The Critical Dimensions of a Gez Fry Illustration
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And music? What do you listen to when you create? You’re into drum
and bass -- would you agree that electronica makes especially good listening
when it comes to being creative and working since it is often wordless
and more about “feeling” than “thinking?” Is Tokyo
a good place to be for drum and bass fans?
Like many people, I don't think I could stay sane without music. I do always listen to it when drawing. In general, I'll listen to whatever I'm in the mood for rather than catering the music to the current job.
)
There
have been a couple of jobs where I've consciously made a pick that I thought
would be appropriate, though. One was the videogame for kids, which was
a fun story with a strong sense of friendship, about a young group of
rebels fighting an alien menace. I put my Rancid CD on because there's
a feeling of reckless camaraderie that comes through in their music and
I thought it would be perfect.
The other one was the picture called Winter. The character in
that image is listening to Guns ‘N’ Roses on her headphones,
and her number plate reads "G N' F’N' R," which stands
for... well, maybe you can figure it out. These are really silly little
details that most people looking at the picture won't notice, but they
make it a lot more fun for me to draw. Hopefully that shows through in
the final pic. I laughed at the thought of this character listening to
Guns ‘N’ Roses when she looks like a raver.
I do love drum and bass, but don't really listen to it when drawing --
or trance, or any dance music for that matter. I agree with you that it
should be the perfect music to draw to, but it never feels like it for
some reason -- it's much better when I'm with friends on a night out.
Tokyo is a great place to be for drum and bass, as the best U.K. DJs come
out here on tour quite a lot. It's the next best thing to going home!
How big are your speakers? How tolerant are the neighbors?
)
They're
Event ASP8 monitors. 560 watts. Not the most powerful in the world by
any means, but they do only sit about four feet away from my head...
The neighbours are extremely tolerant, but their dog is quite irritable
and especially dislikes Atreyu.
It sounds like you have a well-equipped studio. Photoshop and a Wacom tablet are your tools of choice these days, right? What was your preferred medium in the past? Do you think you’ll explore anything new in the near future?
I used to draw with a pencil and then ink my lines with India ink, brushes, and crow-quill nibs (mainly because that's how Joe Madureira and Tim Townsend worked). I've done quite a lot of experimenting and learning from mistakes since then and I'm getting closer to a process that's more personal. As for exploring new things in the near future, I think I've done enough fumbling around to last me a while, so I'm going to stick with what I'm most comfortable. That's not to say I don't want to try new things, but just not on the technical side -- more on the ideas and character side of things.
So you might experiment more with content. As is, I find your
style very refreshing. )
It’s
great to not be bombarded with in-your-face breasts and eight-pack abs.
Is bodily exaggeration something you intentionally avoid? How do you strike
such a perfect balance between realism and fantasy?
It's funny you mention this. I've recently been thinking about a more strongly stylized way of drawing. I mean, I'm really glad that you think my character designs look okay the way they are, but I think what they gain in restraint they may lose in punch. I was thinking about whose work really excites me, and it sort of hit me that all of my faves go for a more personal, and in some cases distorted, style. But they remain grounded in a solid knowledge of what it is they are actually distorting. So I'd like to develop in that direction, loosen up, and simplify. On the other hand, I'm always careful to be true to myself, so I'm not going to suddenly start drawing in a super-exaggerated way. You won't be seeing too many in-your-face breasts (well, maybe one or two… haha) or eight-packs.