Why Pixel Art?

Why pixel art?

It felt like the next step in a string of creative endeavors. It was poster design before this and (film) photography before that. I was grateful to learn on YouTube that I could make pixel art in Adobe Photoshop Elements, a program that I am fairly comfortable using as a creative tool. The work of Brandon James Greer was an early inspiration as well. 

And the one-bit style?

It matches my preference for clean, minimalistic design. 

How did the trading card motif enter the fray?

There was this animation on the Channel 15 block of Saturday morning cartoons called Xiaolin Showdown that I enjoyed watching as a child. At some point in time, the network held a card design contest for a soon-to-be-released game, and I believe that my artwork was selected. I’ve been unable to verify this fact online, but I do remember receiving some decks in the mail. I also grew up in a Christian household and recall raising some eyebrows for bringing my Yu-Gi-Oh! cards to Sunday school while visiting another church. It was not time to duel.

I don’t remember which YouTube video got me back into trading cards after so many years, but I ended up ordering a twenty-pack mystery lot of non-sport trading cards from eBay back in March and haven’t stopped buying since.  And at a certain point, I just decided to revisit the medium. 

What is your work about?

Longing, regret, fear, shame—it’s basically a public examination of self. I don’t often make happy art but the creative process itself brings me joy.

Anything else that you’d like to share?

If you would like to explore pixel art further, I highly recommend checking out the work of ripcache and Michael Alexander, also known as MEK.txt.