Hello, Aris here!
Welcome to my blog, where I post my latest artworks and ideas. Originally, I created this blog to go alongside my Senior Seminar class during my undergraduate studies in Fine Arts. I've since graduated and obtained my Bachelor's degree in Fine Arts, with a Studio Art concentration and Art History minor, at Christopher Newport University. My artwork is a mix of what I like, and I think that is all that should matter to an artist. Sometimes my work is conceptual, other times it is objective. A lot of my artwork is also influenced by cyber-culture, video games or Asian Culture.
I usually go on the interwebs using the pseudonym, Aristeia (in earlier years, it was kari-kun). The pen name comes from the Greek word ἄριστος (Aristos), meaning 'the Best' or 'Excellence'. It may sound overly empowering or egocentric, the idea behind it comes from my interest in Greek Philosophy, mythology, and the refined ancient ideas of Aristocracy in particular.
As far as my artistic abilities go, in my earlier years I took a strong interest in Japanese anime and managa, and I'm still fond of the culture today. During my High School years, I started an amateur manga which I co-authored with a friend of mine called Saishuu Odori, the 'Final Dance'. However, I drew a good 200 or so pages of it for a year or so without inking anything in properly and soon left that absent-plotted tale in pursuit of more serious ideals.
That being said, I like to think I've refined my style a lot since grade school and enjoy dabbling in various arts. Of course, my dream job would be to someday be able to create what I like, which includes graphic novels, writing, and bookbinding. Those are the three things I enjoy the most. To me, being a Graphic Novelist to me doesn't only mean drawing a comic book. It is also about creating a conceptual story and making it come to life through depicted art storyboards. In this sense, I'm an artist who focuses not only on pictures but also with words. Most of the concepts I like to wrap into my artwork involves the ideas of love, existentialism, the material world, and various other philosophical ideas. I'm influenced by people such as Plato, Aristotle, Thomas Aquinas, Nietzsche, and various other Philosophers.
I'm also a huge fan of fables, fantasy worlds, cyberculture, and fashion illustration. Many of my influencing artists include fashion illustrators. I enjoy aesthetically pleasing elements to my human proportions, and find that I enjoy similar styles by other artists as well. (But I also enjoy unique art styles as well!)
I prefer to listen to music while I work just to drown out all the other sounds around me in order to get my productivity running. I enjoy getting "into the groove" of creating art and just spending time working on a particular piece for hours; It is, without a doubt in my mind, the best feeling in the world.
I also consider myself a very crafty person, and have a fond interest in bookbinding. I sell many of my books of Etsy, in fact, and enjoy making them. Perhaps someday I will be able to make books and draw in them myself?
Someday, I hope to be able to produce my own graphic novels in my own handbound books. (Thank you for reading through all of that!)
You can also visit my portfolio online here. (Beware though, it's quite devoid of my actual personality and style!)
The musings of a young artist, recent graduate, and occasional avante-garde thinker.
