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Part 1

Phil McDarby is a tremendous digital artist and IT’S ART had the pleasure of asking him some questions and getting to know him a little.

IT’S ART: First Phil, can you tell us a little about yourself?

Phil McDarby: I’m 33, living in Dublin, Ireland with my wife and year-old daughter. I’ve been working in graphic/3D/video game design for about 10 years now. About 4 years ago a couple of colleagues and I set up our own games company here in Dublin, Vyro Games. It’s been quite a journey getting that off the ground! I do freelance work in my spare time, everything from graphic design, concept art and music for advertisements and short films.

IA: We have noticed a lot of trees and other elements nature in your artwork. Can you tell us more about this? Is it a passion for nature?

PM: I have a deep love of nature – particularly forests, as you rightly point out! I’ve always found them to be magical places and in my imagery I really try to capture that. I think a lot of people lose their sense of wonder as they grow older, but I really believe you don’t have to. I hope this doesn’t sound too airy-fairy, but if you look around you and let yourself see it, there’s magic everywhere!

IA: Do you think you're developing a sort of long story or general idea through your work?

PM: I work from a rough idea, knowing in vague terms what I want to achieve (unless I’m working to a specific brief, of course). For example, with an image I did called Wonder,” I originally set out to create this massively complex citadel. The little boy arrived very late in the process and the image became something else entirely. I love that you can end up with something you weren’t expecting, so I always leave my options open when I start an image.

IA: What are your favorite artistic themes?

PM: As I mentioned above, I always try to capture and sense of awe and magic in my work. I love creating elements with a sense of massive scale, placing characters or vehicles in situations where they are almost dwarfed by their surroundings. And I try to capture a sense of discovery too – images like “Fathom” and “Magic and The Greenwood Deep” are all about the thrill of discovery.

IA: You've done a matte painting for your daughter, what was her reaction?

PM: I created a mural for my daughter, who is only a year-old, so it will be a little while before she’ll be able to appreciate it! It is called “Gloaming Born,” and is an ongoing image. I plan to add lots more animals, birds, insects etc. so that when I print it full-size for her bedroom it will be teeming with an A-Z of creatures for her to discover.

IA: Do you think your artwork is somewhere close to childhood universe?

PM: Absolutely, this is something I tried to hold on to. As an adult, and a now father, the world can be a difficult place at times and I think you need to keep a place within yourself that exists above and beyond all that. There is so much beauty, wonder and goodness in the world; it’s just that sometimes you have to look hard to find it! I was lucky enough to have a great childhood, full of adventures (I sound like an Enid Blyton book) and I would love to help recreate that for my kids.

IA: How or where would you classified your artwork?

PM: I’m not sure how I would classify my stuff to be honest, maybe fantasy or sci-fi?