drakesfortune | Into The Pixel 2011: Uncharted 3 Artwork By Andrew Kim (Reply)

This week at E3 2011, Into The Pixel is exhibiting all of the winners for the Into The Pixel 2011 exhibition. Andrew Kim is one of the artists working on Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception at Naughty Dog. Check out his piece entitled "The Pelican Inn" above (you can see a high resolution version by clicking on the artwork), and then head on beyond the break for our full interview with the Andrew.

"Into the Pixel showcases the incredible creativity, skill and artistic talent that pervades in the video game industry. You really see that there are great artists working across every genre of video games, and at every stage of the production process.” according to Glenn Phillips, Senior Project Specialist & Consulting Curator, Department of Architecture and Contemporary Art, at the Getty Research Institute.

The entire 2011 Into the Pixel collection will be unveiled and presented at the annual E3 Expo at the Los Angeles Convention Center from June 7-9, or you can visit our Into the Pixel 2011 gallery and check out all of the art for yourself, and see all of the winners right here.

Tell us about your background. Where did you study? What have you worked on before?
I’ve been a concept artist for about 9 years now since I graduated from Art Center College of Design. Coming from an artist family, it was pretty easy knowing what I wanted to do and how to become one along the way. I’m currently working on Uncharted 3 and my previous titles include Uncharted 2, God of War III, Turning Point, BioShock, and Mercenaries. I’ve also done work for two feature films: the recently released Hoodwinked Too! and Disney’s Planes, which is due for release in 2013.

What tools do you use to create your art?
I use Photoshop CS5. And just like many other concept artists, I use Google images and Flickr for good reference material.

What inspired this particular piece?
Well, I was really intrigued by the complexity of colors and shapes in such compact space. A particular London pub has SO MANY different characteristics. I have never been to one of these places; I had to learn a lot about the place from a designer who is British and, of course, lots of reference photos. Every object seems to have a story and each wall shows so much history within itself. That’s what was so fun about this piece. There’s no single character telling a story here, but I think all of the details within the scene are definitely telling you something.

What advice would you give to students who want to become video game artists?
It’s simple. Have passion and never stop. As my good teacher would say, there are no short cuts around being an artist. What you see in the games is based on what we’re surrounded with and what we imagine. Learn to be able to absorb your surroundings and show that visually in your own terms. That’s what concept artists do.

What are you working on next?
I REALLY don’t know. :)

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