I met Gordon Neill at Capital SciFi Con, in Edinburgh, the first edition of Keith Armour‘s event. The young artist was surrounded by a huge variety of ‘environments’, which he had painted during the course of his career.
FB: Your journey into art started at the age of 25. Tell us about your journey and why, one day, you decided to take the plunge and change career course.
GN: Back in 2009 whilst working a dead end job in the Scottish railway industry I had a hobby that kept me sane, playing video games and watching movies. When I had my fill of them for hours on end I turned my attention the “behind the scenes” features that showed how the entertainment media was made.
I used to love the fact that you could peer into these studios and see what really made them tick. Through watching a lot of these features I noticed one key thing, the art department. I never realised after years of consuming games and movies that people were paid to illustrate and design them.
Whilst watching Star Wars: The Clone Wars episodes I noticed a name on the list of credits, an artist in California named Matt Gaser. His work was inspiring so I took a chance and emailed him asking various questions about the industry. He didn’t disappoint and emailed me back right away. He laid out the ground work that would become my learning experience and made me make the decision that it was time to leave my job and pursue my dream. I applied for a local college art program and the rest is history.
Matt has also recently released an art book called “Fantastical: The Art of Matt Gaser” you can buy it through his website.
The Duel. By Gordon Neill.
FB: You portfolio reveals a predisposition for environments. Is this your favourite subject?
GN: It’s always been the work that inspires me most, Matt’s work when I first researched him was focused on not only characters but environments. I loved his colour palette and range of compositions. Again he has been a true inspiration.
The Road Ends. By Gordon Neill. Photo bash painting technique.
FB: What artists inspired you to follow a career in art?
GN: Apart from Matt I’ve been inspired by local comic artist like Tanya Roberts & Gary Erskine as well as other environment artist like Titus Lunter and John Avon.
Orbit poster. By Gordon Neill
FB: If you had no constraints of time or money, what project would you love to bring to life?
GN: I would love to create my own world in a book form possible telling a tale of revenge in ancient Japan.
FB: What’s next for you?
GN: I’m pushing on towards my 3rd year of my degree and looking to learn more and more each day. My painting and drawing career has only begun but I hope to be working professionally by next year.
