The official home of the KNKL Show on Imzy!
Concept Art Questions
Hi Kienan,
I've read up and looked at a lot of the concept artist videos around YouTube about the job and etc. I'd like to ask you a few questions about the job. I know it's mostly digital but do you have to be good at digital art to get the job? I'm still somewhat of a beginner in this field I know how to use digital programs but i'm not the most proficient in them. Is this something I should mention? I know from CubeBrush on youtube that the portfolio should contain only concept art. Yet I've seen some concept artists do illustrations. Also what would a company such as Riot Games look for in a concept artist's portfolio?




Good question! I wouldn't be surprised if Kienan answers this on the show.
Most companies want digital artists because they have a pipeline in place that relies on easily transferring work from one stage to the next. All of the same principles of art apply as painting or drawing, so if you already have those skills then you just need to spend enough time in the digital program to get used to the feel of the tools.
Every company is going to have different things they look for in a portfolio. I would suggest always having a general portfolio online, full of any and all types of work you would like to do (if it's several distinct types, maybe just organize the portfolio into sections). Then when applying for a specific company, tailor a portfolio just for them. For example, if you are applying for a prop artist position at Blizzard, you probably don't need to include environment designs.
Thanks Tygrenier!
I know Square Enix for some of their franchise use traditional artists like Yoshitaka Amano for concept art and illustration. Tetsuya Nomura is also traditional it looks like he used markers in the past but now he paints a base color digitally. It looks like most of his final concepts are sketches on paper rather than on a computer. I don't think this is a normal in the industry though normally I see concept art on a computer. Like what Kienan does with the VU for League.
I think the same way that companies want digital artists so it makes the production process easier. Since we are moving into the digital age one artist should be able to seamlessly pick up where the other one left off. But practice of a digital tool can always be helpful!
I think that's a wonderful idea to have a broad portfolio and then pick apart the drawings needed for a certain position. I do have a deviantART for this but I decided to restart it over since I wasn't too proud of my past work at all :/ So i'm trying to build a new image and self in my art now knowing more about the principles than I did before. I'll think about this more as I work on generating more pieces for my portfolio in the future.