An Interview with Lithriel
:: Interviewed by Ulis of B2P::
Introduction
Introduce yourself briefly? (first name, age, town where you live, origin of your nickname, anything else)
My name is Ashley. I'm 23 years old and I’m from the state of Washington. I love to draw, sing, play the piano, doll, spend time with my husband, and make websites. I am due to have my first baby on October 3rd 2008. ^_^ Hm, what else about me? My nifty screen name is Lithriel. My friend came up with it. It means "Ash-maiden" in elvish, the language that Tolkien created for his Lord of the Rings series. I've used this nickname since I started dolling.
1- Journey
How did you find out about dolls? When did you start dolling? What prompted you?
My good high school friend (known as Galadnilien to the dolling world) first introduced me to dolling when I was about 17. We were already working together on a Lord of the Rings website and we soon added our own little doll section to it. It took off from there.
How did you learn pixel art? From forums? Did you study art before? Where do you think you are in the dollers community now?
I learned how to doll by looking at other dolls. Yes, I have studied art extensively. I just graduated with a 4 year degree in art where figure drawing and portrait painting were my best areas so converting my traditional skills into pixeling wasn’t too hard. Still, my pixel work has improved leaps and bounds as I have explored different methods and styles of dolling. I started out as a tool-shader but by looking at other work I saw on forums I was inspired to try my hand a pixeling.
I feel like I have come a long way in the dolling community. My site has gained immense popularity since I put a lot of work revamping it a year ago. I’ve also started seeing my bases widely used which is a major ego boost.
2-Themes
Where does your inspiration come from? Do you have any favorite themes?
I often doll mythical or fantasy like creatures. I enjoy making up my own designs for characters and clothes, but if I feel I am lacking inspiration I will doll from my favorite video game series, Final Fantasy. I am often more inspired to make bases than to doll though I’m not sure why. For some reason I don’t like most of the bases I produce for more than a couple of weeks. That’s probably why I’m always making more.
Who are the dollers you admire and why?
Since the beginning I have been a big fan of Jaeden’s work, but who isn’t? I also admire people like Blue, Guardian, Monica, and others for their spectacular pixel work. It must take lots of patience to produce such amazing dolls. I’m always pulling my hair out trying to be in the same caliber as these ladies.
Choose 3 dolls representing your work:
Do you try to make cute, poetic, gothic, etc.. things ? Are there any messages behind your creations?
I try to make things that are creative and fun to look at but I don’t usually doll “cute” things. Most of the time I just try to make people go “wow” when they see my stuff. There’s never any hidden message in my work. It’s pretty straight forward.
3- Technique and Evolution
Describe your work (instruments, software, "tools", resource, technique, etc)
I use Adobe Photoshop with all of my dolls. I have explored many different techniques including both tool shading and pixel shading. I find that pixel shading makes my dolls more “crisp” although I have appreciation for both. I also use a Wacom tablet for ultimate control.
What are your favorite bases?
I have been using my own bases a lot. I only use other people’s bases if they are realistic and proportionally pleasing to the eye, like Poopsky’s work. I sometimes will even make a base solely for the doll I’m working on.
Do you make dolls extempore or after sketches/ideas ... ?
I often will sketch an idea for a doll in my sketchbook. I draw the base underneath and then add the clothes. Sometimes I draw the outlines directly on the computer. Then I fill in the color loosely underneath for an idea of what the doll will look like. Most of my dolls come straight from my head.
Do you look for things like composition in your dolls?
I do take into consideration composition and focal point. As a professional artist, I am always trying to make my dolls a piece of artwork with consistent shading and unity and blending the style of the base with the doll.
What do you think of your old dolls? What has helped you progress? Is there anything you still want to learn?
I think all of my dolls have helped me learn even though most of them are really old and lacking in quality. My latest work has seen a great improvement. I feel like a completely different doller than what I was a year ago. Even after dolling for 6 years, I always feel like I am learning and getting better. I believe it’s because I am willing to try new things. I also know it’s because I have looked at a lot of inspiring work from other dollers.
Where does dolling fit in relation to your whole work?
I treat dolling simply as a hobby. I would never include my dolls in my professional artistic portfolio because it’s such a unique art form. I will say that dolling has dramatically increased my skills with professional imaging software which has helped in my graphic and web design work.
Current Events-Projects
What are your current events (pixel, other)?
Currently I am holding two contests at my site- an Artistic Vision Pirate contest, and an Invisible Base contest. For details visit the contest section at silindor.com.
Do you have any projects in mind? (collab, commission, website update...)?
I just barely made a few major updates to my website including a new layout, a new base set, and new dolls. For a few months I won’t be as active in the dolling community as I spend time with my new baby. I will find time to keep up with the current events I have going on though. And I hope to have a winter layout for Silindor before too long!
Finally, do you have any advice to give to people learning how to doll?
Always listen to constructive criticism. Learn to admit that your work needs improvement and look at the work others consider to be successful and learn from it. More than anything, improve your traditional artistic skills. If you can paint and draw well on paper, you’ll do just as well on the computer. Also taking portrait drawing and figure drawing classes will help you with making bases more than anything else. You won’t be good a dolling until you learn to see and render the human figure. Remember, all the popular dollers out there started out as great artists first.