I am my own muse. I am the subject I want to know better. - Frida Kahlo

Yesterday, we looked at the female designers who are breaking boundaries and reshaping our perceptions of gaming.

Today, OnTabletop takes a closer look at the artists in 2019 who are defining the aesthetic design of our industry through their innovative art.

Part Two: The Artists

Electric Eve, Miniature Painter

I am a Partnered Twitch Streamer, Discord Partner and Professional Painter. I have been painting for around 5 years now & have painted professionally in Games Workshop Warhammer TV tutorials, have been featured in several White Dwarf/Warhammer Visions issues and have painted some box art for some other companies in the past. I also run my own hobby/stream community known as the Dirty Dippers on both Twitch & Discord. I most enjoy painting schemes that feature bright colours & high contrasts & have been nicknamed fondly in my community as the "Queen of Blends." Outside of painting I enjoy PC gaming (FPS/MMOs/MOBAs),  DM-ing for my homebrew D&D campaign, wargaming and travelling.

What do you look for in a painting project?

I don't often get a lot of time to paint something for myself but when I do I tend to gravitate towards animals/fantasy creatures (dragons, mice etc) and pretty/ornate minis (Kingdom Death, various busts etc). I generally look for minis and sculpts that are aesthetically pleasing /inspiring to me and are going to give me the opportunity to experiment with colour; fantasy creatures and anything magical are great for this. I do personally also enjoy painting female minis too as I enjoy painting longer hair and female faces. Anything with a magical/fey vibe is a winner with me too. Oh and wings, I like painting wings.

Do you encounter many other women in the hobby?

I encounter many other women in the hobby; ranging from beginners in my local FLGS to pro-painters online whose work I admire! Though I'm not really interested in what gender someone is when it comes to the hobby - I'm interested in interesting hobby!

Who are your female inspirations within the industry?

Katarzyna Górska/KAHA is my main female inspiration within the industry. I just find her style, use of colours and crazy skill really inspirational and a quality of work that I aspire to reach someday.

What has been your favourite painting project to date?

This is a hard question to answer! More recently a favourite project of mine was painting the custom minis for the Yogscast D&D HighRollers guys. D&D is a huge passion of mine and bringing others' character minis to life & knowing that the mini will make someone super happy & go on to be used to symbolize their character & not just sit in a cabinet gives me a lot of satisfaction & a cute fuzzy feeling! Also the minis for that particular group were really nicely sculpted, overflowing with character & offered a lot of variety colour-wise. Though in the past other favourite projects of mine include; Ahriman, Ssathraz and Lord Elrodent.

Catherine Hamilton, Artist, Oceans

Catherine Hamilton is the artist behind North Star Games' upcoming board game Oceans, an intricate engine builder about the evolution of marine life. is usually on the road drawing and studying birds. Translated, this means she is properly homeless and focusing on dubious pursuits. Catherine holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the Rhode Island School of Design and a Master of Fine Arts from Bennington College, but is currently, as usual, walking a bit off the beaten path. In a past life, she taught at the Rhode Island School of Design and exhibited paintings, but ended all of that nonsense when she developed severe allergies to the chemicals used in painting studios. Since that time, she has been wandering farther and farther afield in pursuit of all things avian.

What are the challenges of producing high-quality artwork for a game as large and detailed as Oceans?

I think the biggest challenge for all of the Evolution games was to create believable illustrations of creatures that embodied a certain evolutionary trait, but that actually don’t exist in real life. That said, I snuck a couple of “real” creatures into the trait cards. It has been really fun to watch online forums where people argue over which ones are real - I haven’t seen anyone yet identify the couple that are!

What first appealed to you about designing art for the board games industry?

I had stopped working with fantasy imagery shortly after high school, as I went into studying painting and contemporary art, so when the opportunity arose to do an illustration project that combined my love of nature with old loves of imaginary worlds, I jumped on it.

What developments would you like to see to promote inclusion within the gaming industry?

I’d love to see more and more women leading projects, and being in charge of creative designing.

What has been your favourite moment working in the industry so far?

I think my favourite moment was seeing the first game in its final form! Opening the box, seeing how beautifully the components had been printed, and then playing it and seeing the whole project come to life in real time, not just as an abstract concept or as a series of physical objects! That it could visually and conceptually meld into an experience was a jaw-dropping moment for me.

Tomorrow, Part Three - The Critical Thinkers!