FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
 

Copyright Information

    Copyrights to all content on this site are owned by XONRAD. Copyright is shared in collaborative artworks. Exceptions to these claims are any and all banners on display for non-XONRAD owned websites, such content is the property of the respective owners and thus protected by the same copyright laws and regulations.
    Usage of any of the artwork that has been created solely by, or in collaboration with Xonrad, and is contained within (but not limited to) Xonrad.com and Rockerode.com, for commercial or non-commercial, profit or non-profit purposes without the artist's permission is strictly prohibited.
    Copyright infringement is THEFT.
    Should copyright laws differ within the country, nation, province, state, city, etc. you reside in, by accessing this website, you agree to abide by these terms and international copyright laws regardless of your locality. "Failure to comply" and/or "Infringement" of the above stated terms will result in a "Violation of Copyright Standards." Such violations WILL be pursued!!

    You can find more information on Copyright laws in the following links:

http://www.copyright.gov/
http://www.rightsforartists.com/copyright.html
http://whatiscopyright.org/

I'm into PSP toobing and I really like your work, can I toob it?

    No. Flat out NO!

I have a group that makes Signature Tags, can I use your work?

   I allow signatare tags under the following guidelines (and I do mean signatures only, no web sets or anything else).
    • No significant alteration to the artwork.
    • The appropriate "© Xonrad, All Rights Reserved." and URL pointing to Xonrad.com to accompany all tags.
    • If you do create a tag from my work, email me so I can see it.
    • Non-profit personal usage only for all tags created.
    • Absolutely no spillage of these tags onto Wireless platforms. I do have licensing agreements in place and by doing so you would be liable. The last thing anyone needs in their life is a corporate entity with a just cause at persecuting them.
    • I do not approve of the tagging of collaborative artworks or content from film/animation projects (basically anything involved with RockErode Productions is off limits).
    • Logos and clothing designs... also off limits.

Can I commission you for an artwork or entice you into my project?

    I am open to commissions and project proposals but as you would expect, my response is dependent on my schedule and if I really feel I have something to offer to your project.

What about websites? Can you make something as pretty for me as you have going for yourself here?

    To be brutally honest, a website like this, or my RockErode Productions site would be quite pricey. If you are still interested after that little warning, you can always ask. Again, my response is dependent on my schedule and if I really feel I have something to offer to your project.

Why do you call Tribal art Runic?

    While it is true that the definition of the word "rune" is most often employed in reference to the alphabet used by the ancient tribal cultures of Scandanavia, Germania and the British isles, the nature and use of those runes are as important in their symbolic and aesthetic value as the tribal/weave decorations that often accompanied them on objects/tools/clothing/jewelry. By that token, the purest meaning of the word, that of "mystery", is more appropriate a label for such tribal designs than the term "tribal". By that definition, all such designs from around the world would be better termed runic than tribal. Whether American Indian, Polynesian, African, Germanic, Siberian, etc.

What's with the pentagrams and other symbols on your site? Are you a satanist or into witchcraft?

    Neither. The pentagram is NOT a symbol OF either and anyone who tells you that they are is a fool. It is okay if you were unaware, everyone is ignorant at first, but the reality is that symbols like the pentagram, hexagram, septagram, swastika... blah blah blah. ALL of these symbols and designs have been demonized to serve the purposes of people that like to keep you ignorant. It comes down to what you bring to the table, negative or positive. So what do they really mean? How old are they? Well, you could discover that the clockwise and counter clockwise swastika appears in every culture around the world going back thousands of years... and the swastika is not always a 4 armed wheel either. The pentagram, septagram, the cross... no one culture or religion has a claim of exclusivity or invention to any of these basic designs. And in the end any cultural, artistic and occult study you undertake is useless if you forget the most basic of facts here. These are geometric designs, they exist in nature. They are in snowflakes, flowers, the way the embers of a fire curl and crackle in the ashes... every design and shape exists in nature (whether at a cellular level or right infront of your naked eye). That is as pure an understanding as you can get, anything more is a creative/cultural interpretation. If you think the swastika means NAZI, the pentagram means WITCHERY, the hexagram means JEW, and so on... you are living in a very neutered world and it is entirely your choice to remain neutered... or not.

