Focus and Perseverance: Piter Paull’s Journey as a Digital Artist
Mr. Piter Paull, has been working in the digital industry for a good 4 years. While it may seem short, he has had a plethora of experiences that not only keeps his head above water, but thrive within the discipline. And of course, while his education at the Alagoas Technology College under the Engineering program played a crucial role, it is his perseverance and focus that really saw him through.
So let’s read and be inspired through as we uncover Mr. Piter Paull’s experiences into becoming the artist that he is today.
Xeno Creatives (XC): How did you get involved in the 3D industry? Did you have some sort of a revelation that led you to say to yourself, “THIS IS what I am going to do for the rest of my life!”
Piter Paull (PP): It all started in October 2014 when I saw a video of Glauco Longhi on YouTube talking about traditional sculpture.He showed off all sorts of clay, his beautiful work, and all that enchanted me. I was very excited about that and days later I bought sculpture materials. When I started to study and practice I decided that it was what I would like to do for the rest of my life.
XC: Who or what influenced you the most? Was there a digital art piece or an artist whom you found to be really inspiring that made you aspire to become a better artist yourself?
PP: There is a person who has influenced me too much and is still an inspiration to me, let’s say he is the “Guru” of most students of artistic anatomy in Brazil. His name is Rafael Souza (Rafa Souza). His way of explaining, his love, and the affection with which he does things is impressive. Surely he was the person who most influenced me to not only start all this, but as well as remain steadfast every day. He helped me a lot when I needed him and continues to help me.
XC: What was it like to be thrown into the 3D culture? What were the ropes that you had to learn to be the artist that you want to be?
PP: I was introduced into the 3D world only by chance. I wanted to learn more about anatomy and took an online course on artistic anatomy through ZBrush without knowing anything. I can honestly say that this was the best decision that I made in my life.
I had to overcome a lot to keep learning the ropes of life, one of them is the distrust of family and colleagues, although not all.
Since in Brazil the 3D profession is still something very new, many people do not understand how the market works and thus generates a lot of distrust in this regard.
Learning anatomy is certainly very difficult, but not impossible, as my focus is characters for collectible statues every day I have to learn something new related to this subject. It is something that I have to learn to surpass every day.
To summarize: Overcoming the mistrust of the closest ones and studying a lot of anatomy was what made me firm in the discipline until today.
XC: What’s your workflow like? How does your day look like in production?
PP: Basically I do everything in ZBrush, but to compose renders I use Blender and Photoshop.
As my focus is collectible statues, at the moment I only need ZBrush (my main software).
My day usually comes down to studying and practicing a lot (I even buy several online courses) when I have a job.
For the day I usually spend 8 hours dedicating myself to the discipline, with small pauses.
XC: What are the common hurdles or challenges that a 3D artist like you encounter day-in, day-out in a project?
PP: The common obstacle or challenge that I have encountered and that I still encounter is Anatomy.
I get a lot of that. Today things are unfortunately reversed in our 3D environment.
Anyone who starts in 3D will first learn about renders / composition of images before even knowing how to model a human being.
XC: We REALLY like your works online. We know that tremendous work had gone into creating each piece. As such it might be a tough question to ask, but do you have a favorite piece? What made it stand out for you?
PP: My favorite piece is the last one I published these days, it’s a bust of Orc, which I called “OrcFlow”. I encountered challenges in the endeavor by having to make UVs, paint it in ZBrush, Texturize and render / compose in Blender.
It is a simple piece, but I had to work hard to finish it because there were some factors that I did not study. But the result was something that pleased me a lot and it was a work that several people commended me with. I have great affection for this work, certainly.
XC: If you were to market yourself as a 3D artist, what would you highlight as your strengths, your edge?
PP: I’ll introduce myself as a 3D “collectible” artist, it is an area that I love and that is where I actually began.
To enter this market you have to have FOCUS and PERSEVERANCE .
With these two traits I have certainly been able to reach what I am today. However, the term “Perseverance” is great with me. I consider that to be my main skill. Without it would not be here today.
XC: If you weren’t a 3D artist today, what could you see yourself working as?
PP: Certainly I would be a comic book designer (mangá), since very early on I was always find of drawing. The art has always clicked with me. So if I were not a 3D Artist today, I would surely be a Mangaka.
Want to see more of Mr. Peter Paull’s works? Click here!
