Video game concept artist Sathish Kumar advocates for a revolutionary approach to creating concept art that prioritizes storytelling over visual execution. His technique emphasizes developing a narrative foundation before beginning any visual work, a method he believes fundamentally changes how artists approach their creative process. Kumar's experimental illustrations focus on three core elements: innovative brushwork techniques, sophisticated color theory application, and compelling storytelling that resonates with viewers on an emotional level.
Kumar's creative process begins with thorough reference gathering for inspiration, followed by crafting a concise one-line story or conceptual idea that serves as the guiding principle throughout the entire artistic journey. This narrative foundation helps maintain focus and direction during the creative process. He then creates quick thumbnail sketches designed to keep the composition loose and efficient, avoiding the trap of getting bogged down in premature details that can stifle creativity.
Once Kumar settles on a strong composition, he moves into rapid color sketching phases to explore various moods and color palettes that best support his narrative concept. This experimental approach allows him to test different emotional tones and atmospheric conditions before committing to the final rendering phase. Only after establishing the overall feeling and mood does he proceed to render the final image with full detail and refinement.
The artist emphasizes the importance of initial ideation on paper rather than digital tools, finding that this analog approach helps maintain simplicity and efficiency by completely bypassing computer-based distractions. Kumar explains that at this early stage, creating aesthetically pleasing artwork is not the primary goal – instead, the focus should be on translating conceptual ideas onto paper for later development and refinement.
Thumbnail sketching serves multiple strategic purposes in Kumar's methodology, preventing artists from becoming overly absorbed in premature details that can derail the creative process. If a particular concept isn't working effectively, artists can quickly discard it and start fresh without significant time investment. This approach also prevents emotional attachment to single ideas, encouraging broader creative exploration and experimentation with different moods and lighting variations that enhance the underlying story.
Kumar draws inspiration from unexpected sources, demonstrating how even mundane subjects like fruit can influence sophisticated color palette decisions. He believes that true artistic mastery lies in how artists choose to interpret and transform the world around them, channeling these observations into their creative work. This philosophy drives his experimental sketches, each focusing on specific aspects such as narrative development, color theory exploration, or advanced brushwork techniques.
