We’re so excited to continue Wacom Creativity Camp 2024 with this free online character design workshop from Jocelyn Short on Thursday, July 18, 2024, at 4:30pm PDT!
Wacom Creativity Camp is a series of free, live, online workshops from brilliant artists, creators, and educators throughout the month of July 2024! If you want to learn all about character design, illustration, comics, manga, art education, and more, check out the Creativity Camp homepage for all the details and resources. And make sure to sign up for Creativity Camp to get reminders about and to register for all of the workshops!
Jocelyn Short is an illustrator and concept designer creating artwork for the fantasy, sci-fi, and horror genres in comics, video games, and film. She is currently developing Bearers, an art anthology exploring the experiences of unique spirit couriers. Her professional credits include creating the banner artwork for Virtuous Con for 2024, art assets for Black Feminist Video Game, and character designs for the comic The Legend of Althea by Royce Adkins. Check Jocelyn Short out on Instagram, or Facebook.
Short will be presenting Crafting Compelling Character Designs as part of Creativity Camp on July 18th, 2024, at 4:30pm PDT, live on Zoom! Click here for more info about the workshop and to register.
In advance of her workshop, we spoke to Short about her background, interests, inspirations, what to look forward to during her workshop, and what she’s got going on in the future.
How did you first get into digital art? Were you a creative kid?
I first got into digital art when I was in high school; I was on several fan forum sites for fun and I would make signature banners. Digital art evolved into digital painting in college. I was definitely a creative kid. Throughout most of my school years, before I made art my college major, I was the “art kid.” Art teachers would favor me and I even ended up doing tattoo designs for people in high school!
Do you think going to art school is a necessity, or can beginning creatives teach themselves what they need to know?
I feel that the wealth of instruction currently available online is incredible and I’ve benefited from it myself. Folks have so much access to affordable art instruction and art communities, which makes learning art that much easier.
I think there is great value in guided instruction, but I don’t think going to art school is an absolute necessity, and I’m saying that as someone who went to art school herself. Most, if not all, brick-and-mortar/private art schools are overpriced, in my opinion, and most students end up with enormous debt that is very challenging to pay back.
The benefit of brick-and-mortar/private schools, however, is in-person critique and networking, which is excellent. But that doesn’t necessarily make the cost equivalent. You can get a great artistic educational experience through awesome online avenues that will enrich you and help get you work, should you desire it.
You currently work as a concept artist. What do you love about it? How did you decide what you wanted to pursue as a career?
I love getting to explore and flesh out really unique designs and make them feel as real as possible. I wanted to pursue it as a career because it felt like a concrete application for art. I really liked the idea that art could still be so expressive and directly functional in a production pipeline of creation throughout different mediums.
How did you break into concept art as a career? What tips or advice do you have for students or beginners who might want to follow a similar path?
I took a mentorship after I graduated from art school to try to hone my skills more, which helped me a lot technically and socially because that mentor remembered me and invited me into other art spaces. Conventions have also helped me immensely with making connections and getting client work and opportunities.
My suggestion to students and beginners who want to follow a similar path is not to go into debt for your education, to find education that teaches the foundations of art and entertainment design, and to learn from teachers and mentors who have direct experience in the industry.
I would also say to network across first, and network up second. Get to know your peers and the people alongside you on your journey, stay connected to them, and learn from each other. They will be an evergreen boon for your growth and morale because those are the folks who started on the come-up with you.
How did you develop your own personal art style? What are some of your biggest influences and/or inspirations?
I feel like I developed my art style by emulating a painterly approach, matched with a very moody and dramatic aesthetic. I wanted my art to feel tactile and visceral in my own way. Big art inspirations include Alphonse Mucha, Albrecht Durer, Norman Rockwell, Craig Mullins, Ryan Lang, Nathan Fowlkes, Thomas Chamberlain-Keen, Sergey Kolesov, Eleeza, Anthony Jones, Gawki, Wylie Beck, Maika Sozo, there’s a lot more … the list is long!
How do you stay motivated when you’re feeling stressed or uninspired?
I keep online collections of really cool art that I come across, so I’ll revisit those folders and look through them to get re-inspired. Or, I’ll listen to art podcasts or podcasts that have nothing to do with art at all! Playing video games also helps to take my mind off my stress for a little bit, and then I can return back to art after I’ve calmed down.
What Wacom device(s) do you use? Why do you choose to use Wacom products?
I use a Cintiq 27QHD. Wacom products last a long time, and I knew that they were the industry standard, so I figured a Wacom tablet would be a good investment — and it definitely has been!
What will your workshop at Creativity Camp cover?
My workshop will cover my thought process through character design and painting techniques. Folks can expect to learn how to be more thoughtful when creating designs, and they can also expect to learn drawing/painting techniques that can be used with or without a drawing tablet.
Where can people go to learn more about you, your work, or to follow your journey? Do you have any projects coming up that you’d like to share or promote?
People can visit my website, to see more of my work and follow my newsletter to get regular updates on my journey. They can also follow my socials to keep up with me there — I’m on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and X (Twitter). One project I have coming up is a single-issue comic for my art series called Bearers that I’ve been working diligently on. It’s hopefully due for release in late 2024, or early 2025, so please keep your eyes peeled for updates on that!
