PE Interview: Artist, paintedonmysoul!

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:iconpaintedonmysoul: PaintedOnMySoul Is the fantastical art realm of Kat along with her stock gallery Peace-of-Art she is well equipped to answer some questions for us during our Stock & Resources Project Educate Week.


You've been a stock provider on deviantART for quite a while now, what first got you interested in providing stock to the community?


When I first came to dA I was amazed at the contributions the stock providers made to the community. I felt selfish just taking without giving something back myself. I found I enjoyed stock as much if not more than I enjoyed doing full manipulations. I love detail, sometimes to a fault, and might spend a day or two on just one item.





There are a lot of artists who use your resources, when you are taking images, or organising new stock to submit, do you look for any elements in particular like angles or lighting when choosing what would be the most useful, and does this reflect equally to when you are looking for stock to use in your own work?


I attempt to stay away from shadows as much as possible. I look for unique items or will combine items to make something a little more unique. As for what I choose to use in my own work, that's based on what the overall piece needs. Various angles of items look much more realistic when placed together than if everything faces front for example. With a little paint and blending one doesn't need to begin with something that is already perfect, so shadows and lighting can be added as you work, or eliminated if necessary.





You use stock regularly yourself in your own work, do you ever get inspired directly from a stock image, or do you have an idea or theme in mind before you start looking for stock elements?


Oh YES! Most of the time it's what mood I'm in that inspires me to create. Normally I begin with finding a model [so many wonderful ones to choose from on dA] and begin to work the background around that. But a piece isn't really finished without all of the detail added to both the background and the foreground. It makes the work more interesting and complete. It adds depth to the piece, and takes away the flatness.





You created the resource site pngtubes.com a few years ago tailored specifically for stock and resources, what inspired you to develop the site?


Sammykaye1 and I had started a "group" on dA, geared for those that create tubes to trade those tubes with one another. It was just for fun. But .. it caused some flap on dA and complaints were made to the stock Gallery Directors. People thought it to be "unfair" that what we were providing wasn't for the entire dA population to use for free. After some talking with the GD's it was determined that we could continue, but the shine had been taken away, it somehow felt tarnished, so we closed the group. I then started a little site of my own, and then Ivey asked to join and to my surprise so did a few others, so I closed that one and began PNGTUBES So, the site isn't what it started as, to my surprise. We have thousands of items, 2D and 3D tubes, backgrounds and brushes. Instead of purchasing by the pack people can purchase only what they need or want. It's a ton of work, far more than I ever intended it to be, but it's been lots of fun too.







Its often said that the stock & resources community on DeviantART is one in a million, do you have any advice for other deviants who would like to start sharing their own resources?




That's a tough question. ::smiles:: Maybe that one shouldn't loose themselves in it, and to develop a little bit of thick skin. Not everyone will thank you kindly or give you a compliment. It's sometimes hurtful. Turn a blind eye. Post and then never look back. Have no expectation and as few rules as possible.






As both an artist and a stock provider, you have the unique position of seeing, and experiencing both sides of stock & resources. What are the most frustrating and enjoyable elements of that?


Artist: The most enjoyable: I can't even begin to say how much I appreciate all of those that provide stock, be it stock that is free or stock that is sold. So much time, effort and expense goes into all. The most frustrating: too many rules. The one I hate most is if someone says you can't do prints of your finished piece. I've had to ask myself why they post stock if it can't be used for print.
Stock: The most enjoyable was in the creating and the search for items to "tube". The most frustrating [and only other stockers would know what I mean when I say this], is the unrealistic expectations that others have of you, and the lack of appreciation for what you're giving. Every stocker has seen it.





Last but not least, what flavour cupcake are you?


Red Velvet, fluffy white icing and a little coconut sprinkled on top :D





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