The School of Art and Design is spotlighting recently graduated students and their work on Facebook, and we’ll be sharing them here on the blog, as well.
Ethan Deboer, BFA in Time Arts
www.ethandeboer.com
Artist Statement:
“My work is made up of characters in the form of character model sheets, action poses, and hand-drawn animations. The designs and actions represented visually convey to the audience what their personality or story are. How a character looks and acts in a still image can say a lot about who they are as characters. It is important to me that the characters’ personality is able to be conveyed in any drawing or animation that I make.
“My first inspiration for a story often comes from the desire to make a point or lesson either from my own life experiences or the desire to subvert a cliche or concept that I have seen in other media. Other times it is just to make people laugh. Either way, I make the characters to service that story idea, and spend a lot of time designing what they look like before I settle on something. I mainly use pencil and pen on sketch paper, but I will sometimes use a drawing tablet with Photoshop or Clip Studio Paint to draw and color the characters. I also use Adobe Animate CC to put those characters in motion.
“When done correctly, a dramatic piece of fiction can make a comedic moment more effective and a comedic piece of fiction can make a dramatic moment more effective. I always try to achieve that with my own art and storytelling. I am influenced mostly by animated shows or movies that have world building, make someone laugh, or are satirical. No matter if a drawing is good or bad, what matters most to me is that there is a story behind it.”
View all of the College of Visual and Performing Arts Class of 2020 spotlights.
