Interview with Valia Kapadai

Valia Kapadai is a Greek comic book artist affiliated with Marcosia Enterprises and Unseen Shadows. Her Books are available through her Big Cartel website:  http://valiumcomics.bigcartel.com/ After recently contacting her she was kind enough to answer some questions for me.

How did you meet writer Mo Ali and how did your collaboration (DreamCatcher) project start?

Three years ago (in October 2010), I wanted to draw a new short comic story, so I could take it with me to the Bristol Expo. So I tweeted that I was looking for a really short story, and Mo replied, almost immediately. Until then I didn't really know Mo, but he was a "fellow-survivor" of the Insomnia publications incident, so he was a contributor to the "Sleepless Phoenix" comic anthology, that I was also involved in, and he had collaborated with lots of other artists whom I knew. A few days later Mo sent me this "poem", divided into 24 pages, and he told me I could do anything I wanted with it. Unfortunately, life and other projects, didn't allow me to start drawing it until last November (2012), again for another convention, Thought Bubble. It was completed in less than two weeks, in the afternoons and really late nights since I also had a day-job, but it was printed on time for TB. The first self published edition is now sold-out, but we're hoping for a second printing in the future and hopefully we'll make more new issues in the future, since a big publisher expressed an interest in it. But that's just wishful thinking for now.

Do you have a particular “go to place” for wanting to meet and speak to writers, be it online or not?

My ideal "meet" place is always a great convention, mostly in the UK (because we only have one convention here in Athens, but most of my friends from abroad can't attend it.) I can only afford attending one or two conventions per year, though, so (although I hate to admit it) Facebook is a pretty decent online place to catch up with fellow artists and writers. I used to love DeviantArt so much for years, but unfortunately these last couple of years DA has changed for the worse, at least for me anyway, so I rarely spend any time there anymore.

Where did the idea of ‘Somewhat Damaged’ come from?

Last November I and my boyfriend, Pavlos Pavlidis, who is also an amazing comic artist, were invited to have a comic exhibition at the Athenian cafe/bar/gallery, Bartesera. Due to limited time, our initial idea was to show some of the older comic pages we had created, but since we wanted to make it more interesting for our friends, who had already seen most of our work anyway, we decided we should draw something new instead. I later suggested we should make two stories, one each, but with one joint ending, which we drew together (that was a bit tricky, but also fun), and so we did. The comic was also completed within a week or so. Since we both liked a lot, especially because it was somewhat based on our own relationship, and the "weird" format was also intriguing, we also decided to self publish a few mini comics of the story. This mini comic is also sold out.

In your short story ‘Gloomy Monday’, the panel boxes looked roughly lined and you had a textured background for the gutter, even for a coloured comics this seems unconventional. What was the reason behind this?

"Gloomy Monday" was part of my artistic "experiment" back in 2009-2010 of drawing one page per day, loosely based on my daily "adventures", but obviously much more exaggerated, funny and more "cartoony" than my usual comics. The colouring process of this story was an experiment as well, and I generally prefer my gutter backgrounds to be more complicated than just using a single colour. As for the roughly lined boxes, the reason is simple: I hate using rulers. Oh yes, I do.

With any sequential art the challenge to working professionally is all down to the speed that someone can work to, even great artist don’t do comics because of this reason. Do you have any advice to artist who really want to make comics but are sadly too slow?

Unfortunately, I honestly don't know what to suggest. I'm usually not that "slow", but that also depends on the comic I'm drawing (how interesting or difficult it is) and -most importantly- the mental state I'm in, while drawing. I guess the best way to draw faster, is the same old advice: practice, practice and practice. Make sure you feel as comfortable as possible too. I've finished most of my comics, including whole graphic novels, on my couch!! (although I don't really suggest that, I hear watercolour water residue on your pasta is not that healthy. Oh, but what do they know?!) If it's a project for a publisher you can also negotiate the deadline, usually the publishers are really nice about it, if you ask nicely.

What media do you use, including what you prefer to use as a canvas?

I consider myself a mixed media artist. I love experimenting. My usual artistic process involves watercolours, ballpoint pens, coloured pencils, brush pens and lots of digital editing and adjusting. Whatever I draw though, it'll start on a paper, with a pencil or even a pen. As of lately I really like to use lightly coloured papers, preferably thick enough to handle the watercolours. I always draw on a -relatively- small paper, A4 size. That may not be very professional, but huge papers intimidate me and, practically speaking, I'm unable to print any page layouts or scan the final page because I only have A4 sized printer/scanner.

