ARTISTS
Obviously deviantART herself influences me greatly. Some of the artists in my watch that I absolutely check out right away include *ali-chan-otaku *beastofoblivion `Endling =elsevilla *jollyjack ~SnowSkadi *ShadowUmbre and *Unknown-person I just find their galleries to be absolutely gorgeous and super inspiring.
Also on here are two works by Todd Lockwood (the angels VS demons and skeleton Cerberus). His work is just always super fun to look at and his detail is AMAZING. Also, I’m into that kind of subject matter haha.
Susan Seddon Boulet is also a joy to always go back and look at. Her works just have so much mythical feeling in them and a sense of wonder and beauty. I really love her color palettes and subject matter as well. While my work doesn’t look like hers, she sure does get the creative juices flowing.
Alphonse Mucha is always a joy to look at and study. His art nouveau is gorgeous and full of all the pretty flowy details you could ever ask for haha I put flowyness in some of my works but usually it’s kept to sketches. However, his themes can be lovely and wonderful and the way he draws the female figure is quite nice
Oh! And The Tempest poster isn’t for the movie/play (which I have not seen/read). It stands for Julie Taymor (who also worked on the Broadway version of The Lion King and directed Across the Universe, Titus, and Frida). The way she plays with things and puts the theatre spin on her work and costumes is GORGEOUS and wonderful to look at. How she turns animals onto onstage actors and actors into spirits and landscapes is absolutely wonderful. There’s a touch of magic in all of her work
Other artists I really enjoy include William Bouguereau, Mia Michaels (a dance choreographer), and Manuel Augusto Dischinger Moura.
VIDEO GAMES
Though I’m not much of a gamer, I still enjoy a few titles and like to watch games that my friends play. I’ve never played the Assassin’s Creed series, but boy is it entertaining and beautiful with its Italian cityscapes and crazy camera work. Also, those character designs are pretty badass…and c’mon, Leonardo da Vinci.
How can one NOT be influenced by Final Fantasy? The worlds, the abilities, the outfits, the stories, the creatures - It’s all there!
Same goes for Kingdom Hearts which blends Final Fantasy AND Disney – that’s my childhood in a disc!Spyro was one of my first loves in video games. Nothing beats a dragon’s world. Those enemies and worlds were always fun to be in and explore. AND, one must always collect one’s horde of treasure. Character’s and the world layouts are things I find very interesting. And traveling by portal is always fun.
Okami. Whoamg what a beautiful game. The worlds, the folklore, the mythology, the designs, the powers – everything in this game is perfection and wonderful and inspiring. The calligraphic style is just another detail to the joygasm this game creates for anyone who’s able to play/watch it. Also, its hours of fun!
MOVIES
I think it’s pretty evident that movies especially inspire me. There’s nothing like watching what other artists can bring to life through their own imaginations (sometimes with the help of popular authors – like Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings). These movies all have influential characters, worlds, morals, and stories that influence all of the stories/characters I write. Heck, if movies weren’t inspirational and engaging, we wouldn’t watch them
I’m obviously a fantasy fan with favorites being things like Dragonheart, The Fall, and Avatar. What Dream May Come comes with my love for religious outlooks while the Disney movies come from my love for the classics and their empowering stories and characters. Plus my love for the traditionally animated feature film. However, the 3 DeamWorks movies in there (Prince of Egypt, Spirit, and How to Train Your Dragon)are among my top movies ever – being about 3 things that I really really enjoy: Religious stories, Native American culture, and dragons! MUSIC
While I think music inspires and influences everyone, all of my friends will tell you that my iTunes library consists of mainly movie soundtracks. Movie soundtracks and designed to tell a story – whichever one they’re the soundtrack for. However, take away the visuals that are originally given to the music and you’re forced to fill in the blanks yourself. I find this an EXCELLENT tool for getting the creative juices flowing and churning out ideas. Here are pictures of some of my favorite composers (Danny Elfman, Alan Menken, John Williams, Hans Zimmer, James Horner, Jerry Goldsmith, and James Newton Howard). I have soundtracks from all of these composers and I owe them for the wonderful gifts they give my ears. I also am a big Yoko Kanno fan…but I forgot to put her in here! D:> Also, we can’t forget Howard Shore who did the Lord of the Rings soundtracks
I also have X-Ray Dog listed. While X-Ray Dog does not sell to the general public, you can listen to samples of their music on their site (*cough* and YouTube *cough*). They work for promotional purposes helping with marketing campaigns for major companies. I refer to them as “movie trailer music” because they do A LOT of trailers. Listening to their music without any visuals though proves most inspiring and fun. It’s a portal to another world for the active imagination.
CARTOONS/ANIME
Like movies, cartoons and anime have had a HUGE influence on me. Inuyasha and Rurouni Kenshin especially have been a super inspiration to MANY of my characters. Fushigi Yuugi: The Mysterious Play, The Twelve Kingdoms, Sailor Moon, Wolf’s Rain, Pokemon, and Avatar: The Last Airbender are also very influential to me. They seem to be the right mix of mature looking art, mature themes, and humor for me. Some are much more complicated than others and some have deeper meanings that others while some, like Wolf’s Rain, can seem ambiguous. Others are just plain fun. I enjoy all of these things and if I could take all of these shows and mash them together – I would
Immortal Rain is not an anime, but a manga, at this point. I love it for its religious themes and blend of seriousness, darkness, and humor. I’m also a sucker for star-crossed lovers hehe
OTHER
The “Coexist” block refers to my love for religious themes and knowledge. I’m not specific to any religion when it comes to my favorite influence – I find them all valuable and intriguing resources for all sorts of things. Creatures, stories, morals, and people in religion can bebeautiful, wonderful, and terrifying. This is also why I enjoy Greek Mythology and Zodiac Horoscopes. It’s always a pleasure to go back and look up some of these things (same with any other culture mythology) to see what you can dig up and learn. It often times leaves inspiration with you.
National Geographic is here because nothing can be quite as inspiring as the world around us. Animals and Nature herself are beautiful and wonderful resources for influencing worlds and creatures that only we can think up. Nature is always evolving, so going to zoos or national parks and reading up on the latest finds are wonderful ways to get your creative juices going and creating original landscapes/creatures for your own means. Just browsing though the National Geographic photo galleries on their site can be enough to really get me wanting to art.
Original/Blank meme here: http://fox-orian.deviantart.com/art/Influence-Map-Template-174550753?q=boost%3Apopular+influence+meme&qo=0
