the pokemon experience, it's the adventure and what we find along the way. and, i won't lie: recent pokemon games have felt a bit lacking in that department. recent pokemon adventures have felt very, very linear with very little to explore outside of some tiny nooks and crannies. if we could get something more like black and white/platinum/hgss as far as optional game content and more flexible progression order, i think that personal impact we get from our pokemon adventures would feel even more meaningful, vastly improve replay value, and make the games feel far more fluid.

2: I know you love writing and contributing for OU in general, but what was your favourite analysis/post/anything OU-related thing you have done on this site?

this is such a hard question, i tried sitting on this for a while but truthfully, as much of a cop-out as it sounds, i feel like my favorite ou-related work on this site has to, simply, being a moderator/leader for the ou forums. i've always beyond valued being able to leave an impact toward communities i care about. aside from it being personally stimulating, it feels right for me as a person and as a contributor to be able to give newer members of our community the ability to feel heard and to express themselves freely, while helping them find their way and improve their work. i may not be a standout player or a standout contributor, but at the end of the day, i feel like my purpose/destiny here is to be a wayfinder and a supporter, and give people the outlets they need to become stronger players, contributors, and people. being a leader/moderator for the forum has let me do exactly that, and i am so happy i've had the opportunity to do so much for the ou community, and i look forward to being able to do more in the future, especially across the site if i can!

3: Why on god's great green earth do you still listen to such song's as ♪ UNDERTALE THE MUSICAL - Animation Song Parody and Official Among Us In Real Life Official Music Video - Rebecca Zamolo Shorts... you knew this was coming.

ok look they're catchy as FUCK, you listen to them for an hour straight each (s/o cleffa ) and it becomes an infectious disease that you cannot even hope to contain. omi i dare you to try and listen to eitehr one of these songs on loop while playing roblox, and then see just how SILLY i seem!!!

4: and lastly, is it true that your among us K/D/A is world-famous?

i would advise you tread your next steps very carefully madame

Eee, I was waiting for this interview! cx
Your art is always such a pleasure to see, ausma; every character you make is so expressive, and I genuinely wanted to say it upfront to you!!

Few questions for whenever you're free, fren :

• I (and a few others) know you're pretty into Persona (who can blame you :^)), but have you touched on SMT to any extent? Why or why not?
• Where did your famous "doing ur mom" phrase originate from?
• Is there anything you'd tell your younger self (say 5 years ago)? If so, what would it be?
• Which video game do you think has the best art style? (feel free to take this as vaguely or specific as you'd like)
• Another Art Trade when

hi kaiju!!!! hugely appreciate it, your work on this section is super inspiring and you're a super lovely person!!! ily queen

1: I (and a few others) know you're pretty into Persona (who can blame you :^)), but have you touched on SMT to any extent? Why or why not?

the interesting thing here is, i haven't actually! me exploring persona 5 was mostly as an impact of my brother peer pressuring me into playing the game, and... yeah i kind of got completely enamored. SMT as a whole though i admit i haven't really been anywhere near as versed in, but i have been wanting to take a stab at persona 4 golden and potentially persona 3 if i can get my hands on an emulator, college is just a bitch eheh. though i absolutely want to get more into it after how magical my experience with p5 was

2: Where did your famous "doing ur mom" phrase originate from?

i'm not gonna lie, it was a big off-handed joke i made with a friend group, and then i made it my custom tag one day on here and... it just kind of stuck???? like it's absolutely hilarious, it's comical to me how synonymous the phrase has become with my identity on the site but im all for it lmao

3: Is there anything you'd tell your younger self (say 5 years ago)? If so, what would it be?

this question resonates really deep with me, because my younger self was a drastically, drastically different person. i guarantee you if you saw young ausma you would not be able to discern them from the person i am today, and i mean that almost literally because i had a different online identity, was involved with a different community, and everything. though, i will not lie when i say old me was an incredibly scattered, desperate, lonely person, who didn't really know what they wanted and if they were a good person at all. ive made a lot of mistakes throughout my life, and i have a lot of regrets.

to answer this question, i would tell my younger self: "take your time", and "take action". pretty lame sounding i know (and plus funny persona reference aheheheh), but... if there was one thing you could do to characterize old me, it's that i rushed everything, and was desperate to get everything right and to be good at everything immediately, and i was terrified of everything. realistically, this isn't ever something you should expect of yourself, or anybody. growth, building self-esteem, and seeing eye-to-eye with yourself and your mistakes is not something that you can do overnight. i wish i was able to realize sooner just how badly i held myself and my feelings back, yet also be able to see how desperate i was to fix everything and be happy again. things are a bit better nowadays, but i will not lie when i say i wish i did things differently.

