We recently connected with Alex Mack and have shared our conversation below.
Alright, Alex thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. What sort of legacy are you hoping to build. What do you think people will say about you after you are gone, what do you hope to be remembered for?
As an artist, I would want my legacy to be my art (obviously), and as a person a sense of kindness and thoughtfulness. What’s more, I think an artist’s personality is shown through their art in subtle ways. So if I can leave behind a body of work that offers the same level of thought I try to put into my interactions with people then I can say I had a good run of things. However, I also don’t see the point in limiting myself to that mindset. Art can do a lot of different things and to hope for just one of them would be silly.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
I have been practicing art since I was really young, for almost a decade now. I attended the Minneapolis College of Art and Design and earned my Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree in Illustration in the spring of 2022.
Currently, I create landscapes with the use of digital painting tools like Adobe Photoshop for the purposes of world development and concept ideation/realization. My work uses imagined environments to communicate abstract thoughts and ideas, rather than simply creating a world within the “canvas”.
For example, if a client wanted a scene to use in marketing campaigns for the upcoming release of their video game, or as a stepping stone for the rest of their development process I might first consider the setting of their project as a character within the story. Places have personalities, so depending on the desired player experience I would create an environment with the characteristics of a person able to provide that to someone. A horror game for instance needs someone who can jump out when least expected. So the scene shown to a potential player needs to unsettle them after they have already been drawn into the composition and it’s too late to look away.
Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative?
Pursuing a creative field is not always the “smart” choice, but it can still be the right one at the same time. Job security, wealth, and things society traditionally values that a different profession may provide aren’t always part of the equation. However, I think getting paid to do the thing you love every day of your life, and I mean even just enough to take care of yourself and those you care about, is worth it once you get there.
What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?
I call it the “Woah Moment”. It’s not an extremely technical phrase and there may be a wider-used term for it, but it’s how I describe a sensation I’ve only ever experienced while deep in the artistic process. It occurs when I step back to evaluate what I’m working on only to realize I’ve had a breakthrough and I’m looking at a new standard for my art. Occasionally, I get goosebumps, and most times the first thought in my brain is, “woah” (hence the name). It doesn’t happen often but when it does I become extremely motivated to finish whatever I’m working on.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.artstation.com/alex_mack
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/alex53mack/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alex-mack-574456210/
- Other: https://amack719.wixsite.com/alexmack