"The city is a giant melting pot of different looks and cultures..."

Production Closeup #6: Featured Artists

In our Production Closeup series of monthly features, Malhavoc's editorial honcho Sue goes behind the scenes with some of the creative folks who helped me express my vision for Ptolus. This month she speaks with four of our terrific featured artists.

We knew going into the project that we wanted Ptolus to be a striking book visually. A 672-page full-color book is nothing without excellent artwork. Fortunately, Ptolus wasn't our first book. Over the years, we'd developed a good relationship with a number of fabulous artists. Michael Phillippi worked with us in Arcana Evolved, providing some wonderful interiors, and he's worked with Sword & Sorcery on some of my favorite covers of theirs. Jason Engle also did a number of color pieces for us in Arcana Evolved; his distinctive character style and color palette blended right into my vision for Ptolus. Eric Lofgren has worked with us for quite some time and has done some of our best interior artwork. I particularly liked his work in Chaositech, so it was natural to involve him with Ptolus. Michael Komarck (who, sadly, was not available to participate in this interview) has given us some astonishing interiors and a couple wonderful covers in the past; the Spell Treasury's cover still blows me away. Howard Lyon is a new artist for us, but we enjoyed working with him so much that he provided the most artwork for Ptolus of any single artist. He's also doing the sketches that the sculptors use as a basis for Paizo Publishing's Ptolus miniatures. We are extremely privileged to work with these extraordinarily talented guys. --Monte

Interviewed Artists

Jason Engle began an art career in commercial design at the age of eighteen. He switched careers to pursue his lifelong ambition of creating fantasy art professionally. Since then he has found work in every corner of the industry and has produced art for some of the biggest games, entertainment companies, and licenses the world over.

A native of Western Canada, Eric Lofgren lives there still. The road to his commercial illustration career has been long and varied, including two years in a commercial sign shop, ten years running his own sign business, and several years working as a tattoo artist and digital retoucher of photographs. He has been a full-time illustrator for five years.

Howard Lyon studied Illustration at Brigham Young University. For the last 11 years he has been working as an art director in the video game industry and as a freelance illustrator. Howard's work has been published internationally and has been shown in galleries around the Southwest. At the moment, he is chained to his desk, deep in his art cave.

Michael Phillippi has worked as a graphic designer and illustrator for almost ten years. After receiving his MFA in illustration, he taught at the Savannah College of Art & Design before becoming a concept artist for Mythic Entertainment's Warhammer Online game. In between freelance art jobs he flies kites and explores.

Well, as Monte says, it's a long book with a lot of great artwork. So naturally we have a correspondingly long interview for you this month as we introduce you to the artists who make the characters and creatures of Ptolus come alive. I know I learned a lot in the course of conducting this interview -- I hope you will, too.

Sue Weinlein Cook: As an artist, what do you need to know before you begin work on a project -- especially a large one such as Ptolus that has multiple artists at work?

Eric Lofgren: I think knowing the backstory of any particular setting before beginning any illustration work where numerous illos are being requested is important.

Jason Engle: I need to know what kind of theme the book is shooting for, what's unique, what isn't, and the overall concept. And any reference materials, style guides, etc.

Eric: It's nice to know that there are multiple artists also at work on the same setting. With that knowledge I think an artist does try and do the very best he can do to ensure that his own work adds to the overall visual impact of the book that includes so many other talented people.

Jason: I also like to see a lot of detail in the art request, which can give me a better picture of what kind of look the client is trying to achieve.

Michael Phillippi: Well, here is where I get to sound truly mercenary... my first questions are almost always; what is the deadline, how is your contract worded, what is the pay, and who is the art director I will be working with?

After all that, I ask about the specifics of the project like what the subject matter is, storyline, type of illustrations they want me to do (portraits, big complicated scenes, etc.) and the direction they are looking to take the illustrations.

Sue: Did you have a particular atmosphere in mind for your Ptolus pieces, or some other starting point you used for the illustrations you created for this book?

Jason: I knew it was going to be a city book and, based off the number of images I'd been offered, a really large one. So I tried to illustrate a lot of the different elements with a slightly urban feel, while maintaining a kind of classic fantasy theme. The nice thing about it being such a detailed project is that the city is a giant melting pot of different looks and cultures.