Isn't Erotic Art just a fancy way of saying porn with better production values?

    Firstly I have to say, I really do not care. I am not a supporter of over intellectualising any art form. But generally erotica tends to refer to sexual content that focuses on an emotional arousal, whether subtle or explicit. Another way of putting it is that the porn arena of "masturbation fodder" does not apply to erotica. But like anything else, there is a scale of how that works with whatever mixture of themes and elements and whatever techniques and styles, for whatever purposes intended by the creator(s).

But isn't there a fine line between good taste and moral degradation? Have you no respect for taboos?

    No, I do not approve of taboos or morality, there is nothing to respect in either attitude. Believing in taboos is a willful act of remaining ignorant and primative in the face of enlightenment, and grasping onto morality, as morality has been defined in the Western World for the past 1000 years, is an act of guilt induced judgementalism that comes with a gluttonous serving of denial. You do not have to like or even personally approve of everything out there, but forcing your sexual repressions and confusions onto others is as profoundly intrusive and wrong as paedophilia. If this applies to you, you should seek help because your definition of good taste is far from the top of that list of 'your' issues that need addressing.

Hey, I think sex is great but I am not repressed, yet I found _____ uncomfortable or offensive?

    This is often the denial formula for body image issues: "love sex... denial statement... abstracted confession." Note I said often, it is not absolutely always about body image. If you are offended or uncomfortable then you have to figure out why 'you' are making 'yourself' feel that way. It is 'you' that is having the reaction after all. If you do not want to deal with that level of responsibility over your self and feel like blaming others instead, then you really are not mature enough to deal with sex in any capacity. If denial is a life choice for you, you could always consult your doctor on a safe surgical procedure for castration.

So why do you do erotic art?

    As an artist, I have a very curious nature on all of the how's and why's involved in the expression of ideas through whatever medium that they can be expressed in. Expressing erotic content is quite a challenge because sex is one of the very few things that can pull people out of their intellectual headspace and down into a raw emotional and primal state. And in the truest sense of that state there are no justifications for bullshit or half way measures. Very few erotic artists manage to communicate with those undiluted emotions with absolute finesse. I know enough about the creation of erotic art to understand how all this works. Achieving that goal though is not as easy as the understanding of it. So the truest claim I can make about my efforts is that I have come to know a hell of alot, so much that I know there is ever more to keep learning about the subtleties and overtures of this form.

Yeah but... aren't those your deepest most inner fantasies?

    No. If I was merely expressing what turns me on.... why bother? I might as well actually go do it than draw it. The only "deep inner whatever" I am putting into this art is a desire to see a specific sensuality and positivity in the themes/situations/acts that I am representing.

What do you think is superior: Digital or Traditional art techniques?

    I have always considered this to be a silly question. Different mediums are used for a reason... they are 'different', they produce different results and have different post-creation applications. There definitely is a superior medium and technique, but that is judged on a project by project basis, not by an all encompassing "I bet my dad can beat up your dad" mentality. There is one fundamental fact to this question though. A digital artist with a genuinely high quality of skill did not get to that level without having some sort of traditional medium skills. Even if it is simply being able to draw with pencil on paper and nothing else. The opposite is not true about traditional expertise.

Where were you trained?

