I'm sure this has already been asked but! What drew tou to furry art instead of human art? Your composition is gorgeous in your pieces and I know a lot of people just shy away from furry because the stigma, especially in such involved pieces.

I mean I just consider myself a furry. So it makes sense to draw it i guess? But then again i do draw both, just humans more rarely since furry stuff is the main commission draw. But yeah, i just draw what i like is all, really.

Do you have a feeling that you like your old art less and less? Or, more correctly, what feeling do you have for your old arts?

No, i don't like them less. Or well, i mean i wouldn't exactly hang them on my wall or anything, so i do see them as less refined than what i do nowadays of course. But they just are what i created at the time and there isn't really anything to feel animosity towards. They just are what they are if that makes sense.

Probably been asked in a previous one but do you have a favourite setting? In terms of fantasy, sci-fi, modern as I’m pretty sure you have done all. I would ask your favourite things to capture but that is probably way to broad a question lol.

In answer to your question, I would be happy with any month that isn’t hot temperature wise in all honesty. I’m built for cold weather. XD

I always like historical settings the most. Something fairly down to earth sort of thing.
And you can't just go "any of them but those" when it's specifically asking for one! December and January are different! March and February are different!

That's interesting to know thank you! Can certainly see it reflected in a lot of your absolutely incredible works. ^^
Well December I would probably get fat with Christmas dinner every year even if I would enjoy it... XD
Probably November then as it's just a relatively peaceful month and normally the weathers cool for me haha.

If I may interject... :3 I like mixing fantasy with history: Ottoman janissaries, but dragon-people. A 17th-century south German mining village, but kobolds. That sort of thing. I prefer more realistic stuff because I feel it's more interesting and intricate than a made-up fantasy.

Mhm, yeah can be good fun!

October. I love October weather, traditions, fires, harvest.. Halloween!

Always the spoopy wolf.

I'd love to live in an eternal May. Seems to differ, at least in my country, between nice warm and cold days in the best way possible. Also, everything is green and overwhelming and I can't ever have enough flora.

Question to you now, though - Favourite bird?

Pretty decent choice, yeah. And even if a heatwave comes by it's usually not quite as warm and june and july tend to be.

Favourite bird. Tough one, but i do really love the look of Steller's jays! The blue to black gradient, the kind swooping but somewhat angular shape that the crest helps to build. Very cool! Secretary birds are great too though.

How did you get good at drawing did you had to learn how draw, or was it something you started to get good at overtime.

Yeah, just like everything it involves a lot of learning and being observant. Figuring out how things look and especially why things look the way they do and all that. Learning from books, videos, studying art from other artists, movies etc. There isn't really a way to "describe" it aside from just learning a whole bunch of stuff and learning how to put that into a painting.

For me it would be January. A new cycle beginning, I love snow and the cold. There's nothing beating the feeling of snuggling with the dogs in front of the fireplace after a day out in the cold. May it be work or winter sport activities.

My question: The Dalmatian cyborg..."cyber squalor"... What inspired you to this? Was it a ordered commission with all details or your inspiration. I love that piece to death. Well, that piece made me love your art as it touches me somehow.

Yes, if one has a nice fireplace around and enjoys winter sports and everything then that's probably a good pick! :D

And oh gosh, it's really been a long while so i don't think i remember all the details there. I think it was kind of half-half. With the general idea of a cyborg and just that beaten up theme and whatnot but yeah, i don't recall the exact conversations that I had with the one who commissioned it back then.
And yes it did fantastically well! I'm glad you were one of those that enjoy it. :)

This question might be a bit existential, so feel free to ignore/hide this. How do you feel about the rise of AI art?

In answer to your question: May. I love seeing all the plants grown in and flowering, and the days are long and the temperature is perfect for being outdoors. There tends to be more rain in May, which I find very comfy to listen to and watch.

Mixed bag, though less so about the AI and more with the system it's entering. I mean the AI stuff is fun and i'm playing around plenty with currently, but it's still entering a capitalist system. So as soon as it starts to save some money in a spreadsheet it'll impact the lives of people, and with the rate the development has been going that might be pretty soon.
Will it replace every artist? Next 5 to 10 years i certainly don't think so, but i can absolutely see studios scaling down to some extend where they can. And i think there are other AI programs around that for example try to extrapolate a 3D model from a 2D image and stuff like that. So i can certainly see that there could be fewer opportunities for artists when you only need 5 people to refine what the AI spits out rather than 10 to do it by themselves.
And sure, it's kinda messy and funky and what you get needs lots of polishing now, but those are quite literally the first versions that are available to the public so far. Who the fuck knows where and how fast things will go from here.