4: Which video game do you think has the best art style? (feel free to take this as vaguely or specific as you'd like)

god there are so many games with such captivating art styles. i can't decisively choose, but for me it's between 3 games: okami, persona 5, and splatoon. all three games have very distinct, incredible art styles that make them feel regal, flashy, badass, slick, or a combination of those. the fact they're all so distinct, though, i think is hugely what makes them feel so effective and memorable, and honestly all three have been huge inspirations for me when it's come down to exploring my art style and seeing what felt right for me as an artist!

5: Another Art Trade when

hmu :eyes:

 

[Tidal]

been waiting on this one for a bit, yes i have some questions for you!!

where do you draw inspiration from? both for character concepts and in general!

what's your favourite Pokemon from each type, and which Pokemon are your favourite to draw?

what are your thoughts on [Hyperlink Blocked] ?

Any games or shows you've been enjoying recently?

WHY DID YOU RESPOND TO THESE AT LIKE 2AM PLEASE GET SOME SLEEP GIRL

 

[MiniArchitect]

Hey ausma! This probably overlaps with Magnum's first question, but do you have any advice for designing original characters? Your designs are always so interesting, and I'd love to get a little more insight into your process for coming up with them.

 

[ausma]

Hey ausma! This probably overlaps with Magnum's first question, but do you have any advice for designing original characters? Your designs are always so interesting, and I'd love to get a little more insight into your process for coming up with them.

where do you draw inspiration from? both for character concepts and in general!

hey thanks to both of you for asking!!! this was something i really wanted to address that i wasn't able to; i'll answer both of these together because as miniarchitect said, both of these questions kiiinda fall into the same category, so two birds with one stone heh. in any case, i'll start simple by sort of explaining my character designing process, and sort of where my inspiration comes!

something i really wanna hammer home is that, at its core, my inspiration for character design actually comes from other, pre-existing forms of media. whether that's a character in concept i like or a design with components i like, my inspiration almost always comes from pre-existing things, and in general that's actually where the richest and most passionate of ideas spawn. there is no such thing as a fully original design or concept and i think it's ok to embrace that so long as you aren't copying things outright. more often than not i get this inspiration from existing characters, video games i've played, and shows i've watched. feel free to dip into your passions and let them dictate a bit of the process, if that makes sense. it makes the process way more fun and personal.

when it comes to the actual design process, the biggest advice i can give is to be deliberate. a lot of budding character designers, i've noticed, put a lot of emphasis on details without really thinking about what those details mean or why they're there. the best designs are memorable not just because they're "iconic", but because they are impactful and actually align with character's personality, motives, and history. a really good example i can give is jotaro kujo's part 3 design from jojo. he's a delinquent high schooler with a rebellious spirit and a cold, sharp exterior; and it reflects his design perfectly, i'd argue. another tip i can give is to not overthink things, and just have fun with the process. like i said, passion is key to the process; the moment you start to feel stressed, it's good to just step back and take a breather.

if you'd like tips about the character making process and want further elaboration on this, i wrote a big section on the oc central thread!!

what's your favourite Pokemon from each type, and which Pokemon are your favourite to draw?

what are your thoughts on [Hyperlink Blocked] ?

Any games or shows you've been enjoying recently?

