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1 – To Start, tell us a bit about yourself where you were born and where you live…
I was born and raised in Puerto Madryn, Patagonia Argentina.
I had a nice childhood there, at that time Puerto Madryn was a small town and besides the school obligations, I spent that days with my friends doing nothing around the neighborhood, or sometimes going fishing, playing basketball, etc. When the outdoor life was not possible I had fun drawing or creating things cutting out papers or cardboard. And obviously, I saw all the TV Cartoons I could!
Then I spent ten years in Buenos Aires, where I studied fine arts and started to publish comics in the legendary “Fierro” magazine.
Back in my town started to make some painting exhibitions and teaching illustration and comics for young people until my first computer arrives and changed everything!
Illustration and web design began to occupy more and more hours of my life until a few years ago I decided to became a fulltime illustrator leaving web design as a hobby.
2 – How did you get started in the arts?
Well, it was a long period of decantation. As a child I drew a lot. My parents house was always full of comic books and mags. But I think the appearance of “Fierro” Magazine in 1984 was a huge motivation to think: “Oh, I want to draw comics!”. So, I’ve started to learn and soon I began to work sporadically in that Mag!, also I started to study Fine Arts.
It was a very exciting time to start, Buenos Aires was full of underground magazines like El Vívora, Hurlant Metal, Heavy Metal, Cairo, Totem, etc. That was my school: Crumb, Charles Burns, Moebius, Marc Caro, Gary Panter, Loustal, Clerc, Caza, Enki Bilal, etc. Obviously, comics and illustration came on the same boat!
3- Where do yo draw your inspiration from?
I have an army of strange little creatures who are devoted to draw and write ideas for me, in notebooks that I bought them (proof in my portrait!).
4- Can you describe for us what a regular day is like for you?
Almost everyday I start my day with a delicious and quiet breakfast, reading the e-mails and news, and finally I start to work. Depending on the state of the work I’m working with, I draw in my sketchbooks or papers, or paint in Photoshop. I just stop to take a break for the lunch and then again going to read e-mails and news and back to work. I spend too many hours in front of the computer!
And my days have not a clear ending, I go to bed very later (when I realise that I’m sleeping over the keyboard!).
Actually my days are constantly changing, I’ve just moved to Buenos Aires around a month ago so my rutine is a little bit different, sometimes I go to walk to the park with my girlfriend, or sometimes I go to a Cafe to draw in my sketchbook.
5- What is your most common approach for completing a project?
After agreeing and signing a contract with the client, usually I start reading the brief, thinking, researching, doodling, thinking, sketching … and if I’m lucky soon I’m sending some rough sketches to the client.
When an idea is approved, depending on the kind of work I redraw the approved sketch doing some corrections or go directly to Photoshop to start painting.
6- Out of all your work what is your favorite piece and why?
Honestly, I have a short time working as a commercial illustrator, my “favorite” is still in the oven!
But if I must to select some pieces from my portfolio probably I’m going to choose the fisherman and the big red fish serie, I like the atmosphere that I created there.
7- Is it easy to make a living in the work that you do?
“Easy” is not exactly the right word to describe this career. I think we need a great conviction and a lot of efforts to dedicate a life to any artistic career, I’ve that conviction and I really love to do what I’m doing.
It’s not easy ’cause I don’t have a normal working shedule, I work almost seven days a week, sometimes during holydays, and as I don’t have an agent or representant I also must to negotiate, lear about legal stuff, etc. But I’m not complaining, I’m very happy to make a living from what I love!
8- Who is your biggest influence?
There’s no doubt, comics are the big influence in my work, mainly underground comix.
As I already said I really love the work of artists like Robert Crumb, Art Spiegelman, Loustal, Mattotti, Moebius, Harriman, Serge Clerc, Hergé, Joost Swarte, Hayao Miyazaki, and the works of many Argentine colleagues. In general I like comics from individuals, not the ones originated into the American industry that produces works in series, as if they were shoes, I love those personal and crafted works, like the exquisite “RAW” Mag from Art Spiegelman, and also I love a lot of Childrens picture books!
9- How important is technology for the work that you do? What tools could you not live with out?
I started my career without electronic technology but today I can’t imagine my artwork without computers. I love it! I love to paint with Photoshop as much as I love to draw with pencils over paper! My entire computer with all the periferics is necessary, but the wacom tablet is the tool that changed truely all my workflow.
10- How important is color in your work and why?
It’s funny to listen people talking about my color palettes as something distinctive, for so many years I was working only with black and white, with India ink, I’ve started to use and understand colors trough the last years, experimenting and using the intuition.
11- Whats your favorite color?
Probably the black, but I’m not married with any colour. Colours are all beautiful, some without any company and others mixed in groups.
12- Where can people get in contact with you?
Well, art directors, editors, publishers, etc., probably will prefer to visit my portfolio at http://www.circografico.com.ar , colleagues prefer my blog http://pelicanosypescados.blogspot.com or maybe my Flickr account http://flic.kr/ravenpix and my contact e-mail is alexdukal@gmail.com
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Wow, dope style. Whan I see your illustration a story passes through my mind. Genius, congratulations!
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