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Interview with
Linda Bergkvist
Featured Artist for June 2001
Would you introduce yourself and give a little personal background?
I'm not an artist. I'd like to think of myself as a magician rather than an artist - "artist" sounds pretentious, but "magician" just sounds plain crazy.
Besides... I have a black cat... Azrael seems the kind of cat that would rather live with a magician than with an artist. Or maybe I'm a witch? Artist, magician or witch, I live in Sweden with my cat, my fish, and my strange ideas. In my spare time, I draw, play roleplaying games, and read - when I'm not doing something else, that is.
How long have you been an artist? How long have you been creating fantasy art?
As most children, I started drawing very early on. I drew pretty little princesses and mighty horses with six legs (I couldn't count very well back then). I also came up with fantastical stories that I told to my friends, and later, wrote down and handed over to my teachers. I guess I could say that it was only natural that I started with roleplaying games rather early on, when I was some eleven years old, and after that it became even more natural for me to start drawing my characters. I've been on that path ever since.
Have you had any formal training in the fine arts?
Not really. I did try to pick as many art-related subjects all the way through school, but I never had any "real" fine art training.
What are your biggest artistic influences and inspirations?
I have to say books, music, and roleplay here. Often when reading a book I get a vivid idea of a story of my own - and from that story, the pictures emerge. Certain music will do the same to me, and during roleplay, I'm at my most inspirational and tend to come up with a myriad of ideas for new pictures (many of which never see the light of day).
Can you describe your creative process - how you come up with ideas for a new drawing and how you take those ideas and create a finished piece of art.
This is difficult to describe since it varies highly from time to time. Very often, I have a vague idea, and start sketching in colours and general shapes. Sometimes, my paintings emerge from doodles that were transformed into something else, and sometimes I have a well thought out idea before I start off. I generally sketch in colours though, and start out rough while my ideas form - the details follow, slowly but surely.
Do you have a favorite fantasy artist or an artist you admire?
Well, I'd have to say Tim Burton. Of all the people I admire, he's right on the top of the list. I also think very highly of Brian Froud, but Tim Burton is still my absolute favourite.
What advice would you give to young artists who are just starting out?
I'd advice them to find that well of inspiration inside of them and nurture it. Great art isn't really about technique - it's about ideas and stories (at least I think so). I think we all have worlds of imagination hidden within us and it's just a matter of tapping into them. It doesn't matter if you have perfect knowledge of anatomy if your pictures are dull and uninspiring. So... find your inspiration, and THEN begin to develop... I believe that someone inspired is limited by one thing alone: time.
If you could be a character from a fantasy novel, movie or game, who would you be?
Shock. The little witch in Nightmare Before Christmas... she has the most wonderful attitude I've ever seen. She also has a bathtub that can walk around - I'd really love that since I spend so much time IN the tub.
Finally, what cartoons did you watch as a kid?
The Smurfs... I was obsessed with them. I even named my cat, Azrael, after the cat in the Smurfs. I also watched Transformers, a lot of Disney movies (Peter Pan was my favourite!) and last but not least, Ulysses 31.
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