Matthew Rohan is a junior at the University of North Texas at Dallas, and a Meraki Arts Journal staff member. He is a Communications and Technology major, and he is a graphic designer. In this interview performed by fellow Arts Journal staff members Valentin Celis and Bryan Yahve, Matthew discusses his inspiration for the flyers he created for Meraki, along with his past experience with graphic design, and his ambitious plans for the future.

 

VC: What was the inspiration behind the poster you created for Meraki?

 

MR: When I was coming up with the idea of what to do for the Art Journal I didn’t want something that was too simple. I wanted to make something that was very visually appealing, and that didn’t look too cheesy. The first thing I did when designing the flyer was take a look at the journal’s mission statement, and what I got from it were the words diverse, grow, and communicate. For grow I thought of a tree, but I didn’t just want to put a tree there. Since this is an Art Journal I wanted to make it look like the tree was being drawn, and I got the idea to make it look like it was part of a pop-out book. After that I looked at diverse and I wanted to make a diverse group of people. I basically took the mission statement and made visual representation of it.

 

BY: So, how did you decide to become a graphic designer?

 

MR: Well, I took a graphic design class in my sophomore year of high school and the idea of communicating through image and text caught my interest. I wanted to learn more about it.

 

BY: I read on your bio that you want to be freelance designer, so a goal of yours is not to work for a company but to kind of be your own person at some point?

 

MR: Yes, I don’t want to tie myself down to one particular company. I want to get out into the world, and put myself out there instead of being stuck in one spot. Hopefully that will lead me to plenty more opportunities, and let me make myself known.

 

BY: Your bio also said that you created comics for the newspaper when you attended Eastfield Community College. Did you draw them or use a computer program?

 

MR: My comics were traditionally drawn. I drew them on a piece of paper and then took them to the computer and made a digital version.

 

BY: Do you publish these comics on a personal website of yours?

 

MR: I do actually! I actually have a website; it’s called Zekandslikcomics.com.

 

BY: Besides your website how else do you share your work?

 

MR: Well, usually I’ll post them on Facebook so that friends from high school and relatives can see them.

 

BY: What would you say is your inspiration for creating comics, and characters?

 

MR: I’ve always been a cartoon person ever since I was a kid. I would watch the classic Looney Tunes, and Disney movies such as The Lion King and The Hunchback of Notre Dame, as well as plenty of other cartoon shows and movies. I also read newspaper comics like Peanuts and Calvin and Hobbes. Watching these shows made me wonder “Where did these cartoons come from? Someone had to create them.” I thought to myself “Why don’t I just create my own characters, and write stories about them?”  Another inspiration would have to be Captain Underpants. It’s a book series about these two kids, George and Harold, who are trouble makers in school but they also make comic books about their superhero Captain Underpants. It made me think that it would be so much fun to create my own stories and share them with the world. To this day I still enjoy doing that, though I haven’t created any comics recently. I want to start making them again, because I would one day like to write my own comic book series based around my two characters Zek and Slik.

 

BY: Are you currently working on a project on the side while you’re in school?

 

MR: Right now I’m working on a creative resume, which is like your usual resume but the goal is to make it look more appealing. I’m showing off my illustration techniques while at the same time sharing my past experiences as a graphic designer and cartoonist.

 

BY: What programs do you use to create graphics?

 

MR: Usually I will traditionally draw the design, then take a picture with my phone, save it to my Dropbox, and pull it into Illustrator because to me that’s usually the best program for creating graphics. What I do is go over the drawing again so that I can make it into a digital format and add colors and other effects. Sometimes I make slight adjustments because I would see something and say “I can make that better.” I’m always making adjustments to my drawings. Sometimes I will take even a week on a drawing or a graphic because I want to make it look the best it possibly can be.

 

VC: So, you prefer drawing your graphics first and then making them digital versus doing all the work on Photoshop or Illustrator?

 

MR: Yeah, the reason I draw it first is that I’ve always been a traditional illustrator. It wasn’t until I became a college student that I started using Photoshop or Illustrator. I know that digital has taken over the world, but I didn’t want to lose that feeling of traditionally drawing illustrations.

 

BY: Do you judge your own art pretty harshly?

 

MR: Absolutely. I’m my biggest critic, and I think that’s a good thing because as an artist you never want to be satisfied with where you’re at as far as your talents. You always want to strive to improve. Even the greatest artists want to improve. For example, I’m sure Bob Ross even before he was famous started out as an average painter and got better as he went along.

 

VC: Have the courses here at UNT Dallas helped you become a better artist, or is it just stuff that you already know?

 

MR: I’ve always been self-taught. I’ve been drawing as long as I can remember, and I feel like my entire existence is about making art and making things. I really can’t see myself doing anything else.

 

BY: I read that you play video games. Is there any potential that you might explore 3D graphics as a result?

 

MR: Not at the moment, but I do see video games as a form of art. I’m more of a fan of cartoon style video games, so I usually study their art style and sometimes try to implement certain aspects into my own style.

 

VC: When you create art do you follow any themes at all?

 

MR: As far as themes go, when I create art it’s supposed to be visually appealing. I never go for a specific message in my art pieces. Mine are more of a source of entertainment. I want people to pay attention to the little details in my art, such as the facial expressions of the characters in my cartoons. Sometimes I’ll add snakes or scary creatures in the background, and people will look at them and think “ooh, what’s this?”

 

VC: So, you want to create a piece that will start conversation, and that people can visually analyze?

 

MR: Exactly, yes. I want to get people to talk about my art.

 

VC: Do you have a piece that was the most fun to create, or that you consider your favorite?

 

MR: Yes, actually I do. Believe it or not it’s not a digital piece, but one created with Prismacolor pencils. It features my two characters Zek and Slik standing in the middle, while in the background there are purple snakes and scary looking creatures behind a purple fire.

 

VC: Do you have any dream projects you’d love to work on?

 

MR: As far as dream projects go I mostly want to start that comic book series. I honestly don’t really plan things out; I just see other pieces that inspire my creativity. I’ll think about a drawing I saw all day and think “That drawing was good, but what would I do to make it better?” I’d see different drawing and think “How could I combine this style with that of the drawing I saw earlier and make it my own?” Not to copy anything but to be inspired and create something that is brand new.