But idk, either way it's not something i can change, so for now i just use it as the neat tool that it is and will see where it goes.

Why have you chosen your current fursona animal?

I just really like them. They look cool, they're a little off the beaten track, have interesting social lives and whatnot. That's all pretty much, i just like em.

What’s your favorite writing system? (Ancient or otherwise.) And what’s your favorite spoken language?
Also, what’s the sexiest species/character that surprised even yourself since it didn’t meet physical qualities you normally like? They’re just an exception to the rule.

Answering your question. October.
Christmas is my favorite holiday, but I only like snow for the first few weeks. Halloween would be next, and I love fall. The weather is perfect and I like all the colors.

Favourite writing system. Not sure i can really answer that one as i only know the one we're using right now.
As for language, again kinda limited in my knowledge but english is pretty nice. But i think my view there is a bit skewed by me just wanting to have one language all across the globe so we can stop bothering with it. So might as well make it english with so many people having it as a second/business language already. And with it being my second language i also have the neat thing that it doesn't activate the same brain areas and stuff like swearing and dirty talk is much nicer in it!

Then the character one. Hmmmm, that's difficult to answer honestly. Just because it is such a momentary "oh this is really nice aaaaand scrolling" sort of thing. Hard to remember.... But often times it's when typically bulky and muscular species get portrayed as not that. Horses being a prime example. Just always pleasantly surprised when some horse crosses my timeline that isn't Mr/Ms. Universe.

October is a good one. Though with the colours that also means you've got the leaves falling all year long! Poor house owners that need to keep things clean.

Also a good choice. And you usually have those weeks where the temps just bump up to summer-but-not-hot levels. Just comfy 20 degrees or so.

As for what to ask... honestly i have no idea. Those are always the ones i am the worst at answering plus i'm an awful conversationalist so i like to just listen to people talk about whatever.

December. WE WILL ALL suffer holiday music in an endless liminal space somewhere between hell and your local shopping center.

Oof, that description hit hard.

So cruel. At least i feel nowadays it's a bit easier to avoid as radios and general watching of random TV stations gets less and less popular.

June is the month I'd repeat. Long days, a summer solstice that can be celebrated, heatwaves that are quite tolerable where I am, and an occasional cool day for some variety. May is a close second, but it has too much chill and inferior amounts of daylight. May 21 to June 20 would be perfect. (;

Which month would you eliminate, Nomax? (It's August, isn't it?)

It's not august. It probably would be...hmmm... January or february. They always feel like a bit of a drag. Might be better if there actually were some snow sometimes, but with the climate being what it is now it's just fecking grey in grey and it starts to get old at some point. So ditch one of those to make spring come around a bit quicker.

I would never want to make that change to the year! A child of mid-latitudes, I love my changing seasons :3

But October is the best month around here. Autumn at its peak, bright-coloured and electrifying, alive with the oncoming darkness 🍁🎃

Gonna get spooked so often!

Your art has a strong sense of portraiture. A formality / regality that is in part thanks to a commitment to realistic proportions and lighting. In this furry world of Disneyesque cartoon styles, your work really stands out.

What led you to develop your art style in this direction? Any specific inspirations?

I'd have to go with November as my month of choice. It's cold enough to bundle up in a jacket and scarf, and Thanksgiving every month means leslots of great food and time with friends and family.

Thank you. It's just always what i enjoyed so naturally i wanted to go in that direction. Simple as that really. I guess it's just what everyone does? Or at least tries to do to some extend. Some people do realize that the art they enjoy and the art that they are the best at are different things after all.

Oh gosh, with so many thanksgiving you can become a big round yarn ball!

That's neat to know. Needless to say, I love your art and its always a treat to see you in my submission feed.

My adoptive mom once told me "The reason fat people are always jolly is because they aren't hungry!"
It made me snort my drink from laughter. But I kind of agree. And being a fluffy round wolf wouldn't hurt my feelings one bit :3

Here’s one of my favorite questions to ask artists. What piece of media (tv show episode, movie or even video game), which on the surface is not about furries, has elements to to that make it feel like it was written as an “inside job” by a furry?

