Today we’d like to introduce you to Omar Siddiqui.
Omar, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
I’m a freelance concept artist and I’m currently taking online classes at Brainstorm School which is based in Burbank, CA while also working on projects on the side. Drawing has always been a passion of mine ever since I was little, but I never really thought that I would pursue it as a career. Fast forward to when I graduated high school, I went to college initially for engineering but then soon realized that this was something that I wasn’t suited for, so then I ended up changing my majors to Animation and Game Art. Towards the end of my program, I got more into environment concept art and design and started learning on my own through YouTube mostly, and once I graduated college, I had enough time to invest in more courses that would train me for the job and help make connections with people currently working in the industry. As far as my process for creating images go, I use a wide variety of 3D and 2D techniques.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey has been a fairly smooth road?
It wasn’t smooth at all, and even right now, I’m struggling quite a bit every now and then. But at the end of the day, I do see myself get better at art every year. It’s a long and tiring process and you just have to constantly show up and do the best you can. And the best way to do that is to enjoy the process of creating. The main struggle for me is time. I have a full-time day job, and balancing the time between homework, work, and freelance work can be quite challenging. Life’s full of ups and downs, and the sooner you accept that the more easier it becomes to stay positive and do the best you can. I personally want to work for the games industry and looking back at my art 2-3 years ago I have leveled up quite a bit, and that keeps me going!
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar, what can you tell them about what you do?
I’m an environment concept artist, and I mostly create photorealistic sci-fi images. This process involves some quick dirty sketches where I try to figure out problems I need to solve, and from there, I jump into 3D and start creating. From there, it’s just a matter of going into Photoshop and spicing things up by color grading and painting over my 3D renders. A lot of my favorite pieces that I’ve worked on have mostly been class assignments since I don’t have a whole lot of experience in the industry yet, and I’m super proud of the mood and tones I was able to create in those pieces. I also have a YouTube channel called OmarDraws where I show a lot of the techniques I use when creating my images.
Is there a quality that you most attribute to your success?
I would definitely say experimentation. The reason why I think it’s super important is because technology and softwares are constantly changing, and so you need to have a mindset where you’re able to quickly learn and adapt. I’m gonna use myself as an example. When I was in middle/high school, all I ever drew was anime. Thats it! Nothing else! And I used to hate painting environments, and the reason why I hated them was because I didn’t know how to paint them, and I didn’t know where to start. So, one day I woke up and told myself you know what I’m gonna try painting some environments and be okay with failing because at end of the day, that’s how you grow as an artist, I didn’t wanna keep drawing anime my entire life. So, I ended up buying some online courses and got myself started! 2 years later everyone started using Blender 3D for their designs and so I hopped on the wagon as well and taught myself how to use Blender. Last year I started learning 3D Coat, which is another 3D software as well which really solidified my workflow and took my paintings to the next level. At this point, I had successfully transitioned to an environment concept artist from an anime artist. And it all started with just experimenting painting things I wasn’t comfortable painting in the first place.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.artstation.com/omarsiddiqui
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/omardraws.28
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/omar-siddiqui-698528178
- Youtube: https://youtube.com/@omardraws
