Interview with:Rich Tu [richtu]
ILLUSTRATION
 | What is your specialty in illustration? I do mostly editorial illustration.
*Updated Answer* I'll do anything, as long as it stimulates me. |
| What are your regular clients like? What do they expect from you? Lately I've been mostly with business magazines. Jobs like that are essentially problem solving. Clients really just want to see interesting solutions.
*Updated Answer* I have had a variety of clients so far, including branding/advertising work. I've realized that people/clients really want dependability and consistency. As the artist, you want to make yourself and the client look good. Everyone's working hard to please someone while at the same time trying to produce work that makes them proud. |
| Is there a web address where we can see some of your work? |
| Have you completed formal art studies, or are you self-taught? I'm finishing my Masters at the School of Visual Arts' MFA Illustration as Visual Essay program (that's a mouthful).
*Updated Answer* I received my MFA in 2009. It was glorious. |
| How did you get your first full assignment? What did it involve? My first assignment was series of promotional posters for the OMBE Shop in NJ, when Jason Bass of JB Classics shoes came to the store to do an installation. There were five posters and I designed in them in 5 days, so I gave myself a poster a day... and it almost killed me.
My first published illustration was for SWINDLE Quarterly. The article was about LA's automated traffic system. They gave me a full page, and let me decorate the following 3 pages. So they basically spoiled me for every other illustration to come along since. |
| What past or present day illustrators do you admire most? Mario Hugo, Marshall Arisman, Shout, Richard McGuire, Josh Cochran, Guy Billout, Josh Bayer, Seth, Charles Burns, R. Kikuo Johnson... these are just the few off the top of my head.
Some other names that aren't necessarily illustration related are Steve Heller, Nicholas Feltron, Kate Moross, Adam Kalkin, Edward Hopper, Rem Koolhaas, many many many others. |
| How similar are your current drawings to those you did as a child? I drew a lot of superheroes in very stiff poses (think Encyclopedia to the Marvel Universe). The first drawing that I did that actually impressed me was of Leonardo (the Ninja Turtle), but I used visual reference for that one. |
| What was your favorite comic book as a child? The Amazing Spider-Man, especially the Erik Larson/Mark Bagley years. The first comic I ever bought as a kid was ASM #338. |
| Do you have a particular style, or does it vary a lot? I enjoy spare imagery that either gets right to the point or is so vague that you leave it not knowing what you just looked at.
*Updated Answer* I'm all over the place and I'm not afraid to say it. Milton Glaser talks about the mentality of the "painter" versus that of a "professional". Painters aim to fail and professionals aim to perfect a technique.
I'd rather fail. |
| What is hardest to draw? faces, sometimes they give too much away |
| What type of music do you listen to while you work? Usually music that reflects the underlying mood of the piece |
| Do you have a favorite work of art? Usually the very last piece I did 3 weeks after I did it. |
| What do you do when a client simply says "I don't like it"? I take another crack at it, and repeat the process until I get one through. However, if I'm really passionate about a concept I'll try to justify it. |
| What new techniques have you been experimenting with lately? Lately I've been experimenting with combining 3 dimensional elements with 2 dimensional elements, which all sit on a flat 2D plane. |
| What part of your work do you do on paper and what part digitally? I always draw on paper. I color both on paper and digitally.
*Updated Answer* I still prefer to draw on paper, but I must admit that Wacom changed my life. |
| What research do you do for your illustrations? I usually reference specific objects. I've been using less reference for the body, in an attempt to have a stylistic approach to anatomy. I will sometimes use photo reference for posture and proportion however. |
| Do you have colleagues with whom you share techniques, tricks, ideas, etc.? I have a decent network of people who're willing to throw an honest opinion at me. This is EXTREMELY important to the artist. |
| Do you have any specific goals as an illustrator? World domination? But other than that, I just want to live my life on my own terms, and illustration is my key to that. |
| What illustration web sites do you frequent? |
| What are you working on now? I'm caught up in my thesis which is a creation story narrative, a promotional poster for the thesis show in May, and I'm doing sketches for an unnamed business magazine.
*Updated Answer* I recently signed on as Art Director for the creative agency Dagr-Nott & Associates. We have a few projects in the pipeline that are keeping my hands tied in various knots. However, I still take commissions because "sleep" is SO five minutes ago. |
| What advice do you have for someone who likes to draw and would like to make a living from it? Get stuff done. There are so many artists out there, but your potential clients just want to see that your work is good and that you produce regularly.
*Updated Answer* Hell Yeah. |
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Rich Tu
New York City
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