    I am self taught all the way. All my initial skills were self discovered, from developing the basic control of a pencil or nib pen to figuring out colour and visual composition, how to use digital tools, ideas on how to develop techniques to DO what I see in my head and so on and so on... INCLUDING the maturing of ideas (like cheese). The advantage of this has been that inventive technique and intuitive development are second nature to me. The disadvantage is that sometimes the most effective and efficient method is not discovered for awhile (not often, but it does happen). Beyond that I have gleaned wisdom and perspective largely from the works I love and admire, created by others... as well as the odd tutorial, and not always from the technique they put into focus.
    I must say WITH the exception of digital 3D & digital animation. Those two areas are such monsters of complexity that you really can not do more than make a cube fly around without going through some very extensive tutorials.
    I have never actually received tuition (high school does not count because I went off and did things my way regardless), and what practical film studies I have undertaken were an exercise in the failures of humanity and their pseudo intellectual posturing-with-no-actual-knowledge. The one thing I did learn from them was that video tapes should be stored upright (horizontal storage makes the tape sag, and that is when you get tracking problems. I'm giving you university knowledge I paid for, wow... you get everything at my site :-).

Do you really expect me to believe you are self taught in all these disciplines you work in?

    No, I don't expect anything from you with that attitude!

Why do you create genre looking art?

    The simple answer is I dig the vibrance of 'genre' themes and the creative freedom that comes with that territory. Playful & goofy or dark and horrific, I think it is a fun realm of ideas to play in and I say 'forshame' to anyone that turns their back on pursuits of fun. Even if the creation process is at times taxing and difficult, the spirit of it all is a pursuit of satisfaction, pleasure... that warm fuzzy feeling when I say "woo, I made that, it turned out pretty cool, but in truth it is crap compared to what I have in mind next." There is no pinnacle of achievement here, and that makes it an unending adventure in idea land.

Well, why not do something contemporary?

    Contemporary generally means "big wank". There definitely is some cool stuff in that world of expressionist, abstractist, surrealist and whatever else-ist is 'contemporary. Unfortunately that tends to be in the minority. What is the point of reactionary techniques and 'ideas' that are more institutionalised now than the forms they were once reacting against? Poser culture... there is your point. Picasso, Monet, they really could paint in the styles they were reacting against. Today's reactionaries are ability deficient and alot of that contemporary world lacks real substance and real passion. You either like my work or not... you do NOT have to sit down and read or write an essay about it to decide your level of appreciation.

So what are you communicating through your art?

    I have a vague ideal of promoting passion through my work. A sense of vibrance and lushness. I prefer giving the sense that there is more within an image beyond the limits of the frame, or within the raw elements of a design. That there is more for the viewer to look into and experience if they are so inclined.

What is RockErode Productions all about?

    That is my Fire Label. My volcanic-island-lair-filled-with-minions platform, primarily, for cinematic art. Currently focused on film and animation, yet ultimately it is the banner I am flying for anything that is an act of storytelling. And I must confess, as much as I enjoy image creation, storytelling is where my heart is really at. www.rockerode.com

Where do you find inspiration?

    In everything. Every experience and moment can be a source of inspiration, it is just a matter of being open to it and riding that wave of creativity. "Creative blocks" only exist when you go against that flow. While the concept of a muse works well for many, I find it a serious limitation for my pursuits.

Then what influences you?

    First and foremost I would have to say music. Melody and sound. But I take influences from anything I consider good. Architecture, landscaping, books, movies, martial arts, comics, games, foods, scents.... anything that has a spirit of its own, either wildly passionate or utterly mellow and tranquil. Again, it is the same as the inspiration question. No 'absolute' favourites... that is a limitation.

Who/what would you name as your primary influenecs, and why?

    I am a culture fiend, I love to consume knowledge, culture, history and experiences. Not just absorb them but consume. I will limit this answer to things that really opened my mind and enriched me in my youth (and the list is pretty long just for that small portion of life).

Artists:
    • Luis Royo: Possibly the greatest startup influence I had. His use of vibrant colours and more-real-than-real technique in fantasy and erotica really made me want to emulate that passion. And his more-beautiful-than-beautiful women. Such true mastery of the human form.
    • H.R. Giger: The opposite value of Royo. Giger and his dark, visceral approach to erotica. And like Royo, a phenomenal master of the airbrush. His work really made me consider the flip side of colour vibrance... the expression of so much in images that are monochromatic or have minimally pigmented colour schemes.
    • Albrecht Durer: My childhood fetish for detail in imagery. His etchings particularly were what attracted my enthrallment to his work. Also the inventor of the watercolour pencil, so that makes him a patron saint of the arts in a way.