Your work is sometimes done with a greyscale image first but coloured later correct? How do you do this and what is the benefit of such a method?

Actually that's the exception, although I've used this method - mostly when the original story was supposed to be printed in black& white - and then I added some colours for fun, or for another publication. The technical details are a bit too complicated to be explained here, but basically after I scan the b&w page, I use various great photoshop tools (such as the brush tool set in colour or in multiply; or the gradient maps, mostly for a limited palette). Again, I like to experiment with anything I can use, so filters, textures, various brushes etc, all become my digital "art tools" (and playground). This technique definitely has its benefits (better balance, interesting results), but I usually don't enjoy it as much as colouring traditionally.

 

Without naming anyone can you tell me about any unpleasant experiences with clients or projects that made you unhappy?

Back in 2001, as soon as I finished college, I got my first job as a comic artist. Being naive and clueless (and without internet) the deal I made was neither profitable for me nor very pleasant, but it was a valuable lesson. The worst experience I've had so far though, was the second comic I was hired to do. The contractor was neither a book/comic publisher, nor had any idea or love for comics. He just thought making a comic would be an easy, cheap way to make money. He was unbearable to work with and he had ridiculous expectations. This experience was so hectic, that I decided to quit making comics for others and took a hiatus for 5 years. Since I got back in 2008 I guess I've been really lucky, collaborating with some great writers and publishers. Unfortunately, mostly due to misunderstandings, I've also "lost" two friends during this time, which saddened me deeply, but life goes on.

Out of your work what are you most proud of and why?

That's a really difficult question. I invest so much on each story I draw (mentally, emotionally and physically), so every time I send in the final pages to the publisher I feel proud for finishing it, even though after a while I always wish I could have done it a bit different, a bit better... Some of the stories may also mean a little more to me, because they were made under "special" circumstances. But they're all my "babies" and it's really hard to choose one over another.

Can you talk about the work you have done with Unseen Shadows and explain how that company works?

Two years ago Barry Nugent contacted me asking me whether I'd like to draw a cover for the story "Fragments of Fate". A few months later he sent me another email asking me to collaborate with Cy Dethan and Nic Wilkinson (my partners in crime for "White Knuckle" a horror graphic novel published by Markosia) to drawing a short comic story which would be published in the "Tales of the Forgotten" anthology. I loved the story and I already had a great collaboration with Cy and Nic so I gladly jumped on board. I was recently asked to be involved in the next anthology, but due to personal reasons I had to drop out. Hopefully I'll be able to collaborate again with Barry and his talented crew of amazing writers and artists in the future. The Unseen Shadows project is a whole universe on its own, beyond comics, and I'm not the ideal person to talk about it, but you can check the Unseen Shadows website: http://unseenshadows.com

An Interview with Kev Crossley

I recently interviewed the charming and polite Kev Crossley very early this year to get some insight into the mind of a professional illustrator and get myself use to talking to talented types such as himself. He's known for his fantasy pictures of fairies, buxom elvish eared girls and dragons within their earthly and nature orientated worlds, he is usually a common sight in conventions around the UK. He has worked with game designers on such projects as Tomb Raider. If you want to skip what I asked him and see more of his work or contact him then just follow this link here: http://www.kevcrossley.com/ or here: http://kevcrossley.deviantart.com/ Also all images in this post is by Kev.

Jim:  How did you get into doing illustration?

Kev:  Through the harsh years of High School it was an essential way for me to develop a sense of self-worth. I was a small kid, an easy target from the council estate, but I learned that if you did something special with your time, people respected it, and enjoyed it, and seemed to see you in a different light. That’s why I kept drawing; it kept the other kids off my back for a few hours every week, but it gradually became my first Great Love in life, and I knew from early on that I never wanted to do anything else.

My first professional illustration work came along in 2002. After University I spent 2 years unemployed, during which time I did paintings of plants, animals, pets and portraits for people in between job-searching! This work helped me get a job as a level designer/ builder/ 2D texture artist for a video game studio in Sheffield, and during my time in that industry I made many friends and contacts. Seven years into my career someone introduced me to someone they knew who worked for a US Dungeons & Dragons gaming company, and that person like my pencil drawing enough to introduce me to one of their publishing clients. For that first job I was asked to design and draw 8 demon warriors, for £20 each. I spent up to 20 hours on each one! The detail I put in was insane, but that job led to others with numerous other publishers, and the snowball grew and grew. For 6 years I juggled my growing freelance work with a full time studio job as a videogame concept artist, but something had to break, and in 2008 I made the jump to being full time freelance! So, hard work, good contacts and word of mouth got me where I am today. Although, it really hasn’t been as easy as that makes it sound!