WHY DID YOU RESPOND TO THESE AT LIKE 2AM PLEASE GET SOME SLEEP GIRL

what's your favourite Pokemon from each type, and which Pokemon are your favourite to draw?

ayte ok i came prepared

as for my favorite pokemon to draw; i love fluffy things a lot, but contrary to popular belief, my favorite pokemon to draw are the more angular, monster-like designs with complicated and unique shapes. something a lot of people don't know about me as an artist is that i'm super into monster and cryptid design on top of standard character design, and... that's another reason i love pokemon so much!!! so things like aegislash and golisopod which are some of my favorite pokemon are an absolute blast, then there are ofc things like primarina and delphox that are always a blast for me to play with (plus fluffy)

Any games or shows you've been enjoying recently?

school's been eating at my time so i haven't been able to do a lot, but before college started i 112%ed hollow knight and almost beat HK's pantheon 5, and as far as recent shows go i've really enjoyed infinity train, invincible, and legend of korra quite a bit. i'm hoping to play persona 4 golden/strikers, and watch squid game/amphibia over the next few weeks!!

what are your thoughts on [Hyperlink Blocked] ?

rick astley is definitely a big shot

WHY DID YOU RESPOND TO THESE AT LIKE 2AM PLEASE GET SOME SLEEP GIRL

my sleep schedule sucks and it is likely not going to be repaired anytime soon.

 

[Plague von Karma]

Two questions for the dark lord!

• What made you into le floof monster that can't be stopped?
• Do you have any of those weird thoughts that keep you up like an hour longer than you should?

 

[ausma]

Two questions for the dark lord!

• What made you into le floof monster that can't be stopped?
• Do you have any of those weird thoughts that keep you up like an hour longer than you should?

hello may, i may have answers

1: What made you into le floof monster that can't be stopped?

i grew fur and it kinda went downhill from there really

anyway honest answer, character designs do be corroding me, i've found furry characters to be inherently a lot more expressive because it's way easier to excuse throwing on patterns and you have a lot more room to play with shapes and colors without it feeling strange or offputting. i think from that point and me being really into things like night in the woods, zootopia, and undertale it just kind of led to me personally identifying more with fluffy things (that and i really really like cute and soft things don't judge me)

2: Do you have any of those weird thoughts that keep you up like an hour longer than you should?

constantly, a good amount of them are kinda sad and paranoia-based but there are also some like post/contribution/art/character ideas that get me super pumped and then i can't go to sleep LOL

 

[strawberry]

For November's arterview, we have Dharma joining us! You can check out his IG account here and his art thread here. Let's get to it and feel free to ask any additional questions you might have afterwards!

tiki: Hey Dharma! How would you introduce yourself to our studio regulars?

Dharma: Hey! I'm an animation student from India who recently found his passion for concept art. I work as a graphic designer at the moment, but I plan on applying for some game studios (especially Riot) as a concept artist once I feel confident enough in my skills. I enjoy making vector art because of the way it looks, and I think that's what led me to make a lot of logos for Smogon-related tours and projects. Aside from that, I'm a pretty chill dude. I play Valorant, LoL and Brawlhalla a lot. Hit me up if you want to play anything and if you're in the SEA region :)

tiki: Wishing you all the best with those goals. So first up, this is a really cool opportunity to talk a bit about animation, what made you want to pursue that field of study initially? The things you like about animating, the things you struggle with, anything you want to share with us about it really!

Dharma: I don't really know to be honest. I just know that I really wanted to get into the gaming or entertainment industry, which was further established when I ended up dropping out of engineering, and animation just seemed like a good place to start. I ended up going back to college to study it, but I didn't know what exactly I wanted to do just yet. A year into it though, I started playing League of Legends, and the art in the game blew my fucking mind and I immediately decided "I want to help make those", which is when I decided to try and be a concept artist. As far as animation goes though, I haven't put too much time into it, but some of the things I absolutely dreaded were turnarounds, and anatomy in general. I suppose any field would have its own difficult shit to learn, but what I can confidently tell you is that if you're interested in it, you'll be able to do well enough.

tiki: Gotcha. You mentioned you're working towards being a concept artist since that's your main interest at the moment, how has that been so far?

Dharma: To be honest, haven't made much progress as of yet xD I'm specialising in VFX in college and my work involves graphic design, both of which don't exactly help me in terms of concept art, so I'm struggling to find time to practice it. I'm hoping that once college ends in a few months, I'll have enough time to practice sketching. Fingers crossed.

tiki: How did you end up stumbling across Smogon?

Dharma: I remember back in 2015 I was replaying Emerald over and over again with a new team each time and I thought to myself "Man, I wanna shit on an actual person for a change" so I looked up "online Pokemon emulators" or something like that. Found Showdown, and eventually Smogon, and it's all been downhill good from there

tiki: How about Pokemon itself, when did you first get interested in the franchise?

