art – Page 2 – Toby Weston

Continuing our series in epic SciFi Art, we have some favourite pieces from the very talented Lorenz Hideyoshi Ruwwe. Hideyoshi was kind enough to answer our whirlwind ‘getting to know you’ SciFi speed dating questions too.

Thanks for doing an interview! First, tell us a little about yourself. How did you get started in art and what’s your overall goal? Where do you see yourself going?
Hey, my name is Lorenz Hideyoshi Ruwwe and I live in Berlin, Germany. I have always been interested in drawing ever since I was little and kept up practise over the years. When I was a teenager I was obsessed with Dragon Ball and other manga and tried my fair share at drawing in that style, even publishing a manga story later on with a very limited print count. Some time in high school I stumbled upon Feng Zhu’s old marker concept art and was really inspired to get into that as well. In 2004 I finally gave digital art a go and have been creating in that medium ever since, also expanding into 3D art more and more.
People say it’s important to have goals. Yes, I agree but when it comes to art, I don’t really think in these terms too much. If you’re only chasing some sort of career, it can take out some of the value of art. I simply follow my passion of creating and expressing when I feel the inspiration and work usually comes along by itself. You simply attract the kind of work that you’re doing at any give time. Where ever you put your energy, you attract more of that. I have been fortunate to work on all kinds of different projects so far that have challenged me in different ways and has kept work interesting and I hope it will continue to do so.
I’d like to inspire people when they look at my art and tell stories. I guess that is some sort of goal. I want to expand upon techniques that can help me create more striking art.
I am juggling a few other things professionally which is why I am a bit more relaxed about art these days. Filmmaking has become another field which I have been pursuing for quite a while now. I keep shifting my creative output so to speak and try to stay flexible. That has worked quite well for me over the years. But I always wonder if I should make a decision one day and commit to one passion and really chase that alone. As long as I can express myself in various fields simultaneously, I’ll continue to do so though.

What inspires you to make sci-fi art? TV shows, books, other artists, etc.?
There is a long list for sources of inspiration that come from all kinds of media. The usual suspects for a lot of sci-fi artists that always come up are titles like Akira, Ghost in the Shell, Bladerunner, Alien, Matrix, Terminator etc. Yes, they have influenced me just the same. Since manga was a big part of growing up, I read everything by Tsutomu Nihei and went down that Cyberpunk rabbit hole for a good while. Also titles like Battleangel Alita or Eden had an impact on me. I have read Philip K. Dick’s work with keen interest.
A bit more recently, Ghibli and Moebius have influenced my art quite a bit as well. I feel I had this dark cyberpunk phase initially and then also went on to explore lighter sci-fi, edging on Fantasy as well. I like the whole Star Wars aesthetic just as much now while I had been evading it mostly for reasons that are beyond me haha.

Which of your pieces is your favorite? Why?
Uh that is a tough one. I don’t think I can answer that definitively. It keeps changing. I still like some really old speed-paintings of mine like the Samurai standoff (above). Also recent speed-paintings like Bounty Hunter and Child Inventor. Also anything Steampunk such as the Tesla Teleporting Station.

I usually like the rough work I put out more than the rendered up ones. There is a certain charm about quick paintings that can be both realistic and abstract at the same time. They leave a lot to imagine for the viewer. I generally like simplicity in art, telling a story with the bare minimum. Speedpainting is my favourite style of working.
When it comes to more detailed art, this one I am still quite proud of Conservator Walk Gateway. (below)

Also Akira this one, but it’s more fanart than being original.

What’s your technique like? Do you finish pieces in a single setting or spread them out over multiple days?
Well, speed-paintings I finish in one go, mostly in 30 minutes haha – when I do one for the so called ‘Daily Spitpaint’ activity which I really like. It’s like a highly focused session of bringing your best skills to the table in one go. These quick paintings really force you to concentrate on what’s most important, no second – guessing, no procrastinating.
When I render a piece, it can happen over several days, yes. But I feel that taking too many interruptions can harm a piece because you lose momentum and start overthinking which is never good in art.

Finally, of all the future technology consistently theorized across all forms of media (teleportation, instant communication, genetic editing, spaceflight, cloning, etc.), what would you like to see the most?
Hm, all kind of sci-fi is intriguing to me, I don’t really have a preference as long as the ideas are presented well – may it be aesthetically or conceptually. Of course it’s best when concepts are shown both visually appealing and functionally sound. I always dig me some space-related and robotic/cybernetic art for sure.