This weeks PN featured artist of the week is the awesomely talented Jorge Velez. An amazing artist who takes his passion for video games and creates beautiful pieces of artwork. From Hyrule Warriors to Earthbound, Jorge gets his inspiration from many of our favorite video games. You can find all of his contact info at the bottom of the interview. Enjoy!

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Hyrule Warriors

KD: When did you start illustrating? Is it something you’ve always wanted to do for a living?

JV: I’ve been drawing for a very long time! It became a more serious venture around 2008-2009 when I started having an online presence. Yes, I’ve always wanted to illustrate for a living, it’s the only thing I’m really good at!

 

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Kirby 64

KD: What inspires you the most when creating artwork?

JV: 16 bit era games have always been a big inspiration, stuff like Mega Man X and early SNES RPGs like Illusion of Gaia and Breath of Fire is the stuff that fueled my desire to draw back in the day. Nowadays I find my muse in many other things, like music, movies, people and even getting schooled by other artists

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Pokemon X & Y Mega Starters

 KD: What’s your favorite Nintendo game or series, why?

JV: The EarthBound/Mother series has found a special place in my heart. Something about it just struck a chord, emotionally and artistically. It could be just how simplistic it is in design yet it’s strong at the core. I remember not even really being interested in it when it came out. Yet as a kid I kept imagining my world as an rpg, where instead of monster encounters you’d battle the cockroach that snuck into your house, which is basically what EarthBound is! I regret not playing it sooner and turning my nose up because it wasn’t Final Fantasy or Zelda…

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Mother 25th Anniversary

KD: How long does an average piece take you to complete? Do you take commissions?

JV: A full color drawing may take from 1 day to a whole week, maybe even longer. It really depends on the complexity of it. The Hyrule Warriors poster was a month long affair! Getting the character designs down was a challenge. Commissions are a case by case basis, really depends on how much time I can dedicate to it.

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Game Over Return of Ganon

KD: Have you been involved in any recent art contests or collaborations?

JV: Yes. My Kirby 64 drawing made it in Ashley Davis’ Kirby Zine and I made a poster for the MOTHER 25th anniversary fanfest at Starmen.net. Keep a look out for Fangamer & Bad Dude’s PK ZINE where I will have artwork featured as well.

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Illusion of Gaia

KD: Can you tell us about any upcoming project’s or pieces your currently working on?

JV: Nothing big planned right now, but I currently am involved in a project that I must remain silent about (;

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Dark World Portal

KD: Thanks for the interview Jorge, your artwork is amazing! Where can our readers checkout some more of your art or contact you if they have any questions?

JV: You’re very welcome, and thanks!

You can check out my art at the following places:

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Donkey Kong is Here

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The Boys are Back in Town

Any artist interested in having their artwork on PureNintendo.com or in PNM can contact me at Kaelyn@purenintendo.com. Submit fan art, sculptures, baked goods, comics, etc. If the theme is ‘Nintendo’ we want to see it! You could be the next Pure Nintendo featured artist! Also to see artwork from artists featured in our magazine, PNM, please head to PureNintendo.com/magazine to subscribe! Thanks for reading.