One series that seems to have some ghost furry transformation writers hiding in the shadows would be various Batman animated series. Batman Beyond has an episode called ‘Splicers’ where a mad scientist promotes splicing animal DNA into humans as some sort of rebellious fashion statement. And the episode climaxes with the villain getting unwillingly TF’d into a giant monster.

And then there’s The Batman episode called ‘Attack of the Terrible Trio’. Where some college outcasts splice animal dna as a means of getting back at bullies. And the episode climaxes with the villain getting unwillingly TF’d into a giant monster…. Hmm maybe they were written by the same person lol.

So what’s your pick? Seen either of those episodes above if you ever watched those shows?

I just watch too few TV series to really give an educated answer there, but i mean disney shaped such a large part of the furry fandom that even early on they must have had people that were furry but the whole thing of being a furry didn't really exist yet.
And no i haven't watched the batman animated series, just...yeah. TV series and such just are pretty low on the ladder of what to do all day long and there already is so little time each day. So i get to watch like 3 movies and perhaps 1 TV series each year.
I probably spent more time studying from movies than i watched them, :')

How have you dealt with those times in life when you feel that your progress in art is at a standstill, or even worse, seems like it's regressing?

Just stubbornness i suppose. And it being my sole income also made it pretty easy to always have a reason to come back the next day and continue. But yeah, not always easy, especially because art just is a bit of an up and down boat ride where sometimes it just is slow or feels like nothing goes right. But of course having done it a few years by now I've just gotten used to it and know better that it just is something that happens.

Definitely September... not too hot, not too cold, and the mosquitoes are gone.

Decent pick i would say!

December for sure! For seasons and stuff I actually would proooobably like February or March more, but I absolutely love Christmas season. The pine-scented stuff, the decorations and colors, all that stuff.

Question for you: How would you compare the experience of drawing NSFW of your own character vs commissions / YCH's from (or collabs with) others of your character?

it's just a different desire i guess. Most of the adult work i do nowadays (especially non-commission work) is just quicker sketches, so it's very much a feeling of in-the-momentness. Wanting to do it, spending 2,10, 30 or however many minutes it'll take and then that's that.
Wheras for commissions it's much more a case of it being planned, wanting to see something that i think that artist does well and that i enjoyed in the past. So much more focussed on the artist who will draw it and their strengths. And for collabs specifically it's the fun of working together with someone i appreciate and where i enjoy the character as well. It's just an exciting time working together.

I'm putting in a second vote for May, and not just because I was born in it. The weather is nicely varied, everything is green and flowery, the air smells fantastic, there are birdies and bunnies and all sorts of baby critters...but if it was May all year, then other Mays would see maturations and the change-over to other types of plants.

I guess a climate like May all year round would be ideal, because all the other months have negatives about them (too hot, too cold, too dry, too wet, snow, gray and dreary) but I can't think of anything negative about May.

Oh, no there won't be any change. It'll be the same may plants all year round. They wouldn't change. Otherwise it would be too easy. It's the month repeating the strictest way possible. So leaves falling in october and november will just happen all year round.

Wow...that would get incredibly boring--!

But I guess that's what it's like in Hawaii, when you think about it.

How would food be grown if nothing ever changed, though?

Well it wouldn't be a fun question if only the obvious upsides were considered.
And dunno about the food. Maybe you only ever would get food that gets harvested in that month.

I realized that I forgot to answer your question about the single month of the year that I'd like to see for all eternity. To answer, this would depend on where I lived. If I were back in Hawaii, I'd say February because of the killer surf on the North Shore. Were I back in bush of Northern South Africa, November when the rains come. Were I back in Palm Desert, October after the summer heat breaks. Here in Western Oregon, I'll take June.

June it is then!

I'd have to go for a fall month, probably October, but I wouldn't be happy. Even though I love autumn and hate summer, I love the change of seasons more than I hate summer. Maybe just a shorter summer.

Shorter summer is not an option. So you're not getting that! Endless october it will be!

I am going to assume that you have presented yourself accurately (i.e., you are a bipedal, anthropomorphic, male painted dog with a sheath and standard canine penis). If you have not (presented yourself accurately), please answer as if you had.

How you urinate using a urinal? Or pee in a toilet?

Always the handstand way.

I didn't think of that.

What?

