Link to the Show / Show NotesYou know what's interesting about art? It's as much a personal discovery for the viewer as it is for the creator. Some artists have the ability to transcend tradition and break open the possibilities of commonly used technique—and include you, the viewer, in that process.
Doesn't matter if you're looking at a video tutorial, an on-line gallery or if you're in a good ol' brick and mortar museum (hey, now), you're taken on the journey with them.
We're of the opinion that Brad Rigney is such an artist.
Dude's stuff is so well done and so in there, it's insane. Dwight was the first one to point out how effectively cinematic his lighting is. He literally puts you in the scene.
Rigney works in the gaming industry for companies like Wizards of the Coast, Bungie and now, Massive Black, Inc. His contributions to Bungie's Halo ODST have helped to make it one of the most successful video games ever.
That part is especially cool because Brad was inspired not that long ago by many of the images he saw in the ConceptArt.Org community. After spending some time honing and kneading his skills like so much dough, he joined, and now he stands as one of their biggest success stories—making the dough instead of just needing it (okay, bad play on words).
Coming out of the Magnolia state (that's Mississippi), he's a family man with a wife and daughter, and he's knocking the art world on its ass. Just look at the images we posted with this blog entry and you'll recognize the 'skillage'.
Our conversation with him goes off the rails a lot, but it was all good. We talked about everything—his beginnings, work ethic, influences like artist Richard Corben and filmmaker John Carpenter, the late, great Patrick Swayze. But throughout all of it, Brad was as open and free with us as he is in his tutorials—and we love him for it! What a great guy.
If you haven't seen the clip from his downloadable video, A Hostile Takeover, click here. If you haven't been to his DeviantArt page, click here. And if you haven't heard our interview with him yet, by all means, click above. It's waitin' for ya.
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