We recently connected with Haiyang Sun and have shared our conversation below.
Haiyang, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. We’d love to hear about a project that you’ve worked on that’s meant a lot to you.
The most meaningful project I have worked on so far is contributing to one of my favorite games, Overwatch. I was contacted by one of their directors via email; they saw my work online, liked it, and decided to reach out to me. I had the opportunity to collaborate with the talented team at Blizzard Entertainment and work alongside some of my favorite artists and art heroes. It has been a very fun and satisfying journey. I’ve worked on many character skin concepts and weapon designs, and hopefully, I’ll be able to share some of them online in the near future!
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.
Hello everyone! I’m Haiyang, a concept artist specializing in character design and currently working in the video game industry. I’ve been fortunate to contribute to several AAA titles, including Apex Legends, Overwatch 2, Perfect Dark, Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War, and more.
One aspect of my journey that I’m especially proud of is the international recognition my illustrations and art tutorials have received. It’s incredibly rewarding to see my work featured on various websites, in galleries, competitions, and magazines. I’m thrilled that my art has been featured in Illustration West 63, Infected by Art, Creative Quarterly, and Character Design Quarterly. I’m also honored to have received awards, including two winner awards from Creative Quarterly, an honorable mention from 3×3 Illustration, and a bronze award from the JIA Illustration Award.
Also, I’m excited that my work will be displayed at the LA Art Show in the coming months!
What can society do to ensure an environment that’s helpful to artists and creatives?
In this day and age, as AI companies increasingly threaten human jobs, I believe the best thing society can do to support human artists is to understand the threat these companies pose; not just to the art community but to humanity as a whole. AI models almost always operate by plagiarizing and training on artists’ works without their consent.
It’s crucial to support art created by our fellow human brothers and sisters rather than relying on cheaply and often illegally generated AI images. After all, what would humanity become without art and poetry?
We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.
Sure! When I was starting out in the entertainment industry, I hit a point of burnout. Working on portfolio pieces every day had drained my creativity, and it became a huge challenge for me. But I knew I had to keep growing. That’s when I enrolled in a character design class at CDA, taught by industry veteran Kevin Chen. Surprisingly learning new design theories and processes reignited my passion for concept design. I had a great time drawing and honing my skills. Eventually, my updated portfolio opened doors to exciting job opportunities in the video game industry, including the aforementioned role with Blizzard.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.artstation.com/haiyangsun
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/haiyangsun/
