2021-2022 projects

Aircraft hangar environment

In 2021 I've enrolled in an online 10-week course "3d modeling for games and films" by ArtCraft school in Ukraine.

Hangar environment is my final project for the course. The theme was chosen randomly by a course teacher and though I wasn't very excited about it at first, I then realized that it's a nice opportunity simulate real working conditions where artists don't always do exactly what they want.

The goal of the project was to make everything as low poly and modular as possible. 
First we had to gather references and create a blocking of an environment:

Then for each prop we had to follow these steps:
1. Model a high poly version
2. Model a mid poly version and bake maps from the high poly.
3. Texture the mid poly model using maps from the previous step.
4. Create a low poly model by removing unnecessary edge loops from the mid poly model. Optimize UV maps if possible. Bake textures from mid poly models to low poly.

The final environment had to be assembled in an engine of our choice. I've chosen Unreal Engine 5 because I've already had a bit of experience with UE4 and I wanted to try out Lumen. Also tried blueprints for the first time to calculate chain length and lamp position for the different lamp versions I had.

Here are all the props used for the environment:

Props for the course.

Unfortunately, I didn't get a certificate for this course as it was paused because of the war in my country, but I'm still happy that I've had an opportunity to learn, get feedback and finish some projects for my portfolio.

Nodevember 2021

I'm a big fan of procedural generation. Creation of textures in Substance 3d Designer looks like a perfect combination of tech and art for me, so I couldn't allow myself to skip Nodevember.
This year there were 15 prompts only and I think it was a great decision from their side, as there was enough time for both working on the materials and having rest.

Handpainted assets.

While working on a somewhat realistic hangar environment I wanted to try out something more stylized and colorful. I had birthday coming soon and thought it may be a nice idea to create myself a small handpainted gift :)

And then Russia started a full scale invasion of Ukraine. After I moved to another city and calmed down a bit, I realized that I wanted to create at least something to express myself and spread awareness about what's happening in my country.
The following art was inspired by a brave woman who told the occupants to put seeds into their pockets, so sunflowers will grow where they die.

WIP Kitchen environment

I've started to work on another environment right after I finished the hangar project. Unfortunately, didn't finish it yet but I still want to show the results I have so far.
My goals for this project are to use trim sheets and modular assets and try to make the room not as empty and sterile as the airplane hangar. 

I've gathered some kitchen interior references first. Then, after I had a rough idea of what I want to create, I've started to gather references for individual props. And later, while working on the project, I've decided to create some collages to help me not forget about object placement and some small details.

I mostly create high poly models first, then low/mid poly versions, bake texture maps and texture the assets in Substance 3d Painter. For the trim textures I used Substance 3d Designer.

I prefer to bring the models into the engine quite early. This allows me to setup cameras for the progress shots and have a rough idea of the direction the project is going. I usually use placeholder models saved in proper folders and I set up material instances with placeholder textures, this allows me to quickly iterate on the changes just by saving a new version of a texture or model into a corresponding folder. This approach also helps me to keep myself motivated because I can constantly see the progress.

Overall, 2021 was an important year for me as I've realized that I want to build my career as a 3d artist. In 2022 I plan to focus on further development of my skills, especially sculpting and presentation. Also I'd love to explore texture painting and procedural generation more.
I'm looking forward to new opportunities and really hope to find a gamedev job this year.

Thanks for checking out my art :)