The Fall/Winter Edition 2020

CRAIG MAHER

You’ve worked in a couple different genres with your clients. How did that evolve and was that an asset for you or a problem getting those clients?

When did you first think about art as something you wanted to do? Were you encouraged or discouraged by family, friends, teachers and mentors?

I thought of art as something I wanted to do every time I flipped through a comic book as a kid. Being in a very creative family with my father making furniture and carvings and my mother painting meant I was always encouraged.

Working figuratively allows me to tackle any genre whether it involves fantasy elements or not. So it's a pleasure for me to experiment and try something new. There is always a worry that your portfolio could be more focused, art directors like to know what they are getting. The solution is striving always to sharpen your skills and show consistency that way.

What kind of kid were you? Where did you grow up? What were your influences?

I grew up in the forest covered hills of the Hudson Valley in New York. I was a kid who was either out exploring the woods and climbing trees or inside reading comics books, just trying to see everything I could see. As I kept reading and added fantasy novels to the mix I was absolutely floored by Michael Whelan's covers to the Elric books by Michael Moorcock. Fantastic realism at its best!

How has the background you got at Joe Kubert School played a part in your career?

The Joe Kubert School's biggest influence was exposing me to artists. Fellow students who loved what I loved too, teachers showing their personal work and talent and everyone sharing their favorite artists present and past. It was the trunk that helped me branch out to the whole world of illustration beyond comics.

How do you stay up to date on styles and process outside of your projects? What do you recommend to younger artists who are just developing their portfolios?

I think it's best to follow what you like always. It's artificial to try and identify what's popular or current and your attempts at it won't rival the pioneers. Fuse what you love into your own mix and pour your effort into that. That said, it can be a great idea to look at parallel arts and see what you can take, put some fashion into fantasy art, or some design into your illustration.

You do so many different types of art and design. What is your favorite area to work in?

Using all the realism I can and bringing those skills into fantastic, mythic, iconic subjects will always be the most fun for me.

Can you explain what the experience of working on gaming projects is all about?

Gaming projects are most often set in a "world". A

style sheet may set the tone or you may just be expected to know the settings and styles from previous products. Your assignment will be to bring to life a personality, a creature/monster or a distinctive setting in that world. But from there it is up to you to bring all the power, beauty and "cool" you can to your subject. You are still working with an art director and need to follow their input closely on essential things to include, weapons, armor, even color schemes often important to represent their faction in the game. But you are often hired because your art fits their game's style and in the best cases you use that to help bring their world to life.

Your fantasy artwork is great. Love the “Tread” piece. How did that end up as something you do a lot of ?

My portfolio is created with that goal, fantasy art. But I think there is room for personal pieces, like "Tread" when they push in the same direction and use the same techniques. Again, art directors like focused portfolios and like to be confident in what sort of art they will receive from you but all that focus will run stale if you don't sometimes push your personal vision where it leads you.