Meet Patrick Brown!!!
Last Updated (Wednesday, May 06 2009)
The first new interview on the new site! I couldn't be happier to finally get back into bringing art and video games back together again with some nice interviews from gamers who themselves dig art!
Meet Patrick Brown! He is a fellow gamer from Down Under with some amazing skillz. Yes skillz. To say skills would be an understatement!
Also big props to Patrick because he recently illustrated a 2-page spread for an article in The Official Playstation Magazine France. Pictured below.
(Resident Evil 5 is awesome by the way!!!)
Well without further hold up here is the interview with the man with the plan!
Question by me... answers by Patrick Brown.
How about starting with a brief bio about yourself. Age, location (where you are from), what you do for a living.
OH YEAH!! Sounds great..
- I'm 23 years old, I live in Launceston Tasmania/Australia and I currently work with the Newspaper down here called The Examiner.. My part is as a Graphic Designer, I basically make the paper look interesting.. I've been working at the newspaper for about a year and a half, but I've been doing Graphic Design for over 7 years now.
I love your style. How long have you been interested in art? Also what is your background in art?
... I've always loved art, ever since I could pick up a pencil and function properly haha.. But I only started taking art seriously when I started college, I wanted to make it my life after college and pursue a career out of it.. Which I'm still trying to do haha..
How long have you been a gamer? I can tell by going through your gallery (which is awesome by the way) that you are a gamer!
...I've loved games ever since they existed 
But I've grown a true passion for them in the past few years, mainly because the graphics have improved and look more realistic haha.. It's where I get my inspiration, If I love it.. I'll draw it haha.
Could you give a breakdown of your art process. Let's say a brief step by step. Of the following image. ( this would be an awesome one to break down)
...Sure, well it all starts in the brain.. I see what I want before I even put pencil to paper
- Once the whole sketch is done and i'm happy with it, I'll scan it into Photoshop CS2.
- When using this program I always use layers.. ALOT. The sketch stays as its own layer and acts as a template.
- I always do my outlines first, using my "pressure sensitive" Wacom Graphics Tablet.. It basically acts as an ink pen, which gives the lines a more organic flow 
- The next step is colours, and I always start off by making everything one single 'flat' colour.. Like skin, clothes, guns, or boot colours would all be where they belong, and I can see what colour tones would work best.
- Then I start on the background, I sometimes use a couple of references. For example I used a reference of some fire escapes for the ones I used behind Niko in this picture I had to use my head alot to try and understand how an alleyway would look and feel. So when I have a direction I go with the flow. I used about 60-70 layers in the background.. They include lighting, shadows, grunge effects, glow effects, graffiti, reflections.. things like that.
- When doing the lighting and shading of my characters I try to keep all of those effect on one layer. But basically I'll use the selection tool and select the area the I want to shade or light then do my thing..
- The final step involves selecting the whole image and using a colour balance and levels.. Just so everything fits into place!
Xbox 360, PS3, wii- which is home to the best games in your opinion?
...I think the PS3 is the winner, but the 360 does have Gears Of War 2
What motivates you to create fan-art?
...The only thing that gets me going is movies or games.. For instance: When I first heard about GTA IV coming soon, I was so pumped and excited that I created 14 artworks JUST BASED ON GTA!
You inspire a lot of artist out there. I know that must be a great feeling. Who are some artist that inspire you?
I was just so amazed by the style and detail of the cover-art..
If you could be part of a creative team in the video game biz this moment, which 'team' would you like to be a part of? Why?
...ROCKSTAR GAMES! For years I've always wanted to work for Rockstar Games.. It's my dream. Like many know, I'm a massive fan of GTA but I'm also a fan of pretty much every other game that Rockstar have made. If I was an artist for Rockstar I'd be able to relate to everything I do, it's the perfect job.
What are some things you would like to accomplish with your art in the next couple of years? (work wise; for self; skill level)
...I'd really like to improve a lot more, i'm very interested to see what i'm actually capable of haha. And I hope that one day I can get a career out of my art.
Favorite game of all time? Why? What makes a great game?
...Grand Theft Auto: Vice City, (But GTA IV is right there with it). A great game needs to make you feel, like the emotion and vibes.. Vice City had everything, I felt vibes and haha I actually felt like I knew the 80s, But I never have haha. It was that strong that I actually loved the 80s music and bought the soundtracks (I HATED 80s MUSIC BEFORE).. That's what makes a great game...
I hope you've got what you need, please let me know how it goes
Thanx
-Pat
It was Great Pat~ Thanks a lot. To see his full gallery of Amazing works click here!
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