BRIAN BRINLEE

  I met Brian through a Facebook group we have in common. I saw one of his linework Pieces and was inspired to color it. When I do such things, I send a Facebook message to the artist thanking them for the inspiration and showing them what I did. Hopefully, I make the artist smile and it starts a dialog with a fellow artist. Brian's style and art display fantasy in a way that is right up my alley, and I hope yours as well. After a lil bit of dialog I found out Brian is a perfect artist for Fanboy Friday, and I asked if he would be willing to participate and to great joy he said yes. What follows is my interview that proved I was right and that this man is a kindred spirit at least in art as skill and art as entertainment. 

 
1 Who are you and what artforms do you use?My name is Brian Brinlee and I am a freelance fantasy illustrator and comic book artist. I do a lot of artwork for various tabletop RPG's and independent publishers. Most of my work consists of traditional, hand-drawn illustrations in either pencil or pen and ink that is then colored digitally.
2 What are your 5 favorite movies?That is a tough one. There are so many. Top of my list has to be the original theatrical-release of Star Wars (the one where Han shoots first!). After that would the The Lord of the Rings Trilogy (yep, all three, although I think The Fellowship is the best). Third would be James Cameran's Aliens. Fourth would be Excalibur (1981). The fifth would be either Goodfellas or The Godfather. But there are so many movies that I really enjoy so its hard to narrow it down.
3 How has your craft developed?Through years of hard work and learning from my mistakes! LOL! When I first started out with fantasy illustration, I tried to mimic the style of the artists that I admired such as Michael Whelan, Don Maitz, Larry Elmore, and several others. But as you grow, you develop your own style, especially when you start taking on commissions and now you are working against the clock. I have always been equally interested in pencil, pen and ink, and painting. With all three, its really a matter of the amount of time you put into it. The more work you do, the better you get and the more your craft develops. Over the years I can tell my art has improved in the areas of anatomy and color design.
4 What are you artistic inspirations?Well, if you are asking what inspires me, a lot of it comes from other art. Fantasy art, of course, but other genres as well. There is sci-fi and steampunk. I also love the elegance and grace of Art Nouveau. I really like the works of several artists from The Golden Age of Illustration, such as N.C. Wyeth and Arthur Rackham. But I also find inspiration from other things such as movies, music, and especially the outdoors and photos of exotic locations. And people who like and appreciate my art are an inspiration, as I am sure they are for any artist. When people like what you create, it inspires you to keep creating.
5 What is an artist or art form that is catching your attention?Sculpture. I love sculpting and working with clay. I just don't get to do it very often. Maybe once a year, if I am lucky, I get to play with clay. Its a tactile thing, getting to work with your hands like that. I really enjoy it. So I am always looking for and admiring sculptors and their work.
6 what is the best piece of advice a fellow artist gave you?LOL! That's a hard one. It's probably a toss-up between "Work on your anatomy" or "Work on your perspective". Both are hard and take a lot of practice and study. Also "Draw from life". Don't just copy someone else's work or draw from your head. All great art has a basis in reality. But there was also the time a comic editor told me that to make a drawing more dynamic and to give it tension, add diagonals to it. Don't draw it with all right angles. Turn it on its side. That is the secret to a good action scene: draw it at an angle and make it more dynamic.
7How do you seek opportunities to share your art?I share my art on several social media and portfolio sites. Facebook, Instagram, Deviantart, etc. On Facebook, I seek out groups that are in my genre and share my art there. There are groups for almost every type of art or hobby/interest.
8 Where would you like your art to go? Thematically and style?I want to continue to improve my color illustrations. They are far better now than five years ago but there is still a lot of room for improvement. I need to experiment more with different light sources as that can set the tone of the painting. I still like to add a lot of details but I am learning to loosen up. Not every square inch needs to be detailed. Some areas are okay with a more painterly approach. As for theme, I like fantasy. But I would like to delve deeper into other aspects of the fantasy genre, not just monsters and adventuring heroes. Not sure what aspects just yet. Its a work in progress.
9 Do you have any advice for artists who come after you?Draw. Draw all the time. Everyday. Draw from life. Challenge yourself. Don't just draw the easy stuff. Sit at the bottom of a tall building, look up, and draw that perspective. Don't just draw people standing and posing. Draw them sitting, kneeling, walking. Draw gymnasts and athletes. Carry a small sketchbook with you. The more art you create, the better you will be as an artist. Its not just controlling your hand. Its learning to see with your eyes as well as your imagination.
10 the last question What is one art trend or concept that you disagree with or would do away with, and why?Modern concept art and abstract art. Artists who throw paint randomly on a canvas and claim it is a statement for world peace. Artists who tape a banana to a wall (yes, both of these are real) and say it was exploring how we set value and worth (or something like that). I just don't understand it. Maybe, being an illustrator, my brain just isn't wired that way. And there is nothing wrong with throwing paint on a canvas and having fun with it as you create an interesting design. But to say that it makes a deep, meaningful statement, I just don't get it. Its labeled fine art. And fine art and illustration don't always get along.
You can find more of Brian's work at: Brian Brinlee | Facebook  Brian Brinlee (@brian.brinlee) • Instagram photos and videos
Make sure if you do say hi and tell him The PoeticMadman sent you.