Forgotten, the life of a game concept artist
October 6, 2007
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 ack in late June, we reported that the Into The Pixel art exhibition would be appearing at the E for All Expo in Los Angelas from October 18 through 21. The one-of-a-kind exhibition brings attention to video game conceptual artists from around the world, and Gamasutra has recently secured some chat time with three of the artists who have works being honored at the event. It's a rather fascinating interview, to say the least, and gives a bit of insight into the job and the design process.
Mike McCarthy (Black and White 2, Fable 2) explains his experience as concept artist for Lionhead Studios, quoting the all too frequent "Oh, do you actually have to draw, then?" comment he receives when telling people he's a game artist. He goes on to say even his family is unclear on what all his job entails, commonly referring to him as a 'computer game designer'. McCarthy says art in games is only noticed when it's done stunningly well or when it's done badly.
Cheol Joo Lee (Company of Heroes, Dawn of War) from Relic Entertainment agrees, adding that while not every artist is creative, most are trained to express art in creative ways, implying that they can be influential on many other aspects of game design.
Rare Ltd's Ryan Stevenson (Viva Piņata) shares the same opinion as his fellow artists, and says the art and artist are often forgotten. He explains how the Viva Piņata world is the result of his extensive work as sole concept artist for the project, stating that players are "walking through a world that exists in my head" when they play the game. Stevenson says that by working as a single artist on the project and controlling all aspects of the design, Viva Piņata ended up with a coherent look, right down to the pebbles and twigs.
There's plenty more to be read in the three pages of the feature, including steps taken in the design process and comments from the artists on games as an art form. You can also find their honorary works in the Into The Pixel online gallery.
Source: Gamasutra - Into The Pixel: The Artists Speak
Gallery: Into The Pixel - Selected Artists and Artworks
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