Fri, Mar 29, 7:05 AM CDT

April 2012 Vendor of the Month - Godin

Apr 02, 2012 at 12:00 am by Store Staff


file_480240.jpgCongratulations to Godin for being Renderosity's Vendor of the Month for April!

Who is 'Godin'?

My real name is Valery and I live in the Netherlands. I am a woman of 39 years old and married to a wonderful husband who supports me all the way in whatever I do. We don’t have any children, but we have two cats who we deeply love, they are our little babies. I love creating art, I enjoy eating yummy food, reading books (especially about the supernatural, like vampires and stuff like that), chatting with my friends and watching good movies and tv-series.

Let me explain a bit about my artist name Godin. Godin is a Dutch word, in English it means Goddess. The meaning of the name Godin (Goddess) stands for femininity, Divine Energy and Creativity. These are meanings I feel strongly connected to. I have been using this name for a couple of years now and it really suits me. My astrology sign is Pisces. I am a dreamer, have a creative spirit, feel close to nature, I am a sensitive and respective person.

I have always been involved in making art, and that all started when I was very young. As a little kid I often played with Clay (scultping), made drawings, and when I was doing that I created my own fantasy world in which faeries, gnomes and fairytale creatures really existed. I am an autodidact person and never followed any course for learning how to draw and sculpt. I learned it all by myself with a little help from books.

In my early twenties I started sculpting in a more professional way and also gave sculpting lessons for a while. I specialized in creating Faeries, Mermaids, dolls, little baby dolls, gnomes, and lots of other nature fantasy creatures. I really enjoyed doing this for many years. In 2007, I made the switch to digital art and since then I am totally hooked on making 3D art. No more real live sculpting for me, only Digital sculpting now. I really like to create fantasy images, but what I love doing most is creating 3D content. My specialty is character creation and last year I started making poses too. I am always into learning new things and there is still so much more for me to explore in this 3D World. There is a whole new world out there ready to be discovered. It sometimes feels likeI am Alice in wonderland :)

How long have you been involved in digital art? 

In November 2007, I found my way to digital art. I was looking for techniques about human anatomy and poses for my sculptures. One day I read an article in a magazine of a well-known sculpture artist from Belgium, in which she explained that she was using a Victoria figure and DAZ Studio to learn poses and anatomy for her sculptures. This figure could be positioned in all kinds of poses in a 3D environment. So this way you could see the figure from all angles. I took her advice and started working for the first time with a 3D program (DAZ Studio), this was a whole new world for me.

I became so enthusiastic about working with DAZ Studio and 3D art that I started buying  more content. As mentioned earlier in this interview, I was totally hooked on it and changed from sculpting with clay to digital art. Shortly after this I purchased Poser, invested a lot of time in learning the program and really grew fond of it.

One beautiful day, I discovered the Renderosity MarketPlace! From this moment on, it really started. I saw and bought a lot of amazing content here (still do..giggles), which for me was like being in a Candy store :) Then, I visited the Renderosity Gallery...and WOW!  There were so many beautiful images that inspired me. Soon I started uploading my own digital art within the Renderosity gallery. Suddenly I saw people leaving comments within my gallery. I was so thrilled by this, I did not even know it was possible to leave or receive comments. Many people welcomed me and that felt so heartwarming and good! Since that time, I made a lot of friends in this community.

What made you decide to become a Vendor? 

Well...this is how I decided to become a vendor :) I became friends with a very talented vendor and artist through the Renderosity community. Her name is PDesign and she makes very beautiful content. She inspired me to make 3D content (Characters for figures like Victoria 4). She wrote me a tutorial at that time, on how to start making my own character for Victoria 4, and when I got stuck during the process she was always there to help me out. I am so thankful for all she did for me.

In this period, I started to make my own character for Victoria 4, which I wanted to use for my own render work. At that time it was not my intention to become a vendor. I just enjoyed making gallery renders with the character. After showing her in my gallery, people started asking if she was for sale and wanted to buy her. People started to encourage me by saying "you should go and sell her and become a vendor." In the beginning I was a bit shy about the idea of becoming a vendor, but after a while I decided to give it a try and I became a vendor in September of 2009 here at Renderosity. I still remember my first product that was released within the Renderosity MarketPlace, called VH Rose. I was so proud...

Last year, June 2011, I had to quit my real life job because of my health. Since then, making 3D content has become my regular, daily job and I just love it! Making 3D content and art gives me so much joy.

What are you currently working on?

