GERALD J. GRABOWSKI
CHARACTER AND CREATURE DESIGNER, ILLUSTRATOR, 3D ARTIST
MY WORK HAS APPEARED IN...
Business Email - [email protected]
ABOUT
I'm Gerald, Gerald J Grabowski. I'm a Polish guy and college student who likes drawing cartoons, horror, creatures, and character design. Hell, I also do 3D art. I do a lot of things...
I'd love to be apart of the video game industry. So far, I've worked as an illustrator for the Euphoric Brothers (still am!). I've also worked on a game with Silvercity Sharks, Night of the Extinct. Can't wait to see what other opportunities could arise!
CLIENTS
GAME DEVELOPERS
Euphoric Brothers | Silvercity Sharks
CONTENT CREATORS
Underneath is an interview conducted by a good friend of mine.
If you're an artist, it's worth a read!
Q: Can you do an introduction?
A: Names Gerald J Grabowski, or just Gerald, simply put. I've lived majority of my life in Poland, just happened to be born during the time my mother was working abroad in New York. Doubt I'll be searching for work abroad myself, to be fair, I feel at home in my Fatherland. I'm an artist specializing in multiple art forms. Mostly focused on illustration and digital art, but I've been learning 3D art since October 2024, it's real fun stuff. I also specialize in character and creature design. Done animation a few times as well; while 2D is more rewarding and impressive, I do have a strong preference for 3D animating. Mixing can be done too!
Q: What has inspired you to be an artist?
A: I think what inspired me the most is a handful of artists in the industry, especially in the animation industry. It was quite difficult to figure out an art style earlier in my art journey. I tried mimicking Tim Burton, Don Bluth... but by the time I learnt about Don, I began constructing the true foundation of my artistic identity, rather than building a bunch of mud houses. Along the way, I've learnt from Aaron Blaise - a renowned artist who has worked for Disney, now creating art courses online. I've also discovered Torsten Schrank, from his work for "Klaus" - one of my favourite movies of all time, and Shane Prigmore - character designer for "Coraline", another beloved movie of mine. Slowly but steadily built on top of the foundation, creating my own artistic identity, which is now easily recognizable for many.
Q: For how long have you been doing the things you love?
A: I've been drawing ever since I could pick up a crayon, really. I think most artists can relate to this. It became a hobby eventually, around the time I was in elementary. It became my first ever source of income 4 years ago, now I've been hired a few times to work professionally.
Q: What do you think was your biggest achievement as an artist?
A: No doubt, my biggest achievement during my art journey was meeting the Euphoric Brothers - Faris, to be more specific. I remember back in 2024, I've approached him and offered my labor to him. Unusual of me, I've always strictly waited for clients to approach first, rather than doing it myself. I overcame my anxiety by doing this. I was prepared for a polite denial, but to my surprise, just few days later, he came back to me, and asked me to make a big illustration for the new years celebration. It was my first true professional work. But he wasn't done with me (still isn't...). Just a few weeks later, he wanted me to make art for their next game, Garten of Banban 0. I was even more thrilled than before. After the game was released, I just couldn't stop watching and reading peoples' reception of the work I've done for the game. But it's not JUST working for the Brothers. We became great friends. I became a better person. I helped them exit this shell that they've been hiding in due to the hate they've been receiving for years... they've been hiring more people to help on their games. Faris has also helped me begin my career in the video game industry. He directed his friends to me - Silvercity Sharks - to make something for them. After that, they were like, "Yo, let's make a game together so more people see your potential". Faris, simply put, helped start a domino effect to turn my life for the better. It's not JUST an artistic achievement... It's a life achievement.
Q: Did you wish to become something else growing up? If so, what was it?
A: For a while, I wanted to be an architect. I think it was during my early teen years. But it was more-so something that my mother wanted me to be, rather than something that naturally came to me. She wanted me to be one because I was addicted to building in Minecraft. I just don't like the extreme responsibility that comes with architecture... I'd rather do architecture design for video games, if anything.
Q: What inspires you to keep going, even if sometimes life makes you feel down?
A: There's a lot of factors that contribute to me continuing my artistic journey - or, even, life journey as a whole. I believe the strongest one is the fact that my work inspires people, both young and experienced. It's such a warm feeling to see a clear indication of someone's art being influenced by mine. Even if it's a little kid tagging me on YouTube shorts to show me their attempt at replicating the Garten of Banban credits art on paper. They chose me as their inspiration. It's a cycle, and I've grown out of my experimental phase, into my role model phase. Another factor is that my work doesn't only make me happy... it makes people happy. I've had one person tell me once that my work has helped them defeat their desire to commit suicide. And it was somebody who was WILLING to approach me about this - there could be so many more people who felt this way...
Q: If there's any advice you want to give the next generation of artists, what would you say?
A: If you want to be an artist... Stand out. Don't force yourself to have a generic art style just to fit with everyone else. Art isn't for everyone, nor is my art for everyone. Some people think the way I draw characters is gross and doesn't do them justice. That's fine. Not everyone has to like your art. You'll gain more appreciation for standing out. People who only like "safe" and generic art styles don't see art as art... they see it as content to consume for 3 seconds, and to scroll past to another one. Get out of your comfort zone and experiment. Use various artists as inspiration, put them into a big pot, and create something new. Discover yourself.
FAQ
Q: What programs do you use?
A: Procreate for drawing, texturing and 2D animating, and Blender for 3D modeling and 3D animating :)Q: Are your commissions open?
A: I don't inherently have an open or closed commission status. Instead, I have a queue. You can easily enter this queue by submitting a form here. You can also message me on any of my socials or my Email for further questions or business inquiries.Q: Will there be a Night of The Extinct sequel?
A: You never know.Q: Will [character] appear in [unreleased Banban game]?
A: Even if I knew, I would get locked up in the basement for sharing that kind of information.