Howard Lyon: I tried to give my illustrations a certain amount of authenticity and "lived-in" feel. The characters may look like someone you know or have seen, and the environments should look like people have lived there for generations before this point and will go on existing long after we close the pages of the book. There are bits of debris around, clothes that have seen battle or the wilderness and have patches and wear, and the bold have scars.

Michael: The main thing I remember about those particular illos was trying to do something different from my past work with the transition of illustration to page. It's actually one of the challenges I like about interior work: trying to figure out how a vignette illustration could work with the overall composition of the page layout. It's more freeing and challenging than the usual rectangular format.

Eric: I was mindful that Ptolus was a well-established world, and to that end I wanted to try and capture a little of my own sense of that world running through everything that I did.

Sue: In RPG books, the writing usually is done before you begin creating the illustrations. Does that ever make things difficult or limiting for you?

Michael: It depends... on some jobs the writing is not only done, but the company has already decided exactly what they feel the illustration must be, which can be difficult and sometimes discouraging. On the other hand, I quite enjoy when a company provides the text that I am to illustrate but lets me figure out my own answer to how to communicate visually what the text is talking about.

Howard: As an illustrator, there is an expectation that you are going to try and create an image around a narrative or caption. If the writing is good, and it certainly was for Ptolus, it will often trigger visuals that I wouldn't have come up with on my own.

Eric: If anything, it's probably more beneficial to have the writing done first and then base all illo chores off of that material.

Jason: And the client knows exactly what pieces are needed, and for specific reasons, which is always nice. When a client hands me an art request filled with random fantasy images, utterly disconnected from the text and simply involving "guys with swords looking heroic," it's not very inspiring. But when they hand me something they obviously put some time and thought into, I can really feel like I'm illustrating a book the way it should be done.

Sue: Does that mean that you would rather have a lot of direction on RPG projects, to enable you to match the author's vision, or do you like as much free rein as you can get?

Howard: Tough question. I would probably lean towards free rein, but when the direction is good, I recognize that the end result will be something that probably wouldn't have developed if I had complete free rein, and that is exciting. There is a blending of ideas and experiences between the writer, the art director and the illustrator that results in something greater than the three of them could have come up with on their own.

Michael: It depends on the art director. Few things are as frustrating as having "total freedom" promised and then, after the fifth or so sketch revision/redraw, having the art director finally admit that what they really want is "this."

Eric: I actually like as much direction as possible. The way I see it before I'm even approached to do any illustrations for an RPG, a lot of thought has already gone into the creation of the world and the detail within it. So when it comes to the point of illustrating it, I would prefer to get the full view of those involved in its initial creation on what they think the world might look like.

Jason: When the author has a very clear and unique vision of what he wants, I like a lot of direction so the art can match the concept as well as possible. However, quite a few of my clients have had an already established world and concept that's been illustrated in many different ways, and they are simply looking to reinforce those themes with a fresh perspective. That's when I like to have a lot of freedom in the concept stage.

Michael: The more latitude I have, the higher my enthusiasm for the project will be, because I am getting to push myself. Hence, the odds are I will produce a better piece in the end because I have more invested in it. At least, that's the theory, anyway

Sue: Howard, you did quite an amazing amount of work on this book -- about 25 pages of art!

Howard: There were a lot of illustrations! I think I did more than 70 individual images!

Sue: What's your secret for maintaining quality and imagination with such a large project?

Howard: I try to be as organized as possible so that I don't get overwhelmed with all the work and take each image on its own. There is enough of a perfectionist in me (I think there has to be, if you are going to work at home on your own) that I really can't stand to do something halfway. I tried to approach each piece, whether it be a half-page or a spot illustration, with the same focus.

Sue: Yes, the Ptolus book has the full range of art sizes, from tiny spots and one-sixth page pieces all the way up to full-pages. But most of them were half and quarter page pieces. Is it difficult to portray action and excitement in a small space like that while still including enough detail?

Jason: In a word: yep. When the image is unusually small either in width or height, a level of detail is lost no matter what. But this can actually be used to your advantage, as giving more detail to the focal points of an image and less detail to other elements can lead the eye just as well as a strong background composition ordinarily would in a full page image.

Eric: I quite often prefer the confines of small illustration spaces. The challenges in layout that it offers I find enjoyable to try and work out.

