Colors Gallery, meet MentalMinty
@MentalMinty is a hobbyist photographer and a new artist who has, thanks to their amazing sister @Rubber_Ducky( who was our 6th artist of the week) has make vast strides in their artistic journey! Their works are polished with many intricate details! Now let's learn even more details about them!
What should we know about you? Who is MentalMinty?
"That's a good question, I often ask myself that.
I'm a beginner artist, who loves to draw what I love most. From video games, to wacky ideas
that stemmed from conversations I've had, I'm willing to try drawing it."
Your style is really unique! It reminds me of pokemon trading cards and of other card games. How did you develop it and what's your process? What are your inspirations?
"When I was younger, I used to casually collect Pokémon cards with my brother because I liked
how pretty they looked. Whilst I don't collect cards anymore, I still like to look at the various styles of art that they tend to have. I find great inspiration from them."
"Developing my style is something that has evolved over time. Back when I was younger, I
played through Pokémon Art Academy (unfortunately young Mental didn't know about Colors
3D) and, whilst I definitely was no good at it back then, I think a lot of what I do stems from
some of the fundamentals I remember from the game."
"I've also learnt a lot by watching speed paints and tutorials on YouTube or by using google to look up things I don't know.The internet can be a great source of learning, albeit rather daunting for a beginner."
"References are honestly my best friend. They help me with my creative process so much and
are sometimes a form of inspiration too."
"My greatest inspirations are video games, mainly Pokémon, but also the world around me.
Sometimes I'll draw something from a conversation I've had with someone, or I might find
inspiration from something currently happening in life at the time, such as seasons,
celebrations, etc."
Paldea Project Part 1 by MentalMinty
You're a photographer? When did you start this hobby? What do you like to take pictures of and what motivated you?
"I've been a hobbyist photographer for about 5-6 years now. It all started when I got my hands on my father's camera, and practically claimed it for myself. Eventually, I got my own DSLR
camera, learnt how to use the manual settings, learnt how to edit and here I am.
My main passion for photography is wildlife and nature, particularly anything I can find local to my home. I do dabble in other areas though, and will pretty much photograph anything that
catches my interest."
You and your sister @Rubber_Ducky are quite talented! I especially love how you use the texture brushes and all the intricate details you add into your works. You said that you're a beginner so did your sister have a huge role in teaching you about art? Or were you mostly learning on your own and used her/others as inspiration?
"Thank you, that's very nice of you to say! I love the texture brushes so much! I often wonder if I add maybe too many intricate details, as sometimes they can be hard to see, so it's really nice to know that people do notice them!"
"My sister is a massive source of inspiration and motivation for me. Sometimes when I'm
struggling to complete a piece, or if I'm facing a bout of art block, she always helps me to work around any issues I am facing and helps me to get back on track. She has helped me so much,
but a lot of the learning has also just been by experimenting with what works and what doesn't
and discovering what I like."
"Essentially, to quote my sister, she threw me in the deep end and then jumped in after me.
Since beginning art what are some important things that you've learned? What have you learned about art and about yourself?
"One of the first things I learnt about art is that it's not as easy as it looks, especially to begin with. Practice is so incredibly important, because it is easily the best way to improve."
"I've also learnt that it's ok to not rush your learning and to take your time. I thought that I had to be amazing from the beginning and that in turn made me into a bit of a perfectionist. I later learnt that it's ok for my art to not be perfect from the start and that art is skill that takes time and patience to develop."
"Some of the things I struggled with (and still struggle with) is perspective and lighting."
"Very often I have to constantly alter a sketch because the angling and perspective of something isn't right or sometimes I struggle to imagine where the shadows and highlights would fall under the lighting I want. These are important aspects to learn, but also rather difficult to grasp. This is where good references and practice can help."
Apple by MentalMinty
When did you discover Colors Live? What made you decide to use our app? Any features that you want to see in the future?
"I first found out about Colors in a trailer I saw, which was posted by Nintendo. I later
recommended the app to my sister, who got it for her birthday. After watching her use colors
over a few months, she noticed my interest but I was initially hesitant to try it. I had wanted to try digital art for quite a while, but was nervous to start because I thought I would be bad at it."
"Eventually, she shoved her switch at me and told me to have a go and two weeks later I had my
own copy. As for features, I would like to see, I would really like to see a watercolour or flat style brush."
