Buy Crowns 
Maria takes her favorite characters and NPCs from The Elder Scrolls Online and creates lively cartoons with them. We talk with her about her art, inspirations, and process in our latest Community Spotlight!
You've created amazing illustrations from many different games. What inspired you to begin drawing characters and NPCs from The Elder Scrolls Online?
Why thank you! To be honest, I love creating characters, and whether I will develop them or leave them as a concept, it's always a fun exercise for any artist or writer to play around with designs and personalities.
ESO offered me so many things I could do with my characters. At first, I didn't think I would have as many as I do now, but as I was progressing through the game I kept saying, “Oh I want to have a character that's a Buoyant Armiger!" or “I really need to make a Psijic character!" The game has a lot of freedom when it comes to this because there are just so many armor styles, costumes, pets, and mounts. That along with the character creator inspires me to make these new characters and experiment with their design, themes, and personalities.
You often draw ESO's characters taking part in fun or lively activities, such as your recent Summerset beach illustration. Why do you enjoy creating such playful scenes with these characters?
I really love the stories in ESO, including both the happy parts and all the heavy topics as well. That's why I sometimes just want to imagine a more lighthearted scenario, especially after a particularly emotional plot like the one of Summerset. It's common in fan spaces to make an alternative universe where nothing bad happens and everyone is fine and happy.
It may be quite silly, but it's still a fun way to explore the characters, and nothing says fun like imagining the entire main cast having a good time at the beach! I personally find a lot of peace with these cartoons, and it makes me feel better to think about my favorite characters just doing regular and silly things, as if they had a day off from all the serious and world-ending events that are going on in their daily lives.
How would you characterize and what influences your unique style as an artist?
Well, what influenced my art is easy to spot by fans of traditional Disney and Dreamworks animation. While I do draw a lot of inspiration from the old 2D animated cartoons, just like any creator I do put a little bit of my own flair into my art, too. I just always wanted to know how my favorite games and characters would look in 2D animation style, as if they were part of an animated movie from the 90s.
I do love it when people leave comments on my work such as “I can't believe I get to see Vivec drawn in a Disney style." It really makes me feel like I am contributing something new to the community.
Recently, you've focused on the Clockwork God Sotha Sil, but you've also illustrated his fellow Tribunal member, Vivec. What appeals to you about the Dark Elves' demigods?
Since I wasn't acquainted with the classic Elder Scrolls games and lore before playing ESO, I found the story of the Tribunal new and exciting. I started playing ESO from the Morrowind expansion, which means helping Vivec and the people of Vvardenfell was the first thing I did.
We all get attached to our first experiences in a game, when everything is a little scary and exciting, and that was how I felt during the Vvardenfell story arc. It was funny and mysterious, intimidating and intriguing, and with it grew my interest in the Tribunal.
I should also point out that my love for Sotha Sil comes entirely from the fact that Clockwork City is my favorite DLC and that there's nothing about that content that I don't love.
Will we eventually get to see Almalexia, too?
I have drawn Almalexia; however, I did so based on her classic model and appearance, as I wasn't aware that she was present in ESO. It's safe to say that I did grow to really like her character, and I will draw her a LOT in the future to even out with the art I did of her two fellow gods.
You've also focused on some members of the Psijic Order, including Valsirenn. What is it about the Order's members and their aesthetic that appeals to you?
The Psijic Order is one of the few things that stuck with me ever since I first played The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim years ago. There was a certain level of mystery and benevolence surrounding them, and even though they appeared briefly, I always wanted to know more. You can probably imagine how excited I was to find that we were able to see their fabled island Artaeum and even join the Order ourselves!
From an artistic point of view, I really love the Psijics as they appeared in
Summerset. The water and ocean theme and the inspiration it drew from coral reefs and seashells is very refreshing. It's a pleasant appearance that I just love drawing. This led me to enjoy the character of Valsirenn, as she is a really captivating and charming character.
How were you first introduced to ESO? And what kind of character do you play?
I received ESO as a gift for Christmas, so I began to actively play it soon after and was quickly drawn into all of it. I have played MMORPGs before, so I was not unfamiliar with them, but ESO had a lot of new things that I had to get used to, and that on its own was exciting and fun.
I personally play tank characters the most. I love tanking in Dungeons and Trials with my main character, a Khajiit Dragonknight tank named Shi'rava. I do, however, have a character to fill up every role and class, even though I still have a lot to learn about them.
Tell us about your process. How do you get from an idea to a finished piece?
Usually a scene, a funny situation, a line of dialogue, or even music that I can relate to my favorite characters inspires me. I think, I have to draw this, people have to see this!—and that's how it all begins.
I mostly do digital art, so I start with a vague sketch of the scene and characters to capture the motion of the character, the atmosphere, and the light, but most importantly, to find the personality of whomever or whatever it is I'm drawing. Then follows the cleaner sketch with the anatomy details before moving on to line art and laying out the flat colors.
Coloring is a pretty relaxed process, even if a bit long, and I know that once I'm done with it, the piece will look closer to what I've imagined and I can get to the fun part where I play with the shadows to create the atmosphere.
Finally, I add a few final changes to bring the drawing to life, and there we have it! Whether it takes me forty minutes or a few hours, I am always satisfied when looking at the finished drawing and sharing it with people who will (hopefully) enjoy it as much as I do.
How have you developed your craft over the years? Do you have any advice for your fellow artists trying to hone their skills?
I am mostly self-taught and can hardly see my own progress; however, people keep reminding me how my art has improved over the years, and it always surprises me. To my fellow artists I can say: as cliché as it sounds, just keep drawing. Even if you never show your art to anyone, even if it's silly, just keep drawing whatever you feel like drawing.
It doesn't have to be perfect. Art is about expressing your thoughts and feelings, and no matter what you draw, you created something new that wasn't there before, something only you can show, and that's the magic of it. Draw whenever you can, draw silly doodles, use references, look at things and other artists that inspire you, and trust me it really pays off in the end.
Where can fans find more of your work?
I post most of my work on my Tumblr because it has a very useful and simple tagging system and has the ability to blog and customize how people see my art. I do also post a lot of my work on DeviantART for people who are not yet accustomed to Tumblr and prefer a more classic art-sharing website.
A big thank you to Maria for sharing her story and art with us. Be sure to keep an eye on her work in the future – we can't wait to see which character she draws next!
If you've created or enjoyed something unique based on The Elder Scrolls Online, send it our way via Twitter @TESOnline, Instagram, Tumblr, or Facebook. We'd love to share it with the rest of the ESO community!
