I liked Adrian’s work since I first saw one of his designs online. It had something that made my eyes want to stick to it. I realized, after looking at the rest of his portfolio, that it was the immersive atmosphere that you can find throughout his art. 
Curious to find out more, I started to look for more information. I found out he studied industrial design at the Transylvania University of Brasov (Romania), designed game assets, book covers and more.
We’re proud to share with you below our first interview with a Romanian artist.
VTOL Dropship Aircraft
Hi Adrian, you seem to have a longtime passion for design. Was there an“Aha!”moment that made you realize that’s what you wanted to do?
Hello, Thanks for having me.
Regarding the passion for design… yeah, pretty much as long as I remember. I was a curious kid, from my early childhood I found myself staring at cars, architecture, collecting illustrated cards, comic books… not even knowing what exactly mesmerized me about them. It was probably design.
In my early twenties I spent a lot of time bouncing between several options not knowing what exactly to do with my life, back then design was still a hobby for me.
I never dismissed an art career but I didn’t really consider it as a viable option.
There was a bit of an “Aha” moment at some point when I realized that there are people that create commercial art (actually an entire industry) and you can make a living from being a designer, illustrator or concept artist.
This idea started to grow on me, more and more over time…
Which type of education had the biggest influence in your development as an artist: formal (university) or private study.
Definitely private study. The art school can help you establish some fundamentals, as well as general knowledge, but it covers very little of what you really need to know down the road.
I believe you need to grind a solid 5000 to 10000 hours honing your craft, learning, failing, researching and experimenting in order to become decent at it. The school won’t do the hard work for you. It’s a commitment.
I found learning from mentors, taking online courses, participating in workshops, to be a lot more beneficial than a formal university education (at least in the commercial art domain).
Cyberpunk Room
How did industrial design study shape the artwork you create today?
It helped me a bit to think in terms of functionality – how to understand and apply engineering and physics principles.
I found that most people like consistent design, stuff that makes sense. Even if it’s something fantastic or magical it still needs a set or rules that generally apply on the whole system. Makes things grounded.
It doesn’t need to be entirely functional… but just a hint of functionality can be pleasant to the eye. Industrial design trains you to work with these rules, inputs, outputs, cause and effect.
Why move to an artistic form of expression instead of staying in the technical / industrial design field?
I don’t see myself on one side or the other. Perhaps I’m somewhere in the middle.
Doing artwork for the entertainment industry gives me more creative freedom than industrial design, but at the same time I try to apply everything I know from both worlds.
In the end, so to speak, doing artwork for video games is still industrial design, because video games are also an “industry”, are they not?
Cyberhand
Looking at the majority of your work, one may say you are a sci-fi fan, is that also a longtime interest?
Yes… Movies like Star Trek, Starwars, Bladerunner, Matrix and Terminator shaped my childhood. My father has a huge collection of movies and also sci-fi books like Asimov, Herbert and Clarke. I grew with those in the house.
How did growing up in touch with the sci-fi world stimulate your imagination and design choices?
Books are great for your imagination. Even though they do not contain images, they help you develop your visual library very fast. Reading a book stimulates creativity and activates multiple problem solving areas in you brain that force you to transform words into images, fill the gaps. The perfect exercise.
Regarding design choices – it can take an entire life to build a consistent design language or taste. It is something that evolves with you. No course or tutorial can teach you that. It’s a mix of all movies you seen, all games you played, all books you read, all experiences and images, everything you encountered.
The more influences you get the better, in the end each individual design taste is a unique blend.
Some of the images you’ve posted in your online portfolio have inspired others. Did that change the way you see your own work?
For me it’s a humbling experience. I try to be grateful to all my fellows. We are all working together trying to make the world a better place for the development of the human species. Being useful or appreciated gives me a sense of purpose and social responsibility. I only hope that one day I may inspire others’ childhoods as some inspired mine. It’s still a long journey ahead…
RECALL book cover
You’ve also created a number of book covers, is there a story behind how they came to be?
My wife had the idea, she is also a designer. We both love design, we love books, we love storytelling. She asked me if we can do this together and it made total sense in my head.
Some of your projects share a Cyberpunk theme. Any connection to the upcoming RPG Cyberpunk 2077?
I had the pleasure of working with the guys from CD Projekt on several fun projects, especially with Ovidiu Voica and Bernard Kowalczuk. I learned a lot from them. Great people, and they have a great team over there!
I cannot really talk about the projects or pretty much anything related because I signed a five year NDA, but I hope Cyberpunk 2077 turns out as amazing as The Witcher.
Cyberpunk Assassin
What did Blender bring to the table for you, how did it help?
Modeling in 3D is a big part of my workflow. Having the computer calculate the basic perspective and lighting, as well as the ability to change camera angle or make adjustments on the way helps a lot. It gives flexibility.
I chose Blender because it’s a many headed beast. You can model, sculpt, compose, texture, animate, render and it’s open source.
What would be your advice for people with creative minds but with difficulties bringing their ideas out of their imagination and on to paper?
I’m not quite in the position to give any advice on this one, because I encounter a lot of difficulties myself in this matter. From the very little I know, I found helpful to use 3D. Digital work is great, encourages mistakes a lot more than traditional, you have save and undo, nothing can go wrong.
Also do a lot of research before starting something, gather reference and knowledge about the current subject. Ask for critique or ideas when something doesn’t work out right.
And don’t give up… perseverance is key.
Crimson Cyber Temple
Checkout Adrian’s portfolio here: https://www.artstation.com/amarc
