A Wander in Search of Something New
Scrolling through ArtStation’s “picks” section every week since the site’s founding has allowed me to make a number of observations about the entertainment industry and the artists who adorn it with its echoing aesthetic. Today, we only have time to talk about one; it seems that there is only a handful of “trend-setters”. These are the artists who can post a new artwork and watch as the community produces hundreds of pieces that were inspired by (or copying, depending on your point of view) their vision.
This chain reaction paved the way for a peculiar relationship between aspiring concept artists and the industry they are striving towards as it is often defined by a game of catch-up. But there are others who, like the Old Masters, find inspiration through introspection and first-hand experiences in the world. This is an interview with Tomas Honz, a Czech artist who chose to wander in search of something new, and my hope is that his artworks can show us what it looks like if we stop using AAA games and blockbuster movies as our main source of inspiration.
Tomas graduated at the Academy of Fine Arts in Prague, but he also studied in Taiwan and the US. This means that, aside from being well travelled, he’s had the opportunity to try his hand at Chinese calligraphy, Chinese painting and illustration.
When asked about his experiences, he described one of his teachers, “Watching him paint was a transcendental experience. It seemed that every mark he made was deliberate and spot on. If you have a teacher like that, and if you are excited about your own thing, it’s pretty easy to learn.” This stood out to me because we often hear about how great self-teaching is.
So, in-between this and Tomas’ approach to art and life, this feels like an interview full of new perspectives and alternative viewpoints for all of us. Of course, it’s also got everything you might have come to expect from a RVG interview—the journey so far, stories from the past, an outline of the artist’s process, etc.
If you’re an aspiring artist who is looking to explore new avenues and innovate, Tomas might have some of the answers that you need. The interview will come out sometime next week, and we hope that we’ll have an audio reading ready for it (just like we did for Eddie Mendoza). We promise you will learn something new when you come back to listen and or read it.
Illustration: Tomas Honz (2019)