"Any other texture brushes would also always be appreciated. It would also be cool to see some
kind of blur tool."
Colors art you have the most pride in?
"I absolutely love my Kingfisher piece. It was my first ever try at realism, and whilst there is room for improvement, I still like how it came out in the end."
Favorite artist on and off Colors?
There are so many amazing artists both on and off colors. It's probably no surprise that
@Rubber_ducky is first on my list. Sisterly bias aside, I also really want to mention Puzzled,
@SaltineCracker, @fuu-min and @acchan. I love how their styles look and the dedication they all have to their art. It's always a pleasure to log on and see what they have posted.
To mention a few artists off of colors that I've recently seen, there's @hazikamiio, @sajo_su5,
@maxinevee and @RyrmCher all on twitter/X.
Top 3 Favorite Colors artworks?
Celebi and suicune by acchan
Whimsicott by SaltineCracker
Ha by Rubber_ducky
What's some important advice you can give about photography? What do you look for when deciding on a good photo?
"Honestly the best advice for photography is similar to art, to grab a camera and practice."
"Firstly, I advise you to learn how to use your camera. There are a lot of different cameras that are on sale these days, and a lot of the time they differ greatly from one another. It's important to know where key settings are, and how to change them. A bit of advice that was given to me when I was learning was to actually read the manual and to store it in my camera bag in case I need it when I am out and about. It may seem boring, but knowing your way around your camera makes things a whole lot easier. Google is also super helpful too."
"If you can find and afford to join a local photography club, the people there will have a trove of experience and advice, and can show you how to take and edit photos.
But the most important advice I can give about photography is to have fun and enjoy what you
photograph."
There are three main things I look for in a good photo:
Is it lit well (or have good exposure), is it sharp where I want it to be (and not blurry in main subject areas) and does it have a good composition (is my main subject placed well within the photo).
If you were to give up photography and wanted to snap a picture of one last thing before you quit, what would it be?
"This question really made me stop and think. I first thought that I would choose something I
really want to photograph, such as animals in their natural habitats (some I would love to
photograph include tigers, hummingbirds, owls or foxes). Then came the joke like thoughts of
choosing to photograph my camera, so that when I look at the photo, I would remember all the
fun I've had with it. But then I thought of my family, and how I would love to have a photo of all of us together. So in other words, I don't really have a solid answer to this question, because apparently I can't make my mind up, there's just too many good options."
Do you have any goals or plans for the future?
"If anything I want to keep on improving and to keep on experimenting. I will most likely continue to work on improving my realism and continue working on art for my favourite video games. But, moving forward, I would like to try working with more expressive posing and perspectives. I would also like to try drawing more human characters, something I
really struggle with, but whether or not they get posted will depend on whether I can pluck up
the courage to try or whether they come out any good or not."
Anyone you'd like to shout-out?
Please, please, please check out @Rubber_Ducky if you haven't already, she is amazing.
Please also check out the artists I mentioned. All of them are so incredibly talented!
I also want to shout out to everyone who comments and/likes my posts. I may not respond to
comments much anymore, but I do read and appreciate every single one I get. So thank you all
so much for your support!
garou by Rubber_Ducky
That wraps up our interview with @MentalMinty ! We at The Colors Team would like to thank you for your time! Everyone keep them fresh in your mind and keep checking them out!
Check out our interview with our previous artist of the week @SoupiBuddi here
http://colorslive.com/page/Meet-SoupBuddi
For those who may need a reminder
The Artist of the week will be posted every Friday so be sure to tune in! Prior to that, the artist may be contacted via email or other means at least a week or more in advance so be sure to check your emails( and spam) so you don't miss out on a chance to be featured. If you don't reply within 48 hours another artist may be chosen to be featured for that week instead and you will be in a future artist of the week update.
The announcement of who is the upcoming featured artist will be announced at least 2-3 days in advance or eariler so look out for that too! If you would like for any of your questions or comments to be featured in an upcoming interview please check out colorslive.com/discord and visit the official artist of the week channel to submit questions/commentary for a chance for those to be answered before Friday.
Suggest a new artist for artist of the week on the forum post on my gallery or by posting with the #heyzyik tag.
Join #wc526 "The Pact" and make an unlikely ally! The deadline is Sunday October 29th, 2023!
Stay creative!
Zyik & The Colors Team
