John Herzog
It's All About Telling a Story
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Hi John, Thank you so much for taking the time to share with us some thoughts and ideas about your work. Thanks for having me! So when did you get started as an illustrator and character designer? I doubt that I’m special in that, when I was a kid, I loved to draw and would watch cartoons religiously. I’m the kind of person who’s sort of haunted by the images in my head. I just have to get them out onto paper or digitally or what have you. It’s been that way most of my life. And, of course, I loved classic Disney and Don Bluth movies as a kid and always imagined being a traditional animator. |
Photo: courtesy of the artist |
I distinctly remember watching 101 Dalmatians when I was young and seeing Bill Peet and Tom Oreb credited with Character Styling and thinking, “That’s it. That’s what I want to do.” I’ve always gravitated toward drawing characters more than anything else, so pursuing that made sense.
How did you come up with the idea for your book Craptastic? What’s the definition of Craptastic?
I’m pretty self-deprecating, so having a serious title like “The Art of John Herzog” just seemed weird and pretentious. It’s always kind of surprising to me when someone likes my work. Maybe that’s kind of pessimistic, but I’d rather assume people are just going to despise the stuff I do. So having the title be Craptastic sort of sets the bar in my mind. If you like it, great. If you don’t like it, that’s okay, too.
I joke about the motivation for Craptastic being that I have no idea when a natural disaster will wipe out my digital files and the cloud and whatever, but it’s actually true. You never know when all the work you’ve done could potentially just go up in smoke. So, I figured having something tangible like a book would help me sleep better at night.
In all honesty, I think the biggest motivation for me was wanting to have some kind of proof for my kids and grandkids that I drew these silly little drawings and characters. I like to think that, when they’re flipping through it, they’re seeing me. But it’s ultimately up to them what they get out of it.
What are your go-to resources for inspiration in your work?
I would say that my biggest go-to resource is a film by the Coen brothers called The Hudsucker Proxy. I saw that movie when I was 16, and it changed my life. Any kind of work I make, I can always see the influence of that film. It doesn’t matter if it’s a character I’ve drawn or a short film I’ve made, there’s always a piece of Hudsucker in there. It’s a well of inspiration that has yet to run dry. I highly recommend it if you haven’t seen it.
Movies in general are a huge resource for me. Listening to classical music or film scores while I drive is also really inspirational and cathartic.
I also love flipping through art books like The Art of The Incredibles or The Art and Making of Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs and gleaning what I can there. Lately, I’ve been spending a lot of time on Twitter and Tumblr looking at the amazing art that can be found there. To me, designing a character is, at its core, problem solving. And seeing how others solve those problems really helps me to take what they’ve done and give my spin on it.
How did you come up with the idea for your book Craptastic? What’s the definition of Craptastic?
I’m pretty self-deprecating, so having a serious title like “The Art of John Herzog” just seemed weird and pretentious. It’s always kind of surprising to me when someone likes my work. Maybe that’s kind of pessimistic, but I’d rather assume people are just going to despise the stuff I do. So having the title be Craptastic sort of sets the bar in my mind. If you like it, great. If you don’t like it, that’s okay, too.
I joke about the motivation for Craptastic being that I have no idea when a natural disaster will wipe out my digital files and the cloud and whatever, but it’s actually true. You never know when all the work you’ve done could potentially just go up in smoke. So, I figured having something tangible like a book would help me sleep better at night.
In all honesty, I think the biggest motivation for me was wanting to have some kind of proof for my kids and grandkids that I drew these silly little drawings and characters. I like to think that, when they’re flipping through it, they’re seeing me. But it’s ultimately up to them what they get out of it.
What are your go-to resources for inspiration in your work?
I would say that my biggest go-to resource is a film by the Coen brothers called The Hudsucker Proxy. I saw that movie when I was 16, and it changed my life. Any kind of work I make, I can always see the influence of that film. It doesn’t matter if it’s a character I’ve drawn or a short film I’ve made, there’s always a piece of Hudsucker in there. It’s a well of inspiration that has yet to run dry. I highly recommend it if you haven’t seen it.
Movies in general are a huge resource for me. Listening to classical music or film scores while I drive is also really inspirational and cathartic.