Michael: Action and movement are some of the hardest things to communicate in an illustration. In my opinion, there are very few illustrators that do it well, and a lot of them work in comics. Phil Hale is who immediately pops to mind as someone who is great at communicating movement and potential energy.

Eric: When I was younger I always wanted to be a comic book artist and I got used to capturing those fleeting moments in those small little panels as you might find in a comic. So for me, when I approach a small illustration I really just try and do up a quick thumbnail that recalls a comic book panel which strikes a nice balance between action, if any, and the requisite detail needed in the piece.

Sue: How do the rest of you approach that challenge of communicating action, especially in small pieces?

Michael: It is something that I am consciously trying to improve on in my own work. So far, the best approach I have found for it is to do as many loose and quick thumbnails as possible. Communicating movement and action is largely (not completely, though) a function of composition, and trying out a lot of different compositions before starting the final sketch allows you to maximize the potential of the illustration.

Howard: On the smaller pieces, I spend a little more time emphasizing the shapes and values. If I am working digitally, I will often zoom out, the equivalent of stepping away from the easel to get a look from across the room, and make sure that the image reads well at a small size. That is the key, to get the image to read at a glance, at the size intended. After that, the details will provide an added level of interest.

Sue: From small spaces, I want to switch gears to talk briefly about large spaces. Jason, you did a couple lovely illustrations that each run across an entire double-page spread: a typical street scene and the interior of the Ghostly Minstrel tavern.

Jason: Those two scenes were two inches tall by fifteen inches wide!

Sue: So that sort of wide angle was a rather unusual request . . .

Jason: One of the tools artists use to give images interest, or reinforce perspectives or action, is composition. This kind of unusual size forces an artist to rethink composition on a basic level and use things like stacking background elements, varying levels of detail, value, and color to take the place of strong unifying shapes. Which is to say, yeah, it was a challenge. ;) But they turned out well and provide a kind of "wide-angle lens," so it feels like you're seeing the entire room at once, which I thought was pretty cool.

Inside the Ghostly Minstrel by Jason Engle

Sue: When being introduced to a concept, rule, character, item, or place, a reader generally forms something of a picture of it in his head. How do you make your illustrations fit or even exceed the reader's expectations?

Michael: For me, I go through the description with a highlighter and generate a list of key elements that need to be in the illustration that will communicate to me at least what the core of the text is describing. After that, I attempt to insert some kind of emotion, or if there are characters in the piece, acting to hopefully communicate a personality that the viewer can empathize with.

Howard: Hopefully the illustration will help to form that image for the readers, even if it is after they have already read the description, when they come to the image, it may push their vision a little further or alter it. If it is a well-painted image, I think it can do that. So even if there is a preconception, even a well-established one, it can be recast with a good image.

I bet this happened for a lot of people with The Lord of the Rings. Many fans who had read the books long before the movies and had this rich visual encyclopedia of all the characters and locations now probably have a hard time thinking of Gollum, Gandalf, or Frodo without bringing up the visuals from the movie. I think this will be the case until someday when someone else comes up with another definitive look.

This is the same in the case of Ptolus, even if they have just formed their own image: If the illustration works well, it will help to redefine that look.

Jason: I try to imagine the character in as literal a way as possible, following the flavor text to the letter, and I usually get a pretty clear picture immediately. I guess I don't necessarily try to match people's expectations per se, but more hope their expectations line up with what my imagination has supplied to go along with the text.

Sue: Jason, you did quite a lot of character portraits for Ptolus. How do you approach the job of creating the "face" of an important NPC?

Jason: A lot of the fun of developing character art is integrating pose, costuming, and facial expression into the character's personality. I never use photo shoots or models, as it tends to slow down the process and simply add additional steps. I think realism is important, but evoking a specific personality is the most important thing about illustrating characters.

Sue: On the topic of realism, what's more important in fantasy art: creating a sense of quasi-realism or creating a particular "fantastic" mood?

Jason: There is a wide range of opinions on this one, both of fans and artists working in the field. My personal opinion comes from my days as a marketing designer. I tend to look at art as both telling a story, but also having a very defined visual goal, and that is to either add excitement to a product or advertise what's inside a product.

With this in mind, a level of believability is certainly necessary, but pure visual impact is usually a combination of realism and more fantastic elements. Sometimes perfect realism is quite impressive on a technical level, but doesn't stop people in their tracks in quite the same way as a character that is impossibly heroic, wielding impossible weapons, and doing impossible things. I try to strike that balance as well as I can, with emphasis leaning towards realism or fantasy depending on the product.

