(^) able to create a good ‘epic scale’ picture with
depth fog and good detail? A week, a month,
several years?
Vioxtar: I’ve had pictures I worked on for
months, and some others about two hours. With
enough familiarity anyone can put great pieces
together in several hours. I actually found that
the faster I got a picture done, the more I
enjoyed coming back to it afterwards – there’s
more to be discovered in it.
DAL: I see, thanks. What is the view from your
work studio like, these days? You’re based in
Israel, so I imagine... lots of sunlight!
Vioxtar: My work studio — which totally isn’t just
my house bedroom! — has a remarkably
uninteresting view of my parking garage. But if
were you to embark on a three-minute drive
north of that garage, you’d find yourself in a
pretty cool rural area with lots of fields and
trees, where I like to occasionally drive around.
And yeah, there’s a good amount of sunlight
here, which I’m thankful for!
DAL: Nice. Do you feel there is a connection
between Israel being a mostly desert nation, and
your liking for making desert pictures?
Vioxtar: I’d think so, a bit like ‘you are what you
eat’, there’s ‘you think what you see’, maybe?
Even though I live in the more agricultural part
of Israel — which means less desert — the
desert parts of Israel made their impact.
The ground here is quite varied, and as an
environment guy you start to really pay
attention to these variations, try to get a feel for
what makes ground, ground: you become a
researcher. Sometimes I’d see these weird
formations and interplay with dirt and rocks, and
I’d note it down, take a picture, think how I’d
replicate it in a scene.
I had to work quite hard — several attempts —
until I was happy with my grounds. The picture
which opens this interview, “Flower Omega”,
was my first attempt at building a ground, with
“Watch Tower” being my most recent one.
DAL: Great, people can see the details on those
at your DeviantArt Gallery, where you have
them big, at around 3,800px and more. Is Israel
a good place to be a digital artist? Do people
there understand what you do?
Vioxtar: That’s a difficult one. As to people
understanding what I do, the first answer I want
to say is ‘no’, because society here is perhaps a
bit more materialistic than cultural, and if it’s
cultural, then it’s probably not the type of
culture that would be familiar with the “build a
scene in 3D software and make a picture”
medium for art.
It’s not graphic design, it’s not photography, and
it’s not 3D modelling or game level design. So
it’s hard to describe. But there are always
exceptions – to be honest I don’t don’t know
how Israel compares to other countries in that
regard.
DAL: Probably about the same everywhere.
‘How it gets on the screen’ might as well be
magic, to all but a few. Where would you like to
go with your art, in the near future? Do you
have any themes you would like to explore?
Vioxtar: Oh wow, no clue! So far, all my pictures
happened because of artistic itches I had to
scratch: ideas would pop in my mind and they
would pester me without end until I put them in
a frame — and that frame is usually enough to
silence them. Maybe that will change one day,
and I’ll need to look into animation, or more
interactive media experiences. Or yes, explore a
different theme. But it doesn’t feel like I’m the
one making the calls here. It’s something deeper
that dictates my direction.
DAL: Great, ok, well... thanks very much for this
interview. We wish you well with your creative
work in the future.
Vioxtar: Thank you! It was my pleasure, good
questions are always fun to answer!
‘Vioxtar’ — Michael Efraim — is online
at:
https://www.deviantart.com/vioxtar/
and
https://www.michaelefraim.com/
ann
(Ann)
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