INTERVIEW WITH :Dev - Angelo cosplay, criticism and combating plagiarism

Gamerland - Interviewer

Dragl - Design

Meet :Dev - Artist and designer from Belarus with multifaceted hobbies. He is interested in video games, typography and makeup. His creative path began with drawing skins for the game Brawl Stars

1. How did you start your journey in art, and what inspired you?

In my childhood, I attended an art studio and was always making crafts and drawing pictures. However, during school, especially around ninth grade, this interest faded over time. I didn't know what I wanted to do in the future and didn't focus on creativity. Later, I decided to pursue a creative major in university. I bought a graphic tablet and started creating various drawings, trying to copy the styles of different artists and learning from them. A major inspiration for me was the former Brawl Stars designer, Paul Chambers. He had a significant influence on the way my art looks today.

2. Do you have any favorite artists or works that have influenced your style?

Paul Chambers, Kasey Golden, and Alexei Kalibin are the three artists/designers who have greatly impacted my creative thinking. They have shaped my perception of what I consider beautiful, fun, unique, and inspiring in design and art.

3. What project or work in your career has been the most memorable and why?

Probably the remodel of Bull. It was the longest, most detailed, and most challenging project I have ever undertaken. I approached it with the utmost seriousness, leveraging my experience working on university projects to create something of high quality. This work ultimately led to a collaboration with Supercell, making it the best project I could possibly name.

4. How do you find inspiration for your new works?

I don't have specific things that suddenly inspire me. Instead, my brain works in waves, and sometimes I go through periods when I can't work, and I recognize this and don't force myself to draw during those times. Then there are periods when work flows smoothly and productively, and I create something successful, which is very satisfying, though it doesn't happen often.

5. What "equipment" do you use to create your works? Why do you prefer them?

I use an iPad Pro 2021 and Procreate as my illustration program. What I love most about this setup is that it's lightweight, portable, and allows me to draw anywhere. I'm not tied to my workspace, and I use my tablet for everything, making it an extension of myself. I don't think there has been a single day since I got it that I haven't used it.

6. You made cosplay on Angelo. Why did you choose this character, and how difficult was it to bring it to life?

Angelo is a very fun and expressive character, extravagant, and probably associated with the LGBTQ community, which initially drew me to him. I also thought I wouldn't need to make many changes to my appearance to look like him. Since cosplay intrigues me, I decided to try bringing this idea to life with minimal resources. It wasn't easy and didn't work out on the first try, but I believe it was worth it!

7. How do you deal with creative crisis?

As I mentioned earlier, when drawing doesn't go well, I don't fight it and try to occupy myself with other things. Usually, I don't have strict, unmovable deadlines, so I can afford to take breaks. The block eventually passes; it never stays in one place.

8. Do you plan to do similar cosplays of other characters in the future? If so, who will it be, and if not, why did you decide against it?

I'm definitely interested in the cosplay field. It's challenging, can be expensive and time-consuming, but it's extremely fun to see the results. If I do another cosplay, it should be Buster.

9. Which moment in your career has been the most significant? What was it related to?

As I mentioned earlier, the opportunity to work with Supercell and the fact that a small part of my idea is in the game I dedicated many years of my creative career to is a tremendous honor.

10. How do you handle criticism and negativity, and how does it affect your creativity? Do you find it unwarranted, and if warranted, what was it for?

I'm a big fan of constructive criticism and love asking people for their opinions. When people say they don't like something, I enjoy finding out why. I love trying different things and getting feedback, but I can't stand negativity for the sake of negativity. At this point in my life, I've realized that I don't want to deal with it, so it's easier to press a button and block it than to listen to a bunch of incoherent negativity.

11. Do you have a dream or goal related to your art that you have yet to achieve? What is preventing you from accomplishing it?

I would love to work for Supercell; it's a huge dream and feels unattainable because it's such a large studio, and I'm just starting in the industry with little experience. But I don't give up because I believe I have something to say with my art and that I can bring something unique to a big project.

12. How do you assess your progress in creating works?

During my time on the internet, I have definitely learned a lot about how to work with other people, understand their boundaries, and respect their time and effort. I would say this is probably the most important skill I’ve learned over the past six years. I'm always happy when I get the opportunity to work with other artists, learn from them, discover something new, and socialize. That's the beauty of being in an active, vibrant community with others.

13. What advice would you give to aspiring artists looking to develop their style?

I believe you should try everything that interests you, look at different artists, try to copy, adapt, and combine, but the main thing is to keep creating. Don’t just think about what you want to draw; take action and draw it, and draw as much as possible. Experiment, practice, and if something doesn't work, start over, revise it 15 times if needed, but keep working. The more you draw, the more your skills will improve, and they will improve quickly over time.

14. How much time do you spend creating works? Which work took you the most time and why?

It's hard to pick just one, so I'll mention two. The first is my fan character Sasha, whose concept took a long time to develop, with numerous changes to the design, colors, and character mechanics. The idea to create a 3D model required additional assets, and since it was my first experience with this, it involved many hours of communication, agreements, changes, and compilations with various artists. It turned out to be a beautiful and cohesive project but was very challenging.

The second project is my thesis. I’m graduating with a bachelor's degree in graphic design and multimedia this year and spent over a year on this work. It’s a somewhat atypical project for me, an exhibition of typographic posters. From conceptualization to the realization of the exhibition, it involved a huge amount of time, changes, and struggles, but the result fully justified the effort, conveying all the emotions I intended to express.

15. Have you encountered plagiarism? How did you deal with it, and what is the current situation?

Plagiarism is a huge problem for any creative person. I try to look at plagiarism as objectively and directly as possible. First, I need to understand the person’s motive because sometimes people simply don't realize that plagiarism is wrong, and it's hard to be angry without knowing the context. However, if the plagiarism is intentional and malicious and the person refuses to listen, I am ready to fight it with all my might. I don't let it go because plagiarism is unacceptable, and the work of artists needs to be respected. Unfortunately, many people don't understand this, and I hope society will continue to progress away from such behavior.

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