Currently, I am working on a new Girl (Character) for Victoria 4 & Genesis. I am very excited about this new girl and can’t wait for her to be released in my store. There are a few plans and ideas for what I want to create this year. Maybe making a Male character for Michael 4 & Genesis, which would be my first male, and I am sure it will be fun working on a totally new challenge. I have lot more ideas but cannot list them all, I think it is always nice to keep it a surprise :)

What software is currently in your digital toolset and why?

  • Poser 7, Poser 8, Poser 9, Poser Pro 2012, and Poser Pro 2010 - Yes, that is a lot of Poser versions, I know, lol! But, I need them for testing all my products before I upload them to the store, as all needs to be tested thoroughly. I use Poser for creating content, Promo renders, artistic gallery renders and for testing my products.
  • Daz Studio 2.3, DAZ studio 3 advanced, and DAZ Studio 4 Pro - Same here as mentioned with Poser. I need all versions for testing my products before I upload them to the store. I use Daz Studio for creating content, Promo renders, artistic gallery renders and for testing my products.
  • Hexagon 2.5 - I use Hexagon for custom sculpting (modeling) my characters.
  • ZBrush - I use ZBrush for custom sculpting my characters.
  • Photoshop CS5 - For texture work,  promo layout for my products, and for my artistic renders (postwork). 
  • Blacksmith3D Suite V4 - 3D painting of skin textures and making the textures seamless.
  • modo - I purchased modo two weeks ago because I want to learn modeling as well. My wish is to create clothing, hair and jewelry in the future. It might take me some time to learn it, but I am sure I will have lots of fun while practicing.

Where do you find inspiration for your products?

I find my inspiration everywhere. A lot of inspiration I find by surfing on the internet, looking for pictures of famous people, models, fantasy stuff and more things like that. I also find a lot of inspiration from watching tv series' and movies, from looking at other artists' work, and from magazines. And, what is really important for me, is to have my daily walk outside to get a fresh wind in my hair and to empty my head and give a place for new ideas that want to come in. Sometimes, when I am working on a project and I am on a creative flow, it feels like things just happen by themselves...it’s like magic.

Could you list any current favorites among the products you've created and tell us a bit about their creation?

This is so hard for me to make a choice, because all of my creations are my babies. I cannot make a choice of which ones are my favorite, because they are all my favorites. I love them all! :) What I can say is that all my products are created with the most care, lots of love and attention. I put a lot of effort into working on my projects to perfect them. Working on my products is like meditation, I am always very focused while working and I totally lose myself in it. It is like the world around me stops existing and that only the project and me are there. Working on my products makes me feel peaceful and happy inside. When my husband sometimes calls me (and asks me something like "Hun, do you need a cup of tea," or something like that) he has to call me a couple of times before I can tear myself loose from the project and hear him. I find it really nice to see how a product is created out of nothing. The end result after hard labor gives me so much joy, over and over again!

Do you have any advice for aspiring Digital Content Developers?

Just enjoy what you are doing, that is the most important part. Enjoy every step of the process of learning new things, and be thankful and grateful for this. I always say that when we were little children the things we learned fast and easy where the things we enjoyed doing most, because the knowledge was obtained in a playful way. Therefore, keep an open mind and a playful spirit.

How has this online Community (Renderosity) enhanced your work, relationships, and learning?

This community has enhanced my life totally. Because of this community, I became a vendor and a digital artist, and I now do what I love doing most, that is, making digital art and content.

First, I want to thank Renderosity and the staff for giving me the opportunity to become a vendor and artist here, you all are amazing and so helpful and kind! Thank you all so much! I want to thank all my customers for their support and for believing in me. Thanks to your loyal support, I made it this far, and because of that I can further develop my skills. I am very grateful for all of this.

I have made a lot friends in this community over the past few years and all of them have special meaning to me. I feel so rich to have them in my life. It is a miracle that I live in this part of the world and through this community I found friends from all parts of the world. I learned a lot from fellow vendors and from fellow artists who I met in this community, and I am so thankful that they share so generously, their skills and wisdom with me. I want to give a special thanks to Studioartvartanian and PDesign for making this 3D job possible for me. If it was not for you both, I would not be here today! You girls are amazing! What else can I say? I just love this community, I want to thank you all for being you and supporting me!

Do you have any final words or advice for other digital artists?

Follow your own inner creative flow and enjoy doing it! Beauty and Magic will happen when you do so :) Remember that Life is Magical!

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