Eric: I always used to describe fantasy art as trying to make "the unreal real." I still beat to that drum, but I think leaving a stronger impression of the fantastic over a strong sense of reality is probably more important.

Howard: It is probably more important to create a fantastic mood, but sometimes it takes a degree of realism to sell it. If I painted some huge and ferocious dragon and the wings didn't look like they could come close to supporting it, [that] would distract from the overall effect. So there is certain element of realism that is necessary to draw in the viewers and not get them hung up on any one aspect of the painting.

Sue: Is it important to make a character or monster look as if it could exist in the real world?

Howard: If I am going to paint a monster that lives in a swamp, I will look for reference from animals that live in swamps in our world. I will draw from other sources as well, but there are certain realities and preconceptions that it helps to be aware of when you are making something fantastic.

Michael: A pet peeve of mine is the "frankensteined" monster [in which] there is no remote possibility, with my basic understanding of science and physics, that it could function. To some extent it is a necessary evil and there is always the "magic" defense, but if you want to get my attention and interest, it needs to look cool and be functional.

Sue: So, do all of you have a favorite from among the illustrations you did for Ptolus?

The artists' favorites. For larger versions, see our new art gallery!

Jason: Oh yeah, the Ghoul Worm. Ever since I saw the updated Third Edition design for the purple worms, I wanted to draw one, but never got a chance. And when I finally got that chance, it was an undead purple worm no less! That's hard to beat! Plus I really liked the concept, creepy and cool at the same time.

Howard: I think it would be either the Dockmaster or the Inverted Pyramid Wizard. The Dockmaster was fun because he is so grotesque -- the kid in me still gets a kick out of that kind of stuff, I suppose. Who wouldn't have fun painting such a miserable beast with his rolls of fat and his greasy hair! The Inverted Pyramid Wizard just seemed to come together. Most of the illustrations here were done at a pretty fast rate, two or three a day, but for this one, I had to take the rest of the day to wrap it up and add in the detail that it was crying out for. There is a grace to the lines that doesn't always come easy, that came together for this one.

Michael: I'd have to go with Sir Beck and Phadian Gess. I enjoy doing costume design, and that was my purest opportunity to do that.

Eric: Singling out a favorite illo is always tough. But there is one I did for Ptolus that really made me feel satisfied. It's the Thief Above Swordthrower's illustration, which depicts a thief crouching in the upstairs window of a tavern. The point of view is looking down from just above his head, looking down at the ground below. The perspective issues alone in that one drove me crazy, not to mention trying to impart a strong sense of depth, accurate anatomy, and feeling of "place." Add on top of that the fact that it's raining as well, and the stew of complexity was profound. In the end it was a real challenge for me to pull off and I was extremely happy with the result.

Sue: Eric, you created all the heraldry for the noble houses and organizations of Ptolus. How did you approach that part of the project?

Eric: I've always had an interest in straight graphic work such as logos, and I've always seen heraldry in a similar fashion, looking at them as very extravagant logo designs. So that was basically my approach to designing them: taking the initial descriptions of each and then assembling them into a nice strong graphic presentation. I did utilize some actual heraldry references to get the basics as accurate as possible. But from there I just went with what I felt would look the best.

Sue: Switching topics a moment: Are all of you gamers yourselves?

Jason: You bet. When I actually have the time, which is sadly pretty rare these days.

Eric: When I was younger, yes. We roleplayed quite often with AD&D -- Keep on the Borderlands, White Plume Mountain, and all that. And more recently, a friend of mine, myself, and my two oldest kids have been getting into it a bit as well, as a sort of an introduction to the kids of the enjoyment to be had using only your imagination. In this modern age of virtual digital gaming I think things like tabletop RPGs can provide important examples of simplicity and show younger kids what sort of entertainment is still available with nothing than a module, dice, some graph paper, and a pencil.
Howard: I grew up on D&D, Elmore, Parkinson, and Easley. I used to make a lot of my own games and probably spent more time drawing my character portraits that anything else. I loved to DM as well. Then I started working in the video game industry, and my focus shifted a little. Now, as a freelance artist, my biggest passion is art and becoming better. If I have extra time I am usually going to be painting. I play now and then, but I could only call myself a gamer based on my youth.

