Czech digital illustrator whose creations can be seen in Star Wars and Disney
Tomáš Duchek’s elaborate digital paintings have won him big-name clients such as Star Wars, Magic the Gathering and Disney. He has also worked for Warhorse Studios, which made one of Czechia’s most internationally popular video games, Kingdom Come Deliverance, and is now working on his own illustrated book. I caught up with him recently to find out how he creates his detailed drawings and what it’s like working with some of the world’s most famous franchises.
I saw your illustrations and they're very impressive, but for people like me who don't know much about digital illustration, could you explain how it works so they can visualise what you actually do? What equipment, materials or software do you use to create your illustrations?
"I use a computer with a 2D editor, which for me is Photoshop, but you can use various different software. I also use a graphic tablet, which is basically a pad with a pen, which traces my hand movements and pressure, so it kind of simulates traditional media.
"Graphic editors like Photoshop allow for some shortcuts, but it depends on how the illustrator uses the software and the hardware."
So does that mean that as you're tracing on this tablet, it appears directly on the screen?
"Yes, I have my tablet on the table and I look at the screen in front of me. But there are also tablets that have an active screen, which means that you can actually draw directly on the tablet's screen."
How did you get into digital illustration? Did you do traditional illustration first?
"I would say yes, I started doing traditional illustration as a hobby at an early age. It somehow developed into exploring 3D and 2D editors and I kind of stuck with Photoshop. I liked to change the colour of my friends' eyes or things like that, and then I slowly started to paint more and explore more of this media.
"And then at university, when I was studying industrial design, I still had this hobby and I realised that actually, it might be a better way for me to earn a living than doing what I was studying, which was not that interesting to me at that time."
So did you end up finishing your degree, or did you end up switching to illustration?
"I finished the degree and then prepared a portfolio of concept art, where I used primarily digital paintings, and I got into Warhorse Studios in Prague, where my career started."
How long does each drawing take you? They look incredibly complex.
"Usually around four days, but it depends. For my personal work, there is no cap - I can spend as much time as I want. So sometimes I spend even more than four days, because sometimes I want to really explore something new, and I feel like the time and energy that is put into the painting really shows. So I tend to not limit myself in that regard."
What's your process for creating an illustration if it's for a commercial project?
"Usually the briefings have a lot of information that I need to work with. Some briefings are more loose, some are very concrete.
"Usually the first step is sketches. Sometimes the client requires three sketches, sometimes just one is enough. After the client agrees, or makes some changes to the sketch, I move to a colour sketch, and after that is approved, I move to the detailing.
"My process while working for clients is usually creating a design from lines, then creating an object where we can see where the light is and where the shadows are, which gives us a lot of information about how the object really looks. After that, I try to figure out bounce light and occlusion shadows and these various light properties that I include in paintings to make them look more realistic."
You've had international success doing illustrations for some very well-known names such as Magic the Gathering, Star Wars and Disney. How did you get discovered abroad? You said your first job was in Warhorse Studios, so how did you get noticed elsewhere?
"I started this series of characters inspired by World of Warcraft, and there was a dwarf paladin, which I believe was noticed by Games Workshop (a British manufacturer of miniature wargames), because they were also trying to do some dwarves and they wanted me to help them with that.
"So that was my first big client and that led me to start thinking about becoming a freelance illustrator. So I slowly transitioned from Warhorse Studios to freelancing."
So for these big-name clients, do you bid on projects or do they come to you?
"They contact me based on my portfolio."
What did you do precisely for Magic the Gathering and Star Wars - could you talk about those projects in a bit more detail?
"I made card illustrations and also some concepts for various worlds in Magic the Gathering. For Star Wars I'm doing big illustrations, mostly of battle scenes."
You also did something for Disney with Mickey Mouse?
"Yes, I made an illustrated book with Mickey Mouse as a parody of Robin Hood."
Is that difficult? Mickey Mouse has been drawn so many times and I guess it has to look exactly like it's been done before. Or maybe that makes it easier?
"Yeah, absolutely. Disney is very strict regarding the look, so they send a huge guide on how to create the shapes and how to work with dynamics and clothes and everything. So I had everything I needed from them and it was not very challenging. Obviously it's a different style, but it's actually very similar to what I do, but it's a bit simplified in terms of the shapes."
Which of the projects that you've worked on so far have you enjoyed the most?
"I guess it's my personal stuff [laughs]. From the commercial projects, I think it might be Magic the Gathering. They are very fun to work with, very easy-going and straightforward."
When you say personal stuff, is it just stuff that you do for yourself or do you also sell it?
"My personal paintings make up half of my portfolio. I just like to explore various light settings and different colour palettes and paint characters that I've never painted before. I've also done some exploration of strange materials, like characters that are made of water or rocks. I like to explore and play around and not be limited by anyone else's vision. That way I can really put a lot of energy into the painting."
How familiar were you already with the francises that you've worked with? Are you a Magic the Gathering fan or a Star Wars fan, for example?
"I'm quite familiar with all of them. I played Magic the Gathering in high school, so quite a long time ago, but I still follow the trending projects."
Do you have any dream projects or dream clients that you'd love to do illustrations for? What are your goals for the future?
"I had many goals - one of them was Magic the Gathering. I also wanted to work for Blizzard and maybe also Disney. But every one of those has come true, so I don't have many dream clients left. I was thinking about working for Studio Ghibli, but other than that I don't have any others.
"I am actually working on my own illustrated book at the moment, so that's where my focus lies right now. I would like to actually transition more to working on my own projects, especially on books."
What is your book about - could you give us a teaser?
"It's about a young traveller or adventurer, who is quite lonely and travels through this desolate landscape looking for something. It's actually a metaphor for many things - one of those is becoming an adult, one of those is also showing the beauty in life, in relation to a simple life in nature."
Is it set in any particular time period or is it meant to be kind of mysterious?
"It's actually based on my previous works a little bit, in that world I've been trying to create - so medieval times. But it's not really any particular place or any particular time, the time period should only loosely remind us of medieval times."
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