MARTIN OKONKWO - My walk on the creative highway.

Briefly tell us about yourself and what you do for a living?

I am Martin Okonkwo, from Anambra State, a graduate of Fine and Applied Arts, University of Nigeria Nsukka.

I grew up in Lagos, Nigeria. I am an Art Director, Illustrator and Manager in an Advertising Agency in Lagos. I’m also a Comic book creator, Digital painter and avid reader of books.

Describe your childhood and your early steps as an artist

As a child, I was obsessed with comics and cartoons, probably because they weren’t as available then as they are today. We had to wait in front of the T.V everyday after school till 4pm when the cartoons would start and you had only one, or two hours max before the “boring” adult shows began.

I remember shows like Secret City (Commander Mark), during which we would pull out our sketch books and draw alongside the host. Also Teddy Ruxpin, Muppet babies, Voltron etc.) greatly inspired me even as a child to create my own cartoon characters. I still don’t know which was a greater influence, TV or comics.

I would do anything including spend my transport fare for school on comic books then walk an incredible distance back from school. I started making comic books since I was in primary school, drawing on my exercise books and colouring with crayons, then I saw my first Walt Disney animated cartoon and my life never remained the same.

I spent an unbelievable amount of time drawing and continued to draw even when all my friends got interested in other things (like girls) and quit drawing.

What were the reactions of your parents and their disposition towards art?

Did they in anyway encourage you?

My Dad was mostly indifferent, I wasn’t sure if it was a good thing as he neither encouraged nor discouraged me. Though later on as I got older, he commissioned me once to make sketches for some relief sculptures at one of his business premises. My mom on the other hand was a bit concerned because she felt this form of art (Illustration, cartoons and comics) was not going to make me any money, and I don’t blame her for thinking that way because it was the way the average Nigerian saw it too. Anyway, my personal drive and passion for this art form far outweighed any kind of discouragement.

Where did you train or is it just pure talent?

I’m mostly self taught. I learnt by observation, countless hours of endless practice and burning the night oil. School was also helpful because it helped to formalize the knowledge and processes. My formal education helped to enhance the natural ability.

Tell us about you journey so far – has it been easy or tough?

So far it has been an equal measure of both. ‘Nothing good comes easy’ as they say. It was tough enough honing these skills on my own without any physical mentors or initial formal training. I’ve also had it good because I’ve started reaping the fruits of all that labour. The exposure and accomplishment so far has been outstanding, also I’ve met people and stepped into places I never could have otherwise.

What challenges have you faced?

Firstly, many people look down on you as an illustrator and they often assume that they can get you to do stuff for free or “For Exposure” as they would say. I fell for that trick a few times at the beginning of my career, but not these days.

Another set-back was the realization that my favourite art medium (Comics) was the most undervalued. I almost dropped it completely for other things but couldn’t because it was like fire in my bones, but all that is changing really fast. The comic industry in Nigeria is blooming rapidly and would soon explode like the Music industry

What’s your motivation?

The desire to make a difference in the world with my innate abilities is what drives me daily to get better at my work. When I see how much power there is in the media and how it’s influencing today’s youths, it just stirs up something in me to reach out there and make somebody better through my art. Walt Disney has this simple objective of bringing happiness to every home and I buy into that but in my case I want to spread life changing principles in a fun way through my work. It’s really more about adding value to the world than making money.

What kind of Art would you say you specialise in?

Comics and cartoons are my specialty. I also do branding /design as well and make substantial income from that. When I retire, I plan to leave a huge imprint on the Nigerian comics and animation scene.

Your style looks mature and much defined, how did you develop it?

It took a while, but I developed my art style from years of reading comics and watching movies (both regular and animated). I practise without using any direct reference, I’ve learned how to draw almost anything without visual references and it came easy to me probably because of a natural sense of spatial understanding. When I draw, I just want every thing to look right and there’s almost zero tolerance for mediocrity in my books

Tell us about your characters, what inspires them?

Well, my characters have evolved over time. As a little kid and even till I finished secondary school, most of my characters were white because that was all we had back then - white superheroes, white cartoon characters etc. I had to deliberately start learning how to really draw black people. Even right now when you take a close look at my characters, you will see a great deal of Marvel and DC influence, plus Disney and Pixar, but with clear African attributes and features.

What’s your biggest inspiration?

