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We congratulate MarkusVogt for an outstanding collection of works in the CINEMA 4D Gallery! Who is "MarkusVogt"? I am a German digital artist from a small town near Frankfurt/Main, born in 1971. I have various interests, like: art, music, sports and, of course, my family and true friends are very important to me. I am currently publishing under my real name, Markus Vogt, though a few years ago it was under the nickname "MHV" (which stands for Markus Hermann Vogt, btw), but I have changed it for simplicity and better understanding. I am focusing on 2D/3D graphic art, making music CD cover artwork, weblogo creations here and there, as well as some book or magazine illustrations. In the past, I did some smaller motion graphics animation projects, but nowadays I am concentrating on stills only in the fields of Science Fiction, Surrealism or Dark Art. How long have you been working with computer graphics? I started out exactly 7 years ago, in 2003.
Do you have any traditional art experience? No, I do not really have traditional art experience or any typical art school education. And, in my opinion, that is also not really nescessary for each and every person who wants to work in a creative way. Of course, it has a lot of benefits if you ever went to art school, but artists who don't are also able to produce great artwork if they are willing to learn a few basic rules and adapting those to their own creations later. As long as you are convinced of what you are doing and keep a clear aim in mind, then you can achieve almost anything. I am completely self taught in the digital medium from the beginning, via lots of different books, video tutorials, magazines and, of course, practical experimentations over and over again. What are you currently working on? Currently, I do not have any certain plans. I always try to keep open-minded, keeping even me surprised what will come... What software/equipment do you use and why? I work on a 2,8 GHZ dual processor Windows PC with 4GB of RAM. When it comes to software, I mostly use ZBrush, as it is a very artistic program with almost endless possibilities, and CINEMA 4D, as it has a very logical user interface, as well as all the tools you need for modeling and rendering. It is not too complicated to use and very well organized. As most others, I too use Photoshop for all 2D postprocessing and image editing/manipulation work. Sometimes I use other tools, like Poser, Bryce or Vue in my pipeline as well. Lately, I've discovered a new program called 3D Coat, which really gives interesting possibilites thanks to its unique voxel sculpting technology. Although, I have to say that I find it secondary how and which programs are used, as long as the end result is convincing. That's the ONLY important thing. And, finally, programs are just tools in your hands - nothing more. The real art always comes from the heart of the artist and never from the computer alone.
What is it that you like best about CINEMA 4D? As I said before, I really appreciate its clear user interface and logical workflow. There are lots and lots of great tools included, and at the same time, everything is pretty easy to locate. That is not self-evident, compared to many other software tools available on the market. C4D also has a very good built-in renderer, really fast and stable. Also, the long list of available plugins makes it really attractive. And MAXON has the best license policy I have experienced. There are no complicated and frustrating activation or licensing processes required. All in all, that's the way software should be...at least in my opinion. What do you think your best piece of work is and why? That's a difficult question... If I take a closer look at my gallery, with some distance, I would say that my favourite pieces are "Forced Landing," because of its well balanced composition and scaling, "Apocalyptic," as it represents the damage of our planet through mankind pretty well, and the whole "D.S.E. - Deep Space Exploration" image series about complex spacecraft and sci-fi stations.
Who, or what, inspires you, and how do you get your ideas? Often, unusual ideas and concepts come from very common happenings, as long as you try to keep an open mind. This can happen all day in all different situations. I am inspired by a lot of fantastic artists worldwide and good old science fiction or horror film classics, like: Alien, Terminator 2, or Bladerunner. My personal favourite artists are mostly from Asia. They are perfectionists and have incredible imaginations, skills and knowledge when it comes to art creation. Classic surrealists like Giger or Beksinski are, of course, an inspiration as well. Also, nature and the master artpiece itself called "Earth" is inspiration number one for all of us, I guess. How has this online community (Renderosity) enhanced your work, relationships, and learning? Renderosity was the very first online community I joined, and I was always impressed by its huge amount of different artists and styles. I really appreciate that there are so many different categories in totally different fields, from totally different artists. That makes it very versatile and shows all the possibilities of CGI nowadays, and has a great influence on me and my work. I have also started some friendships with other artists I appreciate via Renderosity, and I am very thankful for that! And don't forget it's fantastic and large MarketPlace and free stuff section, which makes art creation faster and more effective. But, if you would allow me a small critique, then I would have to say that I often wish to receive a few more constructive critiques from other artists. I think that could help to improve an artist's own skills and teaches the eye for the next creation. And each artist should learn to deal with critique, and see this as a chance to become a better artist, and not taking it personally, for any reason.
Do you have any parting comments, or advice for other artists? Yes! I would suggest to master all the working tools you need as much as possible, so that you can focus on the art creation process itself. Struggling with too many technical issues or problems is not the correct way to work. Try to stay versatile and flexible, and don't focus on one certain style only. And last, but not least, try to really bring your images to life, getting rid of any artificial or computer-generated look. Art should look self-made, individual and artistic. Do what you REALLY want to do. YOU are the artist, not the computer or any other medium that you might use. So, don't hurry, take the time that it needs...and keep in mind that becoming a real good artist is a complicated process and needs a lot of patience, practice, passion and knowledge. It is not just a matter of pure talent only. And one last word: thanks for all your help and support over the years and for voting me this month's AOM! Enjoy art and its creation - see you! We invite you to have a further look at MarkusVogt's Renderosity Gallery! Be sure to also visit:
**Have a tutorial, animation, demo reel, or MarketPlace product to demo and share with the community? Consider posting your clips to Renderosity's newly revamped Video Center!** All supporting images are
copyright, and cannot be
copied, printed, or reproduced in any manner without written permission from the artist. Artist of the Month is highlighting a talented Renderosity artist that has been nominated by mods and admins, and voted by the community. Recognition is given to this member for their collection of works for that year. Since we only select one AOM per month, it is not about their works for that particular month. Instead, it is about highlighting a talented artist's works for that year, and they are recognized during that month. To learn more about Renderosity's Artist Of The Month [AOM] award, and to view our past AOM's, please visit the AOM page, which can also be found on the sidebar under Highlights.
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Each month the Renderosity community votes on The Renderosity
Artist Of The
Month [AOM] ... April's AOM is 
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