PN Featured Artist: D.J. Kirkland

 

This weeks Featured Artist is the very talented D.J. Kirkland. His artwork is inspired by video games, 90’s Saturday morning cartoons, classic anime & manga from the 80’s & 90’s. His bold colorful creations are very eye catching to say the least. You can buy t-shirts with his awesome Super Smash Bros’ designs on them at www.teepublic.com. He is also the creator of an ongoing web comic Aerial Rave that updates every Wednesday. I’m very excited to be able to share his artwork with you, enjoy!

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KD: How long have you been an illustrator? When did you realize it was something you wanted to do for a living?

DJ: I’ve been drawing ever since I’ve had motor skills and have been playing video games for the same amount of time. When I was a kid, I would seriously draw on everything, including my homework. I remember my 4th grade math teacher calling my mom and telling her that I need to stop drawing and focus more on my math. My mom’s response was “F you!” and she hung up the phone. It was pretty sweet. To this day, I’m still horrible at math to this day. I’m totally that person that counts on their fingers if I don’t have access to a calculator. Sorry not sorry!

I knew I wanted to be an illustrator when I saw Sailor Moon for the first time when it debuted back in the 90’s. I seriously remember this moment like it was yesterday. I was eating Cookie Crisp (the smell of that cereal now makes me want to throw up) and I pointed at the television and told my mom “I wanna do that when I grow up!” She’s been my number one supporter in any of my endeavors and she’s encouraged me every step of the way to pursue art as a profession.

KD: What’s your favorite Nintendo game to play? Which one inspires you the most when creating artwork?

DJ: For anyone that reads this that’s known me for any amount of time will know that I’m a gigantic Nintendo fanboy. I’ve owned pretty much all of the Nintendo consoles except for the GameBoy Micro. I love all of the IP’s from Nintendo, but the one that I would consider to be my absolute favorite and inspires me the most is the Super Smash Bros. series. I remember when I was in 6th grade and I got the Nintendo Power Magazine with the feature article showcasing Smash 64. My little middle school mind was blown. The fact that I could play as Pikachu and beat up Mario and Link filled me with copious amounts of joy. Needless to say, I haven’t been the same since! Haha!

KD: Tell is a little bit about your online comic Aerial Rave, when did you get started on that?

DJ: I’ll keep this brief because I could go on about it as nauseam. Aerial Rave is a Shonen Jump inspired web comic that about a sport that’s inspired by roller derbies, but instead of skates, they use Back To The Future-Esque hover boards. It focuses on a new up and coming team’s first year participating in the sport and all of the ups and downs they go through as a new team trying to make a name for themselves. Due to some personal real life stuff going on, it’s currently on hiatus. You can read the prologue at www.aerialraveonline.com!

 

KD: Do you sometimes doodle your ideas throughout the day and then work on them later? Or do you prefer being in your own space when you work?

DJ: Definitely! I doodle/sketch all my ideas out before I take anything to a finish. A solid sketch is the foundation of a solid illustration! I usually carry a sketchbook with me everywhere I go so if I’m immediately struck with an idea, I can sketch it out really quick and take it to a finish later on. Since I’ve pretty much gone totally digital with my illustrations, I pretty much have to be at home if I want to finish anything. I primarily draw in Manga Studio EX5, also known as ClipPaint Studio. I use Photoshop to make final corrections and add certain effects to my work if it’s not supported in Manga Studio. I draw on a Wacom Cintq 22HD display attached to my MacBook Pro to create my work.

 

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

DJ: That’s probably the most common question I get and usually the most difficult to answer! Honestly it just depends on how complex the illustration is. Sometimes it could take 3-4 hours to finish a piece or 5-10 hours if it’s something really complex or if I’m experimenting with new techniques. So when it comes to the Smash Bros. illustrations I’ve been doing, any character that has an elaborate weapon or armor of some kind usually takes longer since I wanna make sure I draw them as accurately as possible.

KD: What are some recent project’s or art contests you’ve been involved in?

DJ:  In terms of contests, I’ve done design contests for character mascots for websites in the past. Mostly I like to contribute Illustrations to places like Sketch Dailies. They tweet out a theme or character every morning and artists then create illustrations based on the theme. It’s a lot of fun and it’s a great way to get exposure for your work!

KD: Do you ever do custom pieces for interested customers?

DJ: Absolutely! I’m pretty much always open to take on commissions for people unless I say otherwise. Sometimes the requests from people garner some pretty cool results. I did an illustration of Vivi from FFIX doing a fire spell in the style of LoZ: Wind Waker. It was super fun and a lot of people really loved it. It’s probably one of my favorite illustrations this year!

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

DJ: I’m incredibly flattered you wanted to interview me. I’m incredibly active all over the main social media platforms so feel free to engage with me whenever! I promise I don’t bite. Fun fact:  If you’re on instagram, you’ll likely get to see a LOT of my illustrations in progress there. I don’t post works in progress anywhere else as often as I do on Instagram. Thanks again for interviewing me it was a lot of fun!

Heres where you can find me on the net!

Twitter: @OhHeyDJ
Instagram: @OhHeyDJ
Nintendo Network: OhHeyDJ
Tumblr: dj-kirkland.tumblr.com
Portfolio site: www.djkirkland.com
Super Smash Shirts: www.teepublic.com/user/OhHeyDJ

 

 

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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.