I also love flipping through art books like The Art of The Incredibles or The Art and Making of Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs and gleaning what I can there. Lately, I’ve been spending a lot of time on Twitter and Tumblr looking at the amazing art that can be found there. To me, designing a character is, at its core, problem solving. And seeing how others solve those problems really helps me to take what they’ve done and give my spin on it.
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Who are the artists whose work you appreciate and hold as model?
I mentioned him before, but Bill Peet was an amazing artist and storyteller. He’s been an inspiration to me for the majority of my life.
Love the work of Bill Schwab and Cory Loftis. They’re both character designers at Disney and they’re amazing. Tim Hodge is always a favorite, as are Brittney Lee and Lorelay Bové.
Mary Blair, Tom Oreb, Ward Kimball, John Kricfalusi, Nina Paley… The list goes on and on…
How would you describe your artistic process? How does the real world and its requirements impact your artistic aspirations?
It all starts with seeing something in my head. I like having a clear idea of where I’m gonna go. And a lot of the time, the picture I see in my head isn’t exactly what ends up on the page, but the general ideas are there.
I recently did an illustration for Highlights magazine that involved a sloth and a snail. In my initial sketch, the snail was pretty tied down, but the sloth was really rough. The deadline for the sketch was tight, so I just gave them the rough knowing that I would come back to it. I had to think about that sloth character for a long time before I was able to crack it. One thing I wanted to avoid was having my sloth look like Flash from Zootopia, so I made sure to look at images of him and avoid going that direction. I also looked at a lot of pictures of real sloths just to get their sense of anatomy and weight. After that, it was a matter of finding the pieces in my head, and then visualizing myself putting stylus to screen. And it turned out. I’m actually quite pleased with that character.
Regarding the requirements of the real world, the reality is that I want to take care of my family. And in order to do that, I currently work a full-time job in video production while doing freelance illustration on the side. My goal is to build up my network and be an illustrator full-time, and I think it’ll happen. But the paramount concern for me is making sure that I provide for my family. And I’m really fortunate in that my wife, my daughter, and my parents are really supportive of me. I think that’s the key to any aspiration. Having the support of your loved ones is a huge motivator to make dreams happen.
In addition to being an illustrator and character designer, you’re also a graphic designer and photographer. But you’ve also worked in independent films as a writer, producer, cinematographer, actor, and director. Do you have well defined compartments in your mind dedicated to each role or do all these roles intertwine?
It’s all about telling a story. The medium doesn’t really matter. I will say, however, that writing and drawing are very similar in how solitary they are. There’s a certain element of collaboration, especially if you’re working with a client, but the actual execution is very cloistered. Filmmaking, on the other hand, is extremely collaborative.
Your book, Obese Ghosts is described as a good sampling of your “peculiar and imaginative sense of cinematic storytelling.” What do you credit with your cinematic storytelling superpower?
Like I mentioned, it all comes back to The Hudsucker Proxy and the Coen brothers. They’re really the reason I got into screenwriting and filmmaking. Their scripts and their movies are master classes in my opinion.
What are the funniest things you’ve observed lately? What do you see as the tragic notes of the reality we all share? How do you deal with both of those sides of the coin in your works?
Watching my six-year-old daughter play video games has made me laugh a lot lately. She has my temper, which is probably more bad than good. I also have a pug named Zelda. She’s good for a laugh most of the time.
We’re all on this planet for such a short amount of time. That’s the tragedy to me, and it’s baffling how violent and heartless people can be to each other.
Honestly, when it comes to my work, I don’t explore both sides of the coin. I try to make it a point not to tackle anything too heavy. Escapism has been important to me in coping with the world and my place in it, so I’m more interested in making someone laugh or transporting them to my own weird little corner of the sandbox.
What’s it like living in Utah and being an artist?
There’s a great pocket of talent here in Utah. While I love the climate and the topography of the state, I don’t plan on living here for much longer. That’s the great thing about being an artist these days. Technology’s made it possible to live anywhere in the world and remain connected with clients and the people who enjoy and follow your work.
What is your attitude towards life and how does that translate in your art?
To me, life is strange. I tend to find myself either confused, angry, or happy at what’s going on around me. If you look at my work, those are probably the three predominant emotions I draw.
What are you most looking forward to in the next few days & months?
Well, my wife is pregnant with our first son, so I’m really excited for that. The snail and the sloth illustration I mentioned will also feature in the November issue of Highlights, which I’m also excited about.
