In a world where everyone's after the easiest thing I consider it a privilege to help those still chasing dreams.

That's why I'm always open and interested in meeting people passionate about games and art and do my best to to share whatever knowledge I've got.
I can give a talk on most of game art related topics, but I truly believe that motivation conquers all, so I try to include an element of positive psychology in any kind of talk I give.

If you feel like you might be interested in me sharing whatever knowledge I've got with a passionate lot, feel free to drop me a line and we'll work something out.

Future of Art Production

Technical Art Culture

How Much Is Enough For Beauty?






I had the privilege to address the Industry on the subject of Artistic Beauty.
How it is perceived by our audience and human brain in general and the economic implications thorough understanding of Beauty brings.
Because, unlike detail, beauty is free. Look for my talk “How Much Is Enough For Beauty?” in GDC Vault!.

Physically Based Texturing Tutorial and Giveaway




I'm happy to share and actual asset with you folks as well as share some advice on next gen asset production.

Physically Based Shading for Artists







I'm happy to present you here tonight a quick yet thorough introduction into the world of next gen physically based shading made for artists.

Quantifying Beauty in Representative Art






I had the amazing opportunity to share with the students of Art Institute of California what, I believe, lies at the source of being an artist - "Beauty".
So that they can intertwine it with their vision and move us all forward as an art form :)

Practical Shader Techniques DVD



I had the privilege of working with Eat3D to create and distribute a comprehensive educational DVD that takes you from very accessibly explained basics of shader creation to some of the most sophisticated usecases you can come up with.

Albedo Reference Library





A collection of color calibrated images that should provide some reference for actual material values as well as serve as a guideline on how albedo information usually differs from what we perceive visually.

Approaching Art Tests




Over time I've got a lot of letters from people asking for advices on their art tests and recently the influx of those letters increased again,
so I decided to write down what I usually have to say.

Ditching Diffuse Maps




A foray into artistic reasoning and technical details behind "procedural" texturing, with practical examples on today's tech.

Quantifying Beauty in Representative Art
(Russian)



Lecture on Quantifying Beauty in Representative Art. very sorry but it's still in russian.
You have my word though, fellas - the next one will be in english.
And it's not that big a wait too ; )

Materials available for download right here.

Talent as a Delusion
(Russian)



Here is another talk I did that focuses on debunking the harmful notion of "talent".
Still in Russian. Can't wait to start doing those in English.

Materials available for download right here.

Motivation
(Russian)



Here's another lecture on "Motivation" this time.
It's in russian once again, but but hopefully some english stuff will come soon.

Materials available for download right here.

Professional Opportunities in Video Game Industry
(Russian)



Here's a lecture I did on "Opportunities in Video Game Industry".
Unfortunately it's in russian but, hey, once you invite me to give a talk in english I'll be more than happy to upload it here :-)

You can grab the materials and addendum right here.

Purpose In Art




This paper is aimed to alleviate some issues concerning ideation and giving and taking constructive feedback.

Select Smartly




Just a tiny little tutorial showing how to save some time on the most fundamental of operations.

Happiness by the Kilowatt




There's been a lot of talks lately that the industry is too much of a tough place. Well, if you can't change the circumstances, try changing your attitude to them.

Talent




Are you stuck debating about Talent every now and then? Did someone tell you are talentless? Do you feel this way yourself? I say you need no such thing and you have much more valuable things inside of you.

What Makes A Man




I've seen quite a bunch of people trying to make it in life or in the industry, who hit the rock bottom pretty bad and were thinking about reconsidering their life goals completely. I finally got chance to study myself in similar circumstance. What's the lesson to learn there? I think I might know…

Efficient Art Production
Theory and Practice




Your assets look nice but your engine chokes on them? You think you models look nice, but you're afraid your first potential employer might be spooked off, because of you having no ideas about technical issues of video game art? You're just starting out and have no knowledge to base your decisions upon while modeling, texturing? Here are almost all the hows and whys you need to know.

Russian version here.

Unspoken Truth About Managing Geeks by Jeff Ello in Russian




A great paper be Jeff Ello, where he gets in the head of your typical good employee and highlights their misunderstanding with managers, that sometime arises. I'm just helping spread the word.

Analytical Thinking by Ben Mathis in Russian




This paper is the king of all the papers I've ever read in my life. 'Nuff Said.