Dharma: I was in the 1st grade at the time I think, I was at a Walmart with my dad and we were stocking up to shift states and I decided to pick up a GameBoy Advance and a copy of FireRed. Best decision of my life. Been a fan of the franchise ever since.

tiki: Back to art, you've done a bunch of logos over on Smogon. They're super sleek and clean, do you have any advice for those who are just starting out with digital art and want to try making something similar?

Dharma: I think the Workshop is a great place to start if you're a new artist, it'll help you get a hold of projects that don't have much pressure behind them while also forcing you to constantly improve. A big thing would also be to have a few artists that you look up to, it'll help you set a goal for yourself. I personally enjoy art by Breadboy, hanagaman, and Zracknel, though I don't know if their influence reflects in my art or not. My discord is usually open, @Dharma#1113, and I'd be glad to give people pointers anytime :)

tiki: Some sound advice. Do you have any other interests or hobbies you'd want to share with us?

Dharma: Well I remember back when I was a kid, I was really into roller skating, swimming, chess, and basketball. Those hobbies died down as I got older unfortunately, but I've been thinking about picking up skating again if I can find a rink near me.

tiki: Always good to keep up with some outdoor activities or sports! Is there anything else you might want to talk about that we haven't covered yet?

Dharma: I think we got most of it down, if anyone wants to ask me anything, artistic, personal, or anything really, drop by my discord!

tiki: Alright! As for the usual and most important question to finish it off, what's your favorite pokemon?

Dharma: Shit this is a hard one. If I had to name one which I would regret not choosing later, it would probably be Drapion. Purple is my favourite colour, scorpions are cool, Drapion looks dope. You do the math. Crawdaunt is a very close second tho. Hitting a Choice Band Adamant Adaptability Knock Off on something that switches in is one of the greatest feelings ever.

tiki: Good choice! Thanks for taking the time to answer these questions o/

Dharma: Thanks for having me :)

dharma's work

 

[Shadowshocker]

Well, this has been neglected for a bit, so I'm going to be uncreative and ask the same question I'd asked Architect.

Dharma, what was your most favourite work done for Smogon - team logo, article art, commission, etc. - and would you be able to take us through the design process, and why that work holds a favourite spot for you? (Personally I'm a fan of the Generation-Defining Mechanics art you did. Maybe it's because I recognise the Charizard as a reference to the sprite from Shuffle.)

 

[Dharma]

Well, this has been neglected for a bit, so I'm going to be uncreative and ask the same question I'd asked Architect.

Dharma, what was your most favourite work done for Smogon - team logo, article art, commission, etc. - and would you be able to take us through the design process, and why that work holds a favourite spot for you? (Personally I'm a fan of the Generation-Defining Mechanics art you did. Maybe it's because I recognise the Charizard as a reference to the sprite from Shuffle.)

hmm, that's a bit of a tough one tbh. If I had to choose one, it would prolly be the former logo for Team India's WCOP team that I made.

It was my first time actually making use of some of Illustrator's tools that I really should have known about before (like "Draw Inside" or "Offset Path"), and it was an absolute treat to work on, partly because I learned a lot while making this logo, and partly because I really wanted Team India to have their own unique identity among the other top teams.

Unfortunately I don't have the source files anymore to show you, but I'll do my best to tell you guys how I went about this. I used a screenshot of Mega Medicham from the anime for some help with the pose, as I wasn't exactly good at visualizing back then. From there I figured I needed to incorporate an Indian element into it, and using the Ashok Chakra from the flag as a sun seemed like the perfect thing to do, as India is a Hindu-dominant country (no offense to any of my non-Hindu brethren) and Hindu deities are often depicted with a sun behind their head.

Then comes the typeface. I had the just found out about this font called Samarkan, which has english letters that are designed to look like Hindi, which is font that was growing in popularity in Indian media.

From there, it was just about putting everything together. I used the colours of the Indian flag on the ribbons behind Mega Medi, made the chakra, used the flag colours on the text and gave it a bit of a skew, gave the entire thing an offset path (a thick outer border), and voila!