Probably April or May:
Mild temps. The bugs haven't quite gotten up to speed. Everything that radiant shade of new growth green and flowers.
Should be fine as long as the antihistamines are doing their job.
If allergies are an issue: January. Best part of winter. Very few allergens. Cocoa and cider are still fashionable and no stress from upcoming holidays. ^_^

What do you think of helping out an artist that has plateaued? Are you approachable in that sort of way?

Also, are you approachable in DMs in general by anyone?

Let me think of a NSFW one... For drawing and enjoying, do you prefer humanoid dicks? Or canine, or horse dicks? With or without foreskin?

And as for your question, I'd say... May. Just because it seems to be the month where good things in my life usually happen, haha.

May is pretty good! Yeah!
Then for the questions, I do have a patreon thing where i give out critiques, but otherwise it's rare that i can. It just takes a lot of effort and time to do it, so it's not really something i can do to most people who ask. But yes, generally i always try to answer as much as i can when a note comes flying in.

And canine ones are easy #1 for me. But of course also always depends on the character itself. Has to fit in the end, so canine dick on a horse character doesn't really make it better.

what artist(s) do you look up to and/or have influenced your work quite a lot? who do you turn to for inspiration?

Too many to list really, and it's also something that shifts around over the years with artists moving up and down the list so to speak. Frank Frazetta was a pretty big one back then, but nowadays there's really very little left of that for example. Impressionists, russian realists, contemporary artists like Karla Ortiz, Gurney, Mullins etc.

As you're multi-lingual, do you find you have a particular language you think in?

For your question, I'd probably go with April or May, since I do really enjoy the delicate first flowers of the year, plus that pale/yellow green of the new foliage on all the plants. Although in the UK our months/seasons are woefully inconsistent so I doubt much would really change.

English at this point. Just is the dominant language in my life by now.

And yes, they are solid choices!

Interesting!

Here's another question: what are you favourite/most pleasing/most enjoyable elements to have/place/draw in a painting?

i always like water and rocks. They're just so abstract in a way that it's very difficult to get them wrong and in return they're really cozy to paint. Can just noodle away and relax.

Well, maybe I'm a little late, but I found this journal a few days ago. My questions would be:
How do you feel about drawing nudity or/and sexual things? I mean How you approach these in art? In spiritual way or more physical way, what those things mean for you? (your onsen pic for example)
And you're interested about spiritual, psychological things?

By the way I like May but not forever sorry x3. I like to see when the nature is wake up, bees, trees, animals, the weather starting to warming, the first storms :)
But I prefer more to see the seasons changing! It's help me to don't get depressed!

I saw you came home from con, I hope that you spent a great time there! :3

Thank you, yes it was pretty good! And may is a good choice! Probably pretty high in my own list.

And honestly all my art is pretty physical. I'm not a very spiritual person in the whole god or "energy" guiding the universe sort of thing anyway, and what "spirituality" is there i've found just very hard to put into pictures as it very much is just an experience that doesn't really make sense in just picture form. Like i guess trying to convey the feeling of someone touching your hand by drawing a picture of some hands touching eachother. Sure, it technically conveys the feeling, but does it REALLY? Like a little earlier this year i thought that maybe i'd have a entrance into it and explore it more when i painted this one : https://www.furaffinity.net/view/45759616/ , but i feel ultimately the lesson i drew from it is to go in the opposite direction and have pictures just be that, pictures.
No spirituality or anything like that, but instead have them do what they do best and simply capture a moment in time so to speak.
But yeah, as with everything self expression that just is a fluid process over time. We're all changing as time goes on after all, and so does what we feel is worth expressing and so at least currently that is my outlook on it.
That's a bit more general than just nudity and sexuality, but it applies the same. My own and the characters of others are hot, and having them fuck is hot as well, so drawing and indulging in that is fun.

So I know I'm like... 3 months late but I was just wondering, who did / do you study when it comes to backgrounds and the more rough/heavy brush style that you do for your work? It's such an interesting style of painting and I'd love to read up on it.

Also the best month just finished. October has the perfect mix of warm beginning and colder end. Give me more of that.

A bunch of people, i just got a big file with whatever cool art i find as an inspiration and reference board. Just too many good artists around and they all have fun little quirks and whatnot that are fun to look at :D

That's cool! Your backgrounds remind me of Craig Mullins, with those really big painted backgrounds that are more about color and shade than extreme detail. Thanks for the answer!

Yeah he's certainly among the top of that artist pile.