Art War Champion - Bach Do

Art War Champion - Bach Do

The Art War is over and now it's time to celebrate the winners of this epic journey!

In this second interview, we chat with the Art War 2D 1st place winner himself, Bach Do. His champion "Yuuji Takeda" came on top to win the war for the Sci-fi team; we were excited to know more about his creator!

Have a look at the full interview below and have a look at some of his other amazing pieces.

Miscellaneous facts about Bach:

  • Average number of layers when you paint ➖ My regular painting nowadays usually takes up around 20 layers or so , but I've been experimenting with a new that takes up only 5 or 6
  • Inspirations ➖ Anime. So much anime, and most thing Japanese. Their culture just have something so dynamic to it doesn't it?
  • Coffee or tea ➖ Tea on a regular day but one would not mind a cup of the black stuff every now and then, especially loaded with condensed milk
  • Good habits ➖ I'm very efficient with my work and time management
  • Bad habits ➖ I bite my nails? lol, Well I might tend not to socialize much besides work
  • Favorite movies ➖ Your Name (kimi no na wa)
  • Favorite games ➖ Skyrim and Nier Automata
  • Favorite music while doing art ➖ K-pop, J-pop, Soviet marching scores (yes comrade)
  • Future goals ➖ At the moment is finishing my animation coarse at uni and get a decent place at a studio, preferably working on concept designs
  • How do you bounce back from a bad day ➖ Well I dont typically have a "bad day", just days when I get more done than others
  • What is a good day ➖ You can probably say that a good day is getting stuff done fast


Can you introduce yourself?

My name is Bach Do, with the correct full name placement being Do Lam Bach (Dough Lamb Back is the way to say it). I'm currently residing in the UK but my origin is Ho Chi Minh city, Vietnam and I am 100% Vietnamese. I'm currently working as a illustrator on Patreon while doing my BA on Animation at the Leeds College of Art (shameless plug in) here in Leeds, UK. Big time anime fan, foodie, pianist and aspiring home cook!

What got you into 2D art, when did it all start?

Well, its sort of cliche but literally it stated way back to when I was in kindergarten. Back then I would get obsessed with drawing little stickmen warzones, with planes and fighter jets and tank every and hundreds of stickmen everywhere on the paper, which would inspire to do more drawing later. After that, I had a brief moment where I was really into Sonic the hedgehog, so I began drawing fanarts of him, and what I would do is literally slap the paper on to my laptop screen and trace the pictures. I think this was actually the first form of training I got on doing characters and stuff like that. When I got to 8th grade, I start watching anime , and my passion for art just went through the roof. That's when I decided I wanted a career in doing art and the sort.

How did you get to the level you are at today? Did you study in any particular way you would recommend?

Training for me was literally just doing it over and over because before I got to the UK and study my A-levels. There was really no proper education for developing my art. There was the occasional art class during my secondary years, but it was for show mostly, you don't really learn much from it. So yeah literally just doing it and doing it. I would find a picture from an artist that I like, then I would try to mimic their style, after a couple of tries, I would then try to change it into something of my own, like adding more details, changing the lighting. I'd say it is the best way to practice practical skills like that, while leaving things like colour theory, compositions, perspective,... for schools to teach you, which in my A-levels I got to learn.

Why did you enter the Art War?

It was literally by chance that I came across a post on Facebook about the competition, and after checking out the prizes, I was pretty hooked. Also, it was like another chance to develop my skills, as well as demonstrating my ability in character design to myself and to any potential customers later on.

To come on top against hundreds of other contestants is an amazing feat, why do you think you did so well, and what are some things you would do differently?

I'd got to say I was really really lucky. If I had to nail it down, I think it would be because of the originality of the character, plus my painting styles that really touch on the small details, but I've seen entries on the list that would have outperformed me in both aspects so it's like 30% luck that I managed to get chosen. If there is one thing I could change, it was that I would have liked to give more time to work on the concept sheets, but at the time, I was doing my work for uni as well so I just couldn't hang around for too much.

Other than your own hard work, are there any particular things you can think of or people you can point to that helped you get to the level you are at today? Basically, is there anything you're thankful for?

My parents and family most definitely. Being the only son in an Asian family with all of them working in the aviation industry, it's kinda weird to then wanting to do art, especially with Vietnam's old folks still having a very conservative views on art being "something to do after you retired". But my family wasn't like that. They recognized my talent from an early age, providing me the chances to learn, and also supply me with literally everything that helped me got started digitally (My Mac and Wacoms ). And when the time comes that I decided I want to go study abroad, which is big decision in its own for us Vietnamese, let alone studying animation, they were supportive and provided me with all the funds I needed. So yeah, my parents are the core of my success right now, and I feel so lucky to have them.


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?

DO WHAT YOU LOVE AND DO IT A LOT. It's fine to go around buying the most expensive markers and tablets but it all comes down to the subject of what you drawing. Find an inspiration source, like an artist, or better yet, a piece of music, or animation or character or fandom that you enjoy and the do your art on it. After you done, share it, share it everywhere you could from Facebook to Reddit to Twitter. especially the areas where said fandom gather the most. You'll be surprised how much kick you get from just seeing people liking your paintings and commenting on it, which later makes up your fan-base that you can transfer to Patreon or do commissions for in order to create a revenue. But yes, draw what you love, and there's bound to be someone who would loves the same thing as you. Skills would come with time and passion. But if you are real serious, get into an art course and get the basics down.

What do you think the Art War experience taught you, and would you participate again next year if you could?

The Art War has been a fantastic experience which taught me a lot about documenting my processes and also provided me with a chance to develop my styles dramatically. It was also a good opportunity just to see the diverse skill range and styles of other professionals out there and just to learn form them. The prizes are like the icing on the cake. As for next year, we'll have to see, cause I'm pretty shit at environments but hey, that should not stop me from giving it a go, heck luck might be on my side again!

Any final thoughts? Anything you want to add?

I think this the most I've have typed since finishing my essays a month ago. Just like to say thanks to all the Cubebrush staff and sponsors for providing us with such a good opportunity to showcase our skills. Here's hoping that the next war would be even bigger with more people and prizes, and more work for you all to do! And to all the contestants that participated, cheers to you all and to another war I'm hoping to see y'all again!

Contact:

Email: [email protected]

Facebook: @100006404310229

Twitter: @Dishwasher1910

Website: dishwasher1910.deviantart.com