J:  Do you have an agent or do you prefer not to have a middle-man?
 

K:  I don’t have an agent, and not many artists I know have one! I’ve always represented myself, and it’s always been down to me to find the work! Not easy! That said I’ve recently begun working with a guy who I became friends with online, and through him I’ve had a few successful jobs that have worked out well. I’ve really enjoyed this new way of working, and it’s also introduced an extra level of human contact into my working days, something you can become starved of when freelancing from home!

J:  How would you describe your work environment? And given the choice would you prefer to work at a studio, in a company or at home?

 

k:  My work environment IS my home.  My wife goes to work, I take my son to school and I then get to work! I work in various rooms in the house, (digital stuff is only done in my studio though) and I sometimes go out into the countryside, find a nice spot under a tree by a stream and do some drawing there. I do miss working in an office environment sometimes, but I was always more naturally inclined to work better alone so it suits me fine!

 J:   What time of the day or night are you usually at your most productive?

  K:   I hate to say, I’m at my absolute creative best late at night and into the morning hours; between 11pm and 3am. That’s okay when you’re young and single and don’t have to get up early, but not so easy to maintain when you’re all grown up with all the responsibilities that come with that. However, I do still chase an idea if the ‘juices are flowing’, and frequently stay up late drawing, painting or writing!  This is one reason why discipline is important. I’ve had to learn to get used to working early in the day, when my mind seems less inclined to want to! There are all sorts of methods to do this of course, but the simplest way is picking up a pencil and making marks! (A stiff deadline works wonders too!)

 J:  What Media and tools do you currently use and consider your speciality and is there a conscious or aesthetic reason why you use such media other then it being simple for you to handle?

 K:   I use pencils, acrylics, watercolours, inks, gouache, Photoshop, photography. I’m particularly fond of pencil art, so I would say that is my speciality.

I work using methods that give me the most pleasure, which is why I persist with pencils. Certain software applications make bold claims about their capacity to ‘perfectly emulate’ the experience of drawing with a pencil, but they don’t, and never will. Pencils get blunt in different ways, they snap, then you can make marks with the shattered tip, they get shorter as you sharpen them, forcing you to alter your grip and adjust your mark making. That might seem a pointless statement to someone who might spend all their time drawing on a tablet, but if you spend as much time as I do with real pencils, you’ll understand how special they are, and how vast their range is. Also, the quality of the paper/ card/ canvas that you draw on makes a huge difference, and that tactile quality feeds back through the pencil, up your arm and into your brain, again influencing your technical decision making process which in turn alters the way you develop interactions between tool and paper. (or card/ canvas/ bit of wood!)
So, I love pencil art, but I approach every other media in the same way. I learn how to use it then experiment until I discover a technique that I can lose myself in, and gradually, all the nuances unique to that media are teased out. This has been true for Watercolours, Gouache, Photoshop and Acrylics.

 J:  Do you have a fond memory relating to your illustration work?

 

K:  My favourite memories I guess, are associated with my private commissions, or the live sketching I do for visitors to the conventions I attend. There is simply nothing so rewarding as the look on someone’s face when you hand over a drawing or painting or sketch they’ve asked you to do for them. To give such joy and pleasure to so many people has been one of the greatest aspects of my life, and it humbles as much as it invigorates.

Making Manga in the UK

I got in contact with Freelance illustrator Sonia Leong. (Through this link:  http://www.fyredrake.net/me.html  ) She works at Sweatdrop Studios which is known for making manga comics in the UK. I was surprised to find that she has no control over the translation of her manga comic work and leaves it to the ownership to handle how the product is seen overseas, she would still get royalties from any publishers outside the UK.

I believe she doesn’t have an agent, don’t quote me on that but she remains proof that having a strong inter-web presence does work well for job opportunities.   She told me that “Publicity is something that you have to peg away at on many fronts and it could take years for the results to roll in”.  She was also gracious enough to send me this very amusing link in regards to dealing with unpleasant clients and how it’s good to know the warning signs with experience: http://clientsfromhell.net/