Michael: I have a group of friends that I have known since high school that, when I am back in my hometown, I will game with. I guess you could say I am an occasional gamer. Well, every now and than I get sucked back into playing Magic: the Gathering because I like the strategy and all the purdy pictures.

Sue: Have you ever used something in your own game that you have illustrated?

Jason: Well, I grew up illustrating places, characters, and objects from my gaming sessions. On the rare occasion I would game master a session myself, I would spend weeks illustrating every character and mapping every location with painstaking detail. I think a lot of that enthusiasm for the development of gaming material is one of the reasons I'm in the business today. And these days, when I do find time to game, I always end up drawing everyone's character sooner or later anyway. Even though it's my day job, I still enjoy bringing as much visual representation to the gaming table as possible.

Michael: I've had my work show up in games I've played.... it just makes me very self-conscious. I'm not a fan of my own work, and I just get hyper-critical when I stumble on an old piece and my friends, being my friends, they know I'm like that and take full advantage of how uncomfortable it makes me.... That's what friends are for... :p

Sue: Do you all have favorite subjects to depict, such as monsters, or characters, or magic?

Jason: Anything that's either really heroic or really nasty. I like to illustrate fantasy with as much visual impact as possible, and more extreme subject matter lends itself to that kind of style a lot easier.

Eric: Definitely monsters, then characters. But if I could spend my days just letting the old imagination go and create nothing but fantastic creatures, I'd be a happy illustrator.

Michael: I'm rather predictable... monsters and characters. Magic generally gets me beating my head against the wall... I have yet to create a magic effect that looks cool, in my opinion.

Howard: I love to paint beautiful things, and that can be a landscape, a character, or even a monster. I try to find the proportions and lines that will be pleasing to the viewer. I love to design the space that the illustration takes place in as much as anything. Part of the thrill of creating art is that you often get to design everything from the dress or armor to the jewelry and boots. I try to notice good design anywhere I go and take pictures or develop a mental note and apply it to my art. It almost doesn't matter what the subject is, if I approach it this way.

Sue: Howard, you're working now on designs for Paizo's Ptolus miniatures. How does that differ from your work for the book itself?

Howard: They are a little more technical, in that you are trying to create an interesting design with some motion to it, but within the limitations that are set by the fact that this will need to be sculpted and then cast in a mold. I am also only doing line drawings for those, and I will do a front and back view for the sculptor. Apart from that, the goal is still to create an interesting character that helps to define the Ptolus universe; hopefully I have been able to do that.

Sue: What's your latest project, everyone?

Michael: My main project is as Concept Artist on the Warhammer Age of Reckoning MMORPG being produced by Mythic Entertainment. It should be out sometime in 2007. I'll actually be attending San Diego ComicCon and GenCon as part of the Mythic crew doing demos of the game, so if anyone wants to come by and say "Hi," feel free. :)

On the freelance front, I'm currently working on a large illustration for D&D and a couple Magic cards for next year's expansion set. Since taking the concept position at Mythic last year, my freelancing has been significantly curtailed, but I still try to pick up jobs here and there.

Eric: Right now I'm working for Green Ronin, as well as doing work for Morrigan Press and Goodman Games. And I have a running contract producing work for AEG's Warlord and Legend of the Five Rings CCGs, as well as White Wolf's Vampire: The Eternal Struggle CCG.

Jason: Even as I write this, I'm finishing up the new set of Fantastic Locations battle maps. I've started branching out into a very illustrated form of cartography in the last couple years, and it has really allowed me to put a lot of my brief experience in the video game development world to use, and flex certain artistic muscles that I haven't used since I was developing my own homebrew game worlds as a kid.

Howard: Right now I am working on some illustrations for White Silver Publishing, several paintings for Wizards of the Coast, a cover and interiors for the second Of Mice and Magic book, some concepts for a video game company, and an oil painting commission, which is why I don't get much sleep. I also have another round of miniatures coming up before too long.

Going to Gen Con Indy? You can meet these fabulous artists on Sunday, August 13, from 11 am to noon at the White Wolf/Sword & Sorcery booth in the Exhibit Hall. Many members of Pteam Ptolus will be there, including Jason, Eric, Howard, Michael, cartographer Ed Bourelle -- and Monte and Sue, of course.

To secure your copy, you can preorder Ptolus now and receive special benefits!

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