Art War 2 3D Winner- Antonio Esparza
Antonio Esparza is the FIRST PLACE winner in the 3D category of Art War 2 with Vri'el Lord of Time! Luckily, he answers some of our burning questions about his process in this great interview. Enjoy!
Biggest Inspiration When You Started as an Artist:
When I started in this Industry my Biggest inspiration was Anthony Jones. The creatures and characters that he creates inspired me a lot to start focus on painting, a year later I discovered zbrush, and the magic began.
Favorite Suite of Software When Working on 3D Characters (3D only):
Zbrush is my main software.
Coffee or Tea:
Coffee latte with two sugar teaspoons.
Good Habits:
Perseverance & dedication.
Worst Habit:
I usually take my work very seriously which actually makes me very stressed and I smoke...
Favorite Movies:
Terminator II, Matrix, Jurassic Park, Akira & SW Episode V.
Favorite Games:
Resistance: Fall of Man, God of War, Robinson the Journey.
Music While Doing Art:
I love to listen Deftones, APC, Foo Fighters, Stone Temple pilots, Former, Ruelle & Royal blood.
How to Bounce Back from a Bad Day:
A good meal, and think in other ideas for future work.
What is a Good Day:
No retopology on the horizon.
Favorite Quote:
"All the stories are fictions. What matters is which fiction you believe." Orson Scott Card. Children of the Mind.
Future Goals:
Make my own IP.
Can you introduce yourself?
My name is Antonio Esparza. I'm a 28 year old Character Artist and Concept Artist based in Murcia, Spain. Currently I work as a freelance Character/Prop artist, for CGbot and other companies. I've been using Zbrush and focusing on 3D characters since 2016. Two years of hard work later, I met many new friends, I got a motivating job and I still have the same desire to learn and create that the first day.
What got you into character art, when did it all start?
I was studying interior design. In my 3rd year, I went to show a crazy structure for practice to one of my teachers. His answer was something like: "This can not be done in real life, maybe some alien race can make it". Two weeks later I left the course and started drawing crazy alien stuff.
What influences were the most responsible for your current art style?
My biggest influences to this day are Pro Artists like David Muñoz Velazquez, Abner Marin, Milan Nikolic, Xavier Urrutia, Ben Erdt & Juan M. Puerta. Directors like Tim Miller and Guillermo del Toro. I'm also inspired by fellow artists like Pablo Mendoza, Daniel Mallada, Odin Fernandez and Pablo Dominguez.
How did you get to the level you are at today? Did you study in any particular way you would recommend?
I did a course that helped me to get started in 3D. After that, 15 hours per day in front of the computer, video tutorials, and asking for feedback to my friends and good artists on social media.
How did you begin the process of creating your piece? What was your inspiration?
I was inspired by games like Dark Souls Saga and artist like Stephen Oakley, Chris Cold and Timofey Stepanov. I wanted to create a "God of Time" and make a character like an hour glass mixed with a dark sense of titans and knights, so I started making some sketches in the early idea.
What was your biggest hurdle during the process? What did you do to overcome it?
Be faithful to the main idea during the entire process.
If you had to do it over would you do it differently? Why?
There is maybe just two things that I would like to change. The first one is to take more care on the details. And the second one is to make more readable the difference of the materials.
Why the light side? or Why the dark side?
Dark side because the dark entities seem to have more complicated stories to tell.
What do you think the Art War 2 challenge experience taught you, and would you participate again next year if you could?
I think it's a great experience to learn and create a good piece for your portfolio, as well as, make you known among great artists.
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Do you have any tips or advice for aspiring artists out there who might be looking to get to your level one day? What's your recipe for success?
We often think about "the cool tutorial", or a workflow that is going to give us a masterpiece in one week. But no. This field requires a lot of dedication and demands to be on the edge of innovation. So I say: “Stop whining and start working”. Invest all the time you can, practice and promote the student and professional integration of your zone. And above all, get around people in your city or in another part of the world that are interested in the same things as you. "Big dreams need hard work."
Any final thoughts?
Keep dreaming and make your own world, be nice with your teammates and don't let anyone step on you. See you all in the next Art War!
See more of Antonio's work here: