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Q1: Before you introduce yourself and the type of work you are in, can you possibly share what we missed out on from your progress in 2011, events, commissions, projects etc?
A: My name is Thom Chiaramonte, and Third Rail Design Lab is my publishing entity. I do comic art, character design, and commercial design work under the TRDL banner, though 2011 was an uneven year for me in terms of production: The tail end of the year my second child was born, which slowed my progress on art projects, but overall, it was a busy year. I released the fourth chapter of my ongoing graphic serial, Finit-e. I also completed a number of client commissions, not only commercial design but mainstream comic art requests and a number of character design projects, which are my favorite of the bunch. All told, I released 88 single illustrations and pin-ups, including mainstream character art done for a weekly art challenge I host on my site, as well as contributions to my pin-up series, Third Rail Thrills. I was also featured in an article on Comics Alliance and included in a collection of work published on iO9, so that was pretty swell. Behind the scenes, I have been working on the new editions of the TRDL Source books, which are world-builder resources for RPG campaigns, set in an collective universe, with interwoven origins and universal stats for easy conversion to various game formats. I haven’t had much time to breathe!
As far as what I do, my TRDL work is focused in a few different areas: We have the TRDL Source books, which I talked about above, set in the superhero genre. The FInit-e graphic serial is more of an espionage thriller, or at least appears to be at this point in the story. I do fan art and original design for both mainstream and creator-owned characters, both as commission work and for amusement. I have a few art series that i add to over time, the most popular of which being Third Rail Thrills, which is a pin-up girl illustration collection inspired by good girl pinups of the 30s-60s but with contemporary subject matter from comics, film, what have you. I also do a selection of private commission projects in other genres as well as logo and mascot design for a few companies.
Q2: When did you realize your art was important, that your art was what you wanted to do, did anyone influence you, existing digital or traditional artists?
A: I’ve been drawing since I was very young, around three or so. My parents were graphic artists, so I was surrounded by the tools of the trade and encouraged to explore my own artistic expression as much as possible. It was never really a question: I’ve had a pencil or stylus in my hand my entire life, and have taken great comfort in the satisfaction of creative outlet through art at times when life was otherwise difficult. I was influenced by my parents, absolutely, being surrounded by their work and the artist environment at home. Growing up I was neck-deep in comics, so certain artists jumped out at me as well as characters or stories that were general influences. As a kid, I was all about John Byrne! His work was everywhere and really exciting. As I got older, I would probably point to Masamune Shirow, for technical illustration and world-building design; Greg Rucka, for his ability to weave espionage, drama and comic formats together in a successful marriage, and Mike Mignola, whose character design and strong compositions and ink work taught me much about the less-is-more principle. Outside of comics, I was inspired by the work of Syd Meade, and very interested in the idea of being an world building designer: where everything from the characters to the design language of the costuming to the setting in which they interacted, were all part of a cohesive vision. My interests in his work in film led me to architecture school to get some experience before trying my hand at set design for film, and while I ended up becoming an architect instead, I took those same ideas to heart when creating the TRDL Universe and the Source books, which are absolutely a top-to-bottom world building exercise.
Q3: Can you explain what your main tools are in creating your art?, and also would you encourage others to update their equipment or master what they have before taking on something new – is the need to update equipment or software programs important in order to producing art?
A: Updating the tools of the trade is of absolutely no consequence in and of itself when working in a vacuum. I’m far more interested in the idea that technology allows artists to expand their own versatility and skill sets however they desire. But the race to use the newest tools and techniques is one I saw as a lost cause long ago. For example, I worked with computer rendering years ago when the industry was fairly new, from using computer programs (Mac paint, Photoshop) to digitally draw and color 2D work, to using 3D applications in architecture (what we call Object Based Design)… and as I would struggle to remain competent on the tools I learned and keep up on the emerging techniques in both industries, the younger designers were using these resources in school, and were producing amazing work before entering the workforce. The younger crows will always have a leg up as far as contemporary tools go.For me, it’s more about exploring what kind of work you want to do, and then building your competency around the tools necessary to get there, regardless of what might be the hottest app on the market or style in the funny books. That exploration phase is critical, and in my mind, never stops. But in architecture, as well as in illustration, i fear that people race to the glittery new tools without having a foundation in basic principles or the history of their trades. I know I struggle with that myself.
These days, the majority of my art is produced by hand in pencil first, then scanned at high resolution, printed in blue line onto a heavy stock called #234 from Borden & Riley, inked with Micron pens, and then rescanned for digital color in Photoshop using an Intuos tablet. I work on a Macbook Pro, and this year I finally bought a 21″ Cintiq display, and have been doing more and more digital inking as well as rendering directly on screen with it, when time and schedule permit. For the sequential art work, I also use Illustrator for text, balloons, page set-up, and so on. Overall, though, I’m a digital stylus guy when it comes to putting the illustrations together, and am very comfortable with those tools.
Q4: Everyone endures a long or short process of learning and adapting, as well as the ability of mixing up styles from existing tutorials. How was your experience of learning your own art? And what would you suggest to others who are trying to learn of their own ‘art’?
A: The biggest mistake I made was not listening to my mother. She encouraged me to take art classes when I was in high school, a few of which I did. However, I was so focused on comic illustration, I was sitting around teaching myself that style instead of taking life drawing and gesture illustration classes, which would have been far more useful to me as a comic artist later. I got some in here and there, but my studies in architecture in college didn’t leave much time for art classes, and I feel I never had enough. As a result, I spend more time than I should these days correcting my hand-drawn work for proportion and other technical issues that I would otherwise have under better control had I taken more classes and let my focus in art be more broadly influenced. I’m admittedly late to the game as far as life drawing and anatomical study as a result. Fortunately, it’s still fun, and I have strengths and weaknesses just like any other artist. Additionally, my work is influenced by my architectural background, which can be seen in my Finit-e comic, for example, where I’m not shy about drawing backgrounds. But for younger artists, I would absolutely recommend a broad art background, even if you are dead set on one style of work going forward.
Q5: How would you describe the important elements of creating ‘art’? is it important to create a guide or notes of what to do and what not to do when you begin the long process of creating an art piece?
A: I don’t have a do/don’t list when producing work, because while my style is very consistent in format and execution, I work from instinct more than anything else. The vast majority of my work doesn’t use photo references or live models, and I developed my design language on my own based on what felt right and pleased me personally. So I don’t have rules to follow, but rather just do what I like. That said, I would argue that being organized in terms of production and the business side of what we do is very important. My paid work as an artist is largely commission work, and I’ve learned over the years to be up front and clear about the process, payments and rights assignments, and keep the lines of communication open so expectations are managed positively. That means having a process in place that I follow closely, with regards to setting up the projects, working out the schedule and deliverables, that sort of thing. The only other notes I make to myself on illustration work in general are elements I’m working on improving, reminders not to fall into habitual traps.
Q6: It is very common to endure the ‘struggles’ and the ‘weight’ of art around you, what were the struggles that you encountered and how would you suggest to others on how to cope with it?
A: To be honest, I’ve had it pretty easy. I have no complaints! Many artists I know are deeply emotional, intense personalities with their moods wedded deeply to their art. When they aren’t motivated to draw, they feel terrible. If they feel great, they want to create. It’s a double-edged sword. I rarely feel depressed about my art, though sometimes unmotivated like anyone else, and use warm-up exercises and focus on different tasks, to get things moving. I think artists benefit from knowing what they want, if possible. If they want to create in a vacuum, create the environment that allows for it. Want to get published? Create a plan. Want to publish your own work, as I do? Know the business and production side of things, because you’ll be wearing many hats. Much of the stress as an artist, i’ve found, comes from a misalignment of expectations. If you can keep focused on your goals, you may be better able to shake off the setbacks along the way. Personally, my biggest issues are frustration with my own older work (in other words, I’m always growing as an artist, and the farther back I look in my own work, the moreI want to redraw it, which can lead to production slowdowns), the pass of production itself (I work full-time as an architect, I have two kids and a lot of commission assignments so my personal publishing projects take a back seat to tall of that) and the lack of control you have as an artist over the way your work is received. I learned to have a tough skin and understand the difference between constructive criticism and trolling, back in architecture school, but while as a rule I’m not discouraged if people don’t respond to this piece of illustration I do or that, sometimes how the work is discussed in venues outside of my presence can be hard to accept. I’ve seen some of my published work criticized based on style preference, and I’ve seen some negative feedback here and there that can be troubling because you can’t, or more wisely shouldn’t, try to defend what you did. You have to learn to stand behind your choices, and accept that people will have different, and sometimes vocal, opinions about it. And I’ve been generally blessed with a community of fans of my work that give me encouraging comments or pester me for updates to the comic or my other projects, and thats been pretty terrific as an artist. Nothing like knowing someone enjoys what you do as much as you do. At the end of the day, though, I do my art for me, not for anyone else, and that has to be enough.
Q7: Besides the current field of work you are in, do you have anything outside that you would like to share with us? Any other future plans that don’t involve creative art?
A: I mentioned I’m an architect, so most of my day is involved with very large projects that are quite removed from my comic art publishing, but it’s a nice counter-balance to the focus I have on the comics. I build bikes and ride them, so I’m always planning and looking forward to my next bike project, and riding what was built. As far as work to share with the outside world, I’ve got my hands full with the projects at hand and being a family guy, so I have an embarrassment of riches as it is.
Q8: A few artists go by a quote or a motto to keep reminding them selves to work hard and think positive if they are to encounter ‘a bad day’. So are there any words you want to share out to others that may inspire them to work hard and continue working. An inspirational quote to motivate others?
A: Each of my illustrations includes the [ ? ] kanji, as a little reminder to myself. Using the concept of D? in the Japanese tradition, I view it as a mark suggesting that my path as an artist is forever a journey and never an arrival. Sort of the always-a-student thing. I’m not a Taoist, but something about the principle of striving for perfection but never attaining it is beautiful to me.
Q9: Any predictions of what the future holds for art?
A: We’re already starting to see theism but a look back to traditional methods and media, in an increasingly all-digital art environment. I’m thrilled by the digital work of some of my friends that use Painter and various tools to simulate physical media… but I suspect more and more young artists will find novelty and inspiration in the traditional methods. It’s the way of culture.
For Third Rail Design Lab, the future is pretty exciting: my partner in crime, Joao Marques, and I are putting together the new editions of the TRDL Source book resources, which will be timed for release with a site-wide redesign to offer free content to accompany the books. We expect to see this edition of the TRDL Source books to be more widely available through mainstream outlets like Amazon, where the first book was a direct sale project that nonetheless treated us well. Once the books are out, I’m returning to the Finit-e comic and look forward to moving forward on that pretty quickly. We love what we do, so it’s all gravy!
Q10: I’m sure you have sites you would like to share with us of your work, so please do share them with us here for fans and followers to keep an update of your progress.
A: My primary home is my Third Rail Design Lab illustration site, which can be found here: http://www.thirdraildesignlab.com
While the site is being updated the most current day to day releases are on the TRDL blog: http://www.thirdraildesignlab.com/blog
Other links include: DeviantArt: http://thirdraildesignlab.deviantart.com/
Tumblr: http://trdl.tumblr.com/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/wrongrobot/collections/72157607651597391/
And I’d like to encourage artists to check out the TRDL R3 Weekly art challenge, where we draw a different character or theme each week, on the R3 Forum: http://www.thirdraildesignlab.com/forum
Q11: Last year I asked a question regarding ‘art theft’ this year will be no different. Do you have anything you would like to share out regarding ‘art theft’ and maybe also shed some light on what artists should do when exposing their art work on the vast world of the internet.
A: I’ve generally taken the realistic position that if you post your work on the net it’s out there and you aren’t going to wrangle it back, so you might as well let go of your control issues before you start. Some artists watermark their work or keep the higher-rez stuff available behind a pay wall, but I’ve always been more interested in paying it forward with my own stuff. I started publishing RPG resources such as house rules and characters for games like Cyberpunk and Marvel Super Heroes more than a decade ago, and I’ve always been inspired by other creators who do the same. So, all of my RPG resources and TRDL Original Characters are released under a Creative Commons mark, free to use for non-commercial purposes subject to the terms of the license as shown on the site. I want folks to be able to use the characters in their games, to be inspired by my art in producing their own, just as I was by others. As a result, when I see my work floating around the net, the only thing that annoys me is the lack of attribution. I’ll sometimes find my work cropped, with the identification removed, re - appropriated and floating around Tumblr. It’s not only against the terms of the CC licensing, it’s disrespectful. I love my work to be shared, but include a link back to me, that’s my only price! Fortunately, I’ve had very few instances of my work being passed off as someone else’s. The worst I’ve experienced in terms of art theft is clients not paying for commission work, but even that is extremely infrequent. I’ve been lucky.
Q12: I didn’t get the chance to include this question for 2011, so here it is for you. Everyone has their own opinions regarding the meaning of art, or the definition of art. Any chance we can hear what you think art is from you?
A: Art is creative expression. It doesn’t have to appeal to you or me or anyone in specific, unless that’s an objective of the work. If no one was injured in the making or presentation of the work, it’s fine with me. I’m not very rigid about what is or isn’t appropriate. It’s up to people to self-censor and parents to mind what their kids view, not society as a whole, so I bristle at the idea of codifying the definition of art just as I do about the prurient definitions of obscenity. Art simply IS.
Q13: And finally for the last question to round off our interview, ‘a picture says a thousand words’ or ‘tell a story’ out of your current portfolio, do you have one that you favour the most and why? Is there a subliminal message within your work?
A: http://www.flickr.com/photos/wrongrobot/6050897906/in/set-72157626589317719
I do so much superhero art that my opportunities to play in other genres but stay within my style are fun for me. Further, I love doing what I call ‘cryptozoological redesigns’ or taking characters, or even better portraits of friends or clients, and drawing them in a stylized historical setting. The piece above was a gift for a client that produces much of the TRDL-related vinyl sticker wares for me. The concept for the piece was born out of his desire to have his girlfriend represented, their dog, and a few other abstract design elements, and I pulled it together into a steam punk barker sheet. It’s loaded with easter eggs and weird references and was a ton of fun to do.
Q14: Ok so this is optional, just out of curiosity what annoys you the most in your field of work? Do you get a lot of requests on art collabs, interviews, features etc etc?
A: I do have a good amount of collaboration requests, but to be fair I’ve always encouraged such business through the TRDL R3 Art Challenges on my site. I think artists positively benefit from collaboration, and it is certainly part of my day to day as an architect. I receive a fair amount of freebie drawing requests, few of which i have the time to entertain at the expense of my paying clients and personal projects, but I do engage in art trades, as i think they are a pretty fun marketing tool. I try and foment a positive, non-judgmental environment for artists that participate in the art challenges on my site, rather than focusing on constructive criticism, which they will get in any number of other venues. So interacting with other artists and fans of my work is almost always a positive thing.
If I had to pick an annoyance, it would probably be the consumer-culture attitude in terms of digital art sharing. It wasn’t long ago that artists were sharing works with each other digitally in the form of mail lists and groups, and the interaction, while not perfect, was reasonably balanced, with different artists sharing work and viewers commenting and forming discussions. With the rise of show-me sites like DeviantArt, use of social networking sites like Facebook or Google+, and especially networks like Tumblr that seem to thrive on trending things forward rather than interacting with the artists who created them, I see an overall shift away from a dialog between artist and viewer, and into a system where the viewership is largely a silent consumer, absorbing the material as fast as they can. It is what it is, and I suppose it’s not necessarily a good or bad thing. I just like to get the feedback and talk to fans, in the old school way. Growing up we had no avenue of communication with the artists and writers of the books we read, so to me, the net allowing someone to interact with artists they like, or for artists to talk with each other, still seems to be an invaluable resource. I hope the trend turns around… but I can’t complain. I’ve been very satisfied with my art career!
