Today we interview Bolterfist! One of our contributors in THE FIRST FLAME.
Q: How did you get into making art and for how long have you been doing it?
I've been drawing since I was a kid, but I really have my grandma to thank for the fact I still am so passionate about art today. She's an incredible painter and has been nurturing and supporting my art as long as I can remember.
Q: What traditional media or digital program do you prefer to use and why?
I mostly use digital and CSP, but I dabble in traditional with ballpoint pen. CSP is affordable, works with a wide array of hardware (I use an UGEE), and is extremely capable and flexible. Highly recommend it, especially if you're looking for a Photoshop alternative that isn't a billion $$$$$$$$$$$$
Q: Do you mostly make fan art or are there original works you are also passionate about?
I make a lot of fan art, right now a big interest for me is Warhammer 40k/HH. Besides painting models a bit, I draw lots of art of my fanchapter, and maybe some comics in the future as well. I also like drawing art from my dnd campaign and I'm working on a story/comic with another artist.
Q: Is there any artist or art movement that inspires you? Which ones?
I really enjoy concept art, comics of all kinds, and renaissance sculpture.
Q: What would you say to someone who is willing to dedicate their life to art, but doesn’t take that step because of the risks?
If you've got the dedication
there's nothing to be afraid of. Practice, have patience, and utilize good networking skills and you'll be fine.
That said, I haven't and don't plan on entering the field of professional art, but there are some really friendly and amazing artists out there in professional fields that talk about their experiences publicly and offer advice they have for breaking into their field.
Q: What do you like about being an artist?
I can make anything I fuckin want!!!!!
Q: Show us some of your favorite artworks that you made and tell us why.
This was my first finished souls fanart. I had a profound experience with Laurentius' death that lead me down toward Ash Lake and ended up inspired the piece. I had a plan to make a series of prints similar in theme to this, but I haven't gotten around to it.
I'm relatively new to painting, digital or otherwise, and this is one of the first full paintings I've made.
Kentaro Miura's art really blows me away but this part in Berserk in particular I was really taken with.
Q: Where can we find more of your work? Are there any personal projects you would like to share?
Right now I post most of my art and doodles on my twitter: https://twitter.com/bolterfist and my finished works on artstation: https://www.artstation.com/bolterfist
I mentioned earlier that I'm working on a story/comic with a friend, so I'll take some time to talk about it. It's about a crew that does odd jobs/intergalactic cargo hauling. Think kind of a bebop/gintama/80's-90's scifi vibe. It's not to a point I can publish it online yet, but if that interests you at all, stick around! It's called Headspace.
Q: What order did you play the soulsborne games in? Which is your favorite?
Dark souls, Demon's souls, Bloodborne, Dark souls III. Dark souls and Bloodborne are my favourites. I still need to play DSII and Sekiro.
Q: When you got eaten by a mimic for the first time, what did you yell out loud?
“nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo”
Q: Any memorable Dark Souls gaming moments you'd like to share?
One of the most memorable parts of Dark Souls to me was the first time I entered the depths. You go from a wide outdoor area, seeing the sky, traversing castles, seeing drakes flying around, talkin to peeps... Then you open this door to just this dark, stale, dank, quiet spot and I remember getting the chills and thinking "Oh shit, I gotta go in there???" It's still one of my favourite spots in the game.
Get the zine at: 🔥 [ THE FIRST FLAME ] 🔥 info page