Other than that, my hope is that the future holds good things for everyone.
www.wizardofzog.com
I mentioned him before, but Bill Peet was an amazing artist and storyteller. He’s been an inspiration to me for the majority of my life.
Love the work of Bill Schwab and Cory Loftis. They’re both character designers at Disney and they’re amazing. Tim Hodge is always a favorite, as are Brittney Lee and Lorelay Bové.
Mary Blair, Tom Oreb, Ward Kimball, John Kricfalusi, Nina Paley… The list goes on and on…
How would you describe your artistic process? How does the real world and its requirements impact your artistic aspirations?
It all starts with seeing something in my head. I like having a clear idea of where I’m gonna go. And a lot of the time, the picture I see in my head isn’t exactly what ends up on the page, but the general ideas are there.
I recently did an illustration for Highlights magazine that involved a sloth and a snail. In my initial sketch, the snail was pretty tied down, but the sloth was really rough. The deadline for the sketch was tight, so I just gave them the rough knowing that I would come back to it. I had to think about that sloth character for a long time before I was able to crack it. One thing I wanted to avoid was having my sloth look like Flash from Zootopia, so I made sure to look at images of him and avoid going that direction. I also looked at a lot of pictures of real sloths just to get their sense of anatomy and weight. After that, it was a matter of finding the pieces in my head, and then visualizing myself putting stylus to screen. And it turned out. I’m actually quite pleased with that character.
Regarding the requirements of the real world, the reality is that I want to take care of my family. And in order to do that, I currently work a full-time job in video production while doing freelance illustration on the side. My goal is to build up my network and be an illustrator full-time, and I think it’ll happen. But the paramount concern for me is making sure that I provide for my family. And I’m really fortunate in that my wife, my daughter, and my parents are really supportive of me. I think that’s the key to any aspiration. Having the support of your loved ones is a huge motivator to make dreams happen.
In addition to being an illustrator and character designer, you’re also a graphic designer and photographer. But you’ve also worked in independent films as a writer, producer, cinematographer, actor, and director. Do you have well defined compartments in your mind dedicated to each role or do all these roles intertwine?
It’s all about telling a story. The medium doesn’t really matter. I will say, however, that writing and drawing are very similar in how solitary they are. There’s a certain element of collaboration, especially if you’re working with a client, but the actual execution is very cloistered. Filmmaking, on the other hand, is extremely collaborative.
Your book, Obese Ghosts is described as a good sampling of your “peculiar and imaginative sense of cinematic storytelling.” What do you credit with your cinematic storytelling superpower?
Like I mentioned, it all comes back to The Hudsucker Proxy and the Coen brothers. They’re really the reason I got into screenwriting and filmmaking. Their scripts and their movies are master classes in my opinion.
What are the funniest things you’ve observed lately? What do you see as the tragic notes of the reality we all share? How do you deal with both of those sides of the coin in your works?
Watching my six-year-old daughter play video games has made me laugh a lot lately. She has my temper, which is probably more bad than good. I also have a pug named Zelda. She’s good for a laugh most of the time.
We’re all on this planet for such a short amount of time. That’s the tragedy to me, and it’s baffling how violent and heartless people can be to each other.
Honestly, when it comes to my work, I don’t explore both sides of the coin. I try to make it a point not to tackle anything too heavy. Escapism has been important to me in coping with the world and my place in it, so I’m more interested in making someone laugh or transporting them to my own weird little corner of the sandbox.
What’s it like living in Utah and being an artist?
There’s a great pocket of talent here in Utah. While I love the climate and the topography of the state, I don’t plan on living here for much longer. That’s the great thing about being an artist these days. Technology’s made it possible to live anywhere in the world and remain connected with clients and the people who enjoy and follow your work.
What is your attitude towards life and how does that translate in your art?
To me, life is strange. I tend to find myself either confused, angry, or happy at what’s going on around me. If you look at my work, those are probably the three predominant emotions I draw.
What are you most looking forward to in the next few days & months?
Well, my wife is pregnant with our first son, so I’m really excited for that. The snail and the sloth illustration I mentioned will also feature in the November issue of Highlights, which I’m also excited about.
Other than that, my hope is that the future holds good things for everyone.
www.wizardofzog.com
