Damien Carey is an artist we found online while browsing blogs that featured World of Warcraft rants. Also featured on Damien’s blog were samples of his own artwork and we fell instantly in love with the talent.
One of the first pieces we ever saw of Damien’s was of our favourite web slinging wise cracking Spiderman, it was just as good, if not better than the work of Marvel artists and we had to know more about the guy behind the work, to see if we could steal some of his creativity and to interview him as well…
Can you tell us a little bit about who you are?
If I could answer that, most of my problems would be solved. To answer in a practical way; I’m a 27 year old Digital Artist, living in Dublin with my Fiancée. I support myself by taking commissions from numerous people for a large range of subject matter. I’m a World of Warcraft obsessed nut and my main downfall is that I don’t have enough time to raid. I’m a full blown Nerd, and I love sci-fi and fantasy films, novels, comics and games.
When did you first get interested in art?
I can’t remember not being interested in art, if I’m honest. It’s just something I have always done and had a passion for. It runs in my family in a way. My father is a wildlife photographer who has published and been published in numerous books and magazines. He has a great eye for photography and even when I was a small child I could see how animated he would become over his, at that time hobby. Part of me believes that I wanted to be like my father and make pretty pictures and that was why I took drawing very seriously even as a kid. Although I don’t remember ever making that decision consciously.
Is it as simple as picking up a pencil/pen and just practicing non-stop or do you have to have a knack for it?
I have been asked this before and thought about it a great deal and I believe that like most things constant practice is the key to being a great artist, however a natural knack that can’t be learned coupled with constant practice makes an exceptional artist. I think anyone can be taught to draw, and draw well, but the sheer time and energy involved is staggering, as well as having a good knowledge of many other subjects that seem irrelevant until you get down to it. For example when drawing humans a more than modest understanding of anatomy is necessary, as knowing how everything fits together is a very valuable asset. I’d say I thought of myself as a good artist but not an exceptional artist by my own standards. I have to do a lot of study and practice to improve. No matter how satisfied I am with a piece I will always try to do better next time.
Where does the inspiration for your own work come from?
Inspiration is a tricky little thing. Sometimes it hits you like a bolt of lightning out of the blue while you’re shaving and you end up skating across the bathroom floor in your socks, trying to get to a pen and paper before you forget it, and at other times it grows slowly over time. Sort of like baking a cake. You add a couple of ingredients combine in a certain way and see what’s cooking. Quite a few times the recipe will be inedible and you’ll have to start over. In my opinion the best inspiration comes from the conversations that take place with friends while having a drink. It’s good to always have a notebook with you just in case.
Do you take commissions? If so how can we get our hands on some?
Currently my commissions are closed as is my online shop. Until recently I took commissions through my blog, but I have a hefty workload to get through at the moment and as soon as I am accepting more I will reopen the commission form on my blog and announce it on my twitter. However this isn’t likely to be until around December 7th, as I will be opening a new website and shop to coincide with the release of World of Warcraft: Cataclysm. The site will be centred around a new web comic called ‘PuG Life’ that follows the antics of 5 avatars in an MMORPG and holds a satirical mirror up to WoW, gaming, sci-fi and fantasy in general. As you can imagine with the new shirt designs and producing a decent amount of these web comics in advance I have my work cut out for me and commissions are simply not possible, until after the ‘launch’.
How long does a piece take you?
It depends entirely on the subject, the scale and the amount of characters. The better you get the longer a piece will take. You pick up little tips along the way and keep adding them to your arsenal. After a while your knowledge levels out a bit and with practice your speed painting increases. I have been known to do full pieces in a day or up to 2 weeks depending on the scale of the piece.
Can you tell us a little about your blog?
My blog started off as a place I could put my commission details so that everyone who wanted to commission me, regardless of what site they knew me from could be given one link. From there it evolved to a point where I post everything that I find online that interests me. Whether it’s a funny pic, a cute puppy, the new alchemy mount in WoW: Cataclysm or LGBT rights, it all gets chucked in for good measure. In a way it might be better for followers if I were to pick a single topic and go with it, but I feel the blog is an extension of my personality at this point.
Do you have any artists that inspire you or you would compare your style to?
Every artist is different and develops different styles and techniques through the use of different utensils, programs and tutors so I couldn’t compare myself to anyone in particular. I do however have one idol that stands head and shoulders above the rest. When I was a teenager the work of Michael Turner, a comic artist working for Top Cow, for the titles ‘Fathom’ ‘Witchblade’ and ‘Tomb Raider’ was an inspiration to me. Something about his style spoke to me in ways no other artist had and even now when I suffer an art block I turn to him. Michael Turner was an amazing man who battled against cancer twice and eventually lost, and to this date is the only person I have never met whose death has reduced me to tears.
Ideally where would you like your work to take you in the future?
I have too many plans and not enough time. ‘PuG Life’ as a toony bi-weekly web comic will take up a good portion of my time. After that I plan to reopen commissions, and the new improved online shop. The previous shop was too expensive and its potential for design rather limiting. I’ll be producing an entirely new set and I’ll be using a new host printer to do it. The old shop was hosted through zazzle but we had a falling out as one of my t-shirts that concerned dusk was entitled Twilight and according to zazzle.com, Stephanie Meyers now owns that word. A ludicrous enough notion that it sent me elsewhere. After that I’ll be creating a second website that will house a more graphic novel style web comic that I’m very excited about.
If you were trapped in an Arcade for eternity what one game would you play to pass the time?
That’s tough. It’d be a tossup between either World of Warcraft or Final Fantasy 7. The deal breaker would be whether or not WoW had access to the net.
If you would like to follow Damien’s adventures on WoW and keep up to speed on all his work then just click the link and follow him on his blog – The Phenex!