God is the source of all good inspiration. Also, inspiration can come from just about anything - from nature, people, movies, games, books etc. In fact I look to even the most unusual sources for inspiration

Mention a few people who have influenced your art style?

Sure! I still get awestruck each time I see the work of Alex Ross, he has this realistic way of portraying superheroes that I find simply intriguing. Then there is Jim Lee, Joe Madureira, John Byrne, Michael Turner, Stjepan Sejic, Frank Miller – I consider all these artists icons in their own rights

If you could do any project with some funding, what would it be?

The Nigerian version of Marvel Studios

Tell us a little about how you bring your drawings to life

I believe that the look of your work-space says a lot about you, so I prefer less clutter as on my work table as possible so that I can think clearly. Previously, it used to be a pretty long process to illustrate, but today, technology has made it more flexible, faster and more efficient with the influx of illustration devices of all types, you can start and finish an illustration project 100% on your Tablet, the use of paper is now optional. I work mostly from imagination and I pay attention to details. I may use reference if need be, just to achieve a level of accuracy.

Are your works appreciated by your fans?

A great deal of them do. The feedback is often very positive and pleasant.

I’m just careful to never let it get to my head so I don’t get complacent and stop improving.

What does it take to nurture a skill like yours?

Passion is key or at least a keen interest. This is the gasoline that gets every creative person going. If you’re not passionate about this kind of work, you may not be able to put in the long hours required to develop yourself further or withstanding criticism or discouragement

Tell us briefly about your brain child, Epoch Comics and what inspired the idea.

Epoch Comics is actually a Subsidiary of Epoch Studios which is the brand I’m building with my team. The idea was conceived many years ago while I was still in the University, stemming from my love for the comic medium and the natural flare I have for panelled storytelling. Epoch Comics is all about African themed comic books that cut across many genres from Superhero to Epic from Cartoon to Supernatural etc. We are focused on producing quality comics that consist of characters with local names and experiences the average Nigerian can relate to. Our stories are relevant to these times. We hope they inspire the present and coming generations to embrace the comic medium of entertainment. We have some of our flagship titles available on our website for free reading and download

What inspired your Afro-centric characters?

It came from the mere fact that we are Africans and need to showcase our culture and beauty through our art just like the West has always done. Our characters are created to portray the beauty and strength of the African continent for the rest of the world to see and for our values to be appreciated.

You’ve created some popular cartoon characters for some notable brands in Nigeria, kindly mention a few.

There was CLIQLITE AGENTS for ETISALAT, a comic series that started running in 2013. I also worked on some of the recently released INDOMITABLES comics for INDOMIE NOODLES and also several, yet to be published projects. I’ve developed characters for Mobile games and TV shows. It was a real delight being part of all these endeavours

Would you say the whole experience has been financially rewarding?

Yes, indeed, it has been, because some of the biggest pay cheques I’ve received came from these commissions and not my 9 to 5.

What are your future goals?

I may not be able to disclose all the details here but it involves empowering many young aspiring artists who are towing the same line and who want to have fulfilling lives as illustrators and comic creators… So brace yourselves…

What advice would you give to aspiring younger artists?

Never let anyone talk you out of your dreams and passions

Never stop improving

Never sell yourself short

Never stop adding value whenever you can

Never stop trusting God

Besides Art what are your other passions?

Hmmm…My first passion is my faith, even before Art.

I love to read and I’m all for rap music as well, but inspirational rap though, e.g. Lecrae, Andy Mineo, Tedashi

What would you say has been your most embarrassing moment in life?

Ha ha ha…That was back in the University when my mom and aunt walked in on me and a girl in a very compromising situation in my room.

If you could do one thing differently, what would that be?

I would have made sure that day never happened.

How long does it take to create a character?

It can take just minutes or sometimes many hours depending on the complexity and medium of the design. There were times when I had to create the characters as I drew the comic because of short deadlines. Example is a comic project I worked on for one of our popular drink brands, last week.

If you had an opportunity to improve your industry, what would you do?

Bring the industry players together and form one formidable entity.

The individualism gets out of hand sometimes, everybody wants to do his own thing in the Nigerian comic industry

What do you do to relax?

Watch a comic based series or read comic books

Photography by Ellis Mbeku for EMSTUDIOSng

www.emstudiosng.com

#PhotographybyEllisMbeku #illustrator #FEBMAREdition #interview #Exclusive #EMSTUDIOSng #MartinOkonkwo #Mywalkonthecreativehighway