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LVCIDIA is excited to present THE GRIND: a series that takes a look behind the curtain into the daily lives, physical and mental health disciplines, and practices of some of our favorite artists as they navigate digital and personal landscapes pursuing their craft. Our first feature is Brazilian creative director and 3D digital artist FESQ.
MEET FESQ:
How did a colorblind software engineer who “can barely draw a straight line”, become one of the world’s leading digital artists, working with some of the largest brands on the planet? Welcome to the remarkable story of Fesq.
Whether creating animations, NFTs, immersive installations around the globe, or collaborating with Nissan to release the world’s first NFT-linked SUV, Fesq has amassed an impressive roster of accomplishments within only a few short years.
His striking future-analog creations feel both nostalgically familiar, and sharply visionary – capturing a cathartic beauty from an unlikely marriage of dystopian and utopian visions.
Read on for our exclusive interview…
Let’s start with a little introduction to your work and story?
My name is Fesq. I’ve been an art director and 3D artist from Brazil for about eight years. It started as a hobby studying software engineering in college. I began messing with 3D software and posting it on the internet, and it snowballed into a career.
Now I do it full-time from freelance projects, to NFTs, to tech related brand collaborations. I did a big exhibition with Beeple, released a car with Nissan back in 2021, and did an installation for Coca-Cola for the big Las Vegas Sphere.
What is one piece of advice you would give to new up and coming artists?
I was a software engineer first and had art on the side. For two years, I pushed both careers simultaneously. If I jumped to being an artist too early, it probably wouldn’t have worked out. Try to strategize, don’t go with the winds. It’s a career just like any other.
I would say be practical. There’s a bit of romanticism around being an artist. Try to strategize and build your career in a coherent way.
Can you tell us about a pivotal moment in your artistic journey that significantly shaped your perspective?
It was my first commission project for an Australian rapper. I used to post my work on Tumblr, he reached out and asked me to do his album cover. I did it for free and sent a donation link, he sent back 50 bucks – at that time in Brazil it was like a 3x conversion rate. I was like, damn, I can buy a PlayStation game. I started to think I should get some side freelance projects in addition to my software engineering career. It snowballed into my main career.
Why did you choose to go towards digital art rather than traditional art?
I can’t draw, just like some stick figures and that’s it. My parents are architects and draw really well – I can barely draw a straight line. As a software engineer student, I was already in contact with computers as a whole, it was a pretty organic process. I started with Photoshop and Cinema 3D and 4D. It was a way more natural way for me to express myself.
You have such a distinct signature style. How’d you get your style and what advice would you give to artists trying to find their unique style?
I always say style is pure experimentation. It doesn’t come out of nowhere. After experimenting with hundreds upon hundreds of artworks, personal style bleeds in.
I think the distinct characteristics are the colors, red, blue, and purple, which is actually because I’m colorblind, and I don’t see green very well. I was just working with my comfort colors, the opposite of green. It’s important to just experiment and put out as much stuff as you can. At this point I have more than 1,200 artworks posted. Over time, you start to get attached to specific little things, and the repetition of those little elements becomes a style.
What would you say are some of the pros and cons of being like a fully digital artist?
A pro is that it’s really diverse. I don’t have a clear picture of what I’m gonna be doing in two months. Right now, I’m wrapping up a client project and flying to Saudi Arabia next month. After that, I have no idea.
Looking back year over year, it’s always new experiences. The flip side is, it’s stressful as hell. You have no clear picture of the future. It’s something you learn over time to deal with.
You did work with Nissan and Coca-Cola and you were on the Sphere in Vegas. How would you go about marketing yourself and putting yourself out there to get to that level?
It’s basically just being a good person with other people. Just do a good job and be a good person and over time, you’ll build up a repertoire and a network, and the projects will come to you by referral.
Who have been your biggest influences in your art journey?
Beeple for sure. I started doing 3D art because of Beeple. We ended up meeting in person back in 2018, and it pushed me into doing it every day. I’m super inspired by his perseverance and resilience. Fvckrender and Euphoria also had a big influence on me back in the day.
How do you manage your time and stay disciplined as an artist?
Time management is a tricky one. I’m a really organized person. I definitely like to block every moment. I’ve been doing it for years. It is really easy to let yourself go, and go with the flow. If you’re only making art when you’re feeling inspired, I’m sorry to break it to you, you’re never making it. I think there is a lot of discipline needed.
Sit down every day, block a time to make art. Some sessions will be better than others, and that’s part of the game.
You gotta sit down and show up every single day, and keep pushing. Being organized is a really, really big aspect of it. I probably pull this from my software engineer mindsets, but I really think it’s important.
We love it. So how do you manage your mental and physical health while also being an artist?
What I’ve learned is it’s pretty much impossible to have all aspects of your life fully balanced at all times. There are sections of my year where I say okay, I have less work now. Let’s focus more on health and mind for a bit.
By the nature of the career, a new project comes along that demands more work. It’s totally fine, it’s gonna unbalance, it’s okay. My biggest shift in mindset over the years is understanding and being fine with it.
Right now I have a project wrapping next month, I’m working like crazy. My physical health, my mental health is not as it should be, but as it wraps up, I’ll pick that focus back up again. I’m totally fine with that.
Do you have any things you do during those busier times to stay sane, take breaks, or anything like that?
Sleep, you gotta sleep. I don’t compromise on sleep, seven to eight hours every day. I’d rather wake up and work every second I’m awake and sleep well, than slack during the day and have to work late at night because I wasn’t putting up the work I should have earlier in the day.
If you’re having a heavier routine, try to block a little bit of time to exercise, even at home, just to get your heart pumping a little bit. Also important, when it comes to drugs and alcohol as a whole, if you’re having a heavier time, be mindful with consumption, because it’s a snowball effect.
Do you have any practices that you do if you’re feeling creatively stuck?
I think creative blocks are a big aspect of every single artist. What I learned by doing it every day for over a year, there’s no creative block if you have to post every day, which is really hard.
I learned to overcome that by accepting that not every single artwork is going to be my best. Just have a little fun with it and let loose a little. What also helps me break through is just learning something. If I don’t know what to communicate artistically, I just try to learn something. Let’s Google a tutorial. Let’s learn what that little button does. It unlocks a new idea quite often.
Anything specific with diet? Do you need to be eating three good meals every day or anything like that?
Yeah, sometimes I get too wrapped up in a single project, and I forget to eat and that messes up my entire day. Again, having structure and a plan and executing the plan is crucial.
It seems like structure is your secret weapon.
Some of my friends say I’m too structured and sometimes I need to break it up a little. On weekends when I don’t have to work on extra stuff, I try to set up a day to break out of the routine. I don’t track stuff on the calendar like a crazy maniac.
Do you have any practices like journaling or anything like that that you find helpful?
I wouldn’t say that I journal, but I do have two journals with me every single day with a lot of stuff written down. When it comes to ideas, especially conceptual ideas as an artist, they’re really fleeting. You have an idea, if you don’t take notes, it’s gonna vanish in like an hour, right? You gotta be fast. Sometimes I do write them down. Sometimes I send audio messages to myself, and write that down later. But journaling in a sense of reflecting about my day and stuff, no. I tend to reflect in a passive way. I’m cleaning the dishes and I’m thinking, I’m taking a shower and I’m thinking.
Any last thing that you would want to share?
These days, the world is changing so fast, there’s always something new popping up, it can be really anxiety-inducing. I’ve seen a lot of people take the defensive route and check out. This is all wrong.
A message to share with the world is stay curious. Be curious, embrace change. Try to consume new stuff, change your point of view a lot. Just stay curious.
