Good day, and welcome to another creator spotlight. This week, I’m interviewing Mint, an absolutely amazingly talented friend of mine who deserves way, way more attention for their art. Oh hey, they’re openly taking commissions, so you should give them all your money, you simps. I sat Mint down and asked a few extremely professional and not-at-all directed questions.
@@@
I feel like the best way to interview someone, especially artists, is to engage with them on their level. Words alone don’t stimulate the senses in a nuanced or philosophical way, so it’s important to open these interviews in a way that does. So, how massive is the shrine to Omniman in your house, and why Omniman?
It’s in my walk-in closet and is continuously growing, thank you.
No more trick questions, I promise. Hey Mint. Why art? I don’t mean that in the “why did you choose your style” kind of way, either. I mean why pursue art? Does it bring you personal joy to do so, or do you believe there’s an inherent and greater meaning in what you do? What about your art speaks to you individually-and to your audience?
Honestly, I know people give this clichéd answer a lot but, I’ve been drawing since I was a little kid and I always loved doing it. I never stopped or lost my interest in it ever so here I am today! I know for now I draw mainly furry NSFW, but it is helping me grow artistically and creatively in more ways that I can say! I never imagined that I would ever be this satisfied with my craft, and I’m happy there are many others who enjoy what I draw.
Okay I lied, this interview is going to be full of trick questions. You’ll have to forgive me-I call myself a “voice actor”, but that’s just a fancy term for “con artist”. Language, despite failing to ever sensually engage people, is beautifully transformative like that. Speaking of which, you’ve told us what your work says. What of you, the dude behind the ink? Do you often find yourself coming out in unexpected ways through your work?
I do! Art, in all of its many forms, is very expressive and freeing. Oftentimes, my work is self-indulgent and I have been able to learn all kinds of things abt not only my art style and what I want for it, but also myself as a person. Which I understand sounds very silly coming from the Twitter Furry Porn Artist, HAHA!!
Speaking of which, being in proximity to you means I’ve stumbled across the phrase “omega verse”. In laymen’s terms, what is this and what exactly does it mean to you as a creator and individually?
I’m gonna be sick…
Ok but in all seriousness, omegaverse is-
Let’s talk shop. As of me writing these questions, we’re hot off Audacity, a tool used by thousands of podcasters and VAs, getting into controversy. I figure it’s the same for the art world, so this question is twofold: How often do you find yourself experimenting with software via brushes or using different programs? Does it affect your workflow? Do you have a favorite?
I used to experiment a lot with different drawing software. FireAlpaca, Medibang, and Paint Tool Sai (of course their free trial) were the main ones. Now, not so much, Clip Studio Paint PRO is the only software I use at the moment, but I LOVE experimenting with the premade brushes, as well as the ones people make and share online!
I also dabble in a bit of video-editing from time to time, using Blender to edit some very short animatics that I cook up.
And second-in many cases, software availability is hindered by paywalls, updates that break privacy concerns in half and more. I’m all too familiar with people’s thoughts regarding Adobe. Do you ever feel as though software companies have art communities in a bind of necessity?
Yes and no! Today there are so many programs that offer amazing tools for art that are completely free, however, because it is so ingrained in the artist community that the best software you can get is from paying for it, companies take advantage of that mentality and put their products under huge paywalls and subscriptions. It can also be a matter of professionalism, unfortunately the art industry is extremely selective and a majority of the softwares used by big-name companies are behind paywalls, and if you don’t use the same products they use, it could be harder for you to get established with an “official” art job.
Alright, now for some boring questions. What was your worst piece? And your best? These can be on axioms of technical skill, reception or whatever. It’s as subjective and personal as you’d like it to be.
I would consider this my worst piece simply because I know I was rushing to get it done. I noticed that if I feel rushed or pressured to get a piece done, it will not come out as a satisfactory result in my eyes. That was the unfortunate case for this piece, though it paved the road for me to keep working and improving on technical skill!
It was a bit tough to choose what I consider my “best” piece, so I went with both of these! Specifically because these were the pieces where, after they were complete I thought to myself “Wow, I did an awesome job with this!”. It is often a rarity for me to be genuinely satisfied with my work, but both of these helped me feel that satisfaction as well as show me just how far my work has come.
Do you have any advice for budding artists? You’ve exploded in popularity in a short amount of time. I feel others could learn from you.
This advice is always given but I never see it given in a way that sounds fun and motivating. Keep drawing/practice, but practice what you want! It’s easy to say that if you just keep doing something that you’ll eventually get better, and while that’s true, never forget that you have to want to improve to actually improve. I would often find myself comparing my art to others, “What are they doing that I’m not?” “What do they have that I don’t?” but sometimes you have to put that aside and just dive headfirst! You can only get better.
Lastly-plug your socials and portfolio here, we’re at the point in the interview people want to give you money.
Check out my main NSFW account!
My ko- fi is in my bio if anyone would like to support me!
Thank you Mint!
Dab Dab!
@@@
Got suggestions for who you want me to interview next? Hit me up at my socials here.