        Along with those main 3, I would have to say another major influence was the vast range of battle paintings throughout history. From the medieval to the napoleonic to the genre depictions of Warhammer (both fa ntasy and 40K)... again, such massive attention to detail and compositional complexity.

Films:
    • Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back
    • Conan The Barbarian
    • The Omen

        What these films all had in common were phenomenal soundtracks. The power of sound to work with images and story... motion too. I saw each of these films between the ages of 5 and 7, so I had alot of time to watch them over and over and really understand what about them made such a powerful impact on me. Everything, but mainly the music.

Animation:
    • Akira
    • Ninja Scroll
    • Ghost in the Shell
    • The Secret Adventures of Tom Thumb
    • Gumby

        I know that seems like a cliched top 3 of anime, but I did get into anime when distribution in the western market had just started in the early/mid 90's, so the buzz of newness and innovation (especially with Ghost) had as much of an impact as the films themselves (again, all 3, great music). Gumby... if you actually think about it, Gumby is really, REALLY surreal, and believe me... I've thought about it. And Tom Thumb, if you have never heard of this gem made by the Bolex Brothers, you have missed out on a stop motion masterpiece (it will especially appeal to Tim Burton fans).

Music:

    I started out on glam metal and sleaze rock as a little kid, moved on to heavier and faster things along with a smattering of blues and a lot of virtuoso instrumental guitar, and when the extreme scene started to build momentum in the early 90's, that was around the same time I embraced that form with classical and folk music (archaic, medieval, eastern, western).
    Music, my biggest influence and passion throughout my life. You could sum it up as everything played with a real love for THAT style. No lame teenage angst or political statements as the focus beyond music, but music as THE source of all love IN the music. If you have an absolute lust for good music, so much so that you have actually gone hungry to buy THAT record, or to go to THAT gig, then you know exactly what I am talking about.

Books:

    My earliest influences are definitely faery tales. Hanzel & Gretel, Little Red Riding Hood, Sleeping Beauty, Snow White, Humpty Dumpty, Baba Yaga.
    Along with an early taste for mythology in the tales about Theseus and the Minotaur, Perseus, Heracles, Jason, Hercules, Sinbad and the Arabian Nights, Romulus & Remus.
    While my first steps into real novels were horror stories, and I dug those, my introduction into the fantasy genre was really what got me going. It was through several Dragonlance books. First The Legend of Huma and then the Chronicles trilogy. The first word that always struck me about those books was 'colourful'. Something about the stories along with the descriptions put so vivid and colourful a landscape into my head that I fell in love with what this genre could do.

Comics:

    The funny thing about this area is I actually grew up with a hostile attitude towards comics as a little kid. See, I had already been exposed to reniassance art, mythology, faery tales... and superheroes in spandex seemed so uninteresting by comparison. From a distance they all seemed like Superman clones. It was not until about the age of 13 that I opened my mind to the art and storytelling qualities of comic books. That being the dreary period of the 90's, I discovered some cool independent things like Poison Elves and Dawn, and even learned how wrong that superman clone opinion was. I must confess that through all that, it was not until the release of Fables that I developed a true appreciation for the art of master storytelling in comic books, and funnily enough I finally checked out Neil Gaiman's Sandman shortly after that too (which managed to slip by my radar in the 90's. Better late than never).

Games:
    • Eye of the Beholder
    • Sierra games (like Quest for Glory, Space Quest, etc.)
    • Secret of Monkey Island
    • Warcraft 1 & 2

        My first serious career choice (as a child) in life was "game maker". All of those classic adventure games really gave me a buzz to want to get into storytelling with art. Great little adventures filled with quirky humour and memorable graphics (yes, for the time those chunky, pixellated classics were incredibly immersive).
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And I will leave it there because this FAQ is big enough as is. :-)