What inspired you to take up graphics and begin playing around in Paint Shop Pro?
Honestly, I'm not quite sure exactly. It just happened, and the rest was a blur, but I do remember it was when I first started getting into Buffy, hardcore. My grandmother lives in California and she sent me these weird books called 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer', which in turn created an addiction with writing and fanfiction. This in turn led to my opening my first site, which required some sort of graphic (ended up just being a picture with pretty font), which spiraled into what I am today. I remember seeing these amazing layouts that people were making and wondering why the hell I couldn't do that. The first layout that really inspired me to try something was a manip I requested years ago from Naomi and she just blew me away and I wanted to be able to make the pictures I saw floating around in my blonde head and do something like that. It was just layouts, and then small graphics for friends' challenges and then wallpapers. And the rest, as they say, is history.

What drives you as an artist?
Being different. I've always been told that I have a very odd approach to art, mostly because I try to touch all aspects that are available and combine them into one piece. I love trying something new, mixing it with the old, and creating a different wallpaper. Along these same lines are taking what I've made in the past and improving on them, remaking old wallpapers or taking a different point of view on a scene from a show. Something else is knowing that what I think looks awful and should be thrown away, another person will think is beautiful.

After having been around for some years now, do you feel like you still have much to learn?
Absolutely! I think a person who says no to that is silly and ignorant because there is sooo much still to learn. Just looking around at other people's art, you have to wonder how they did this, what technique they used, where they got their textures and brushes, etc. While it took years to develop the techniques that I use, I can't help but take a gander at the lovely work other people do and wonder how I can improve or tweak mine to take what I do to the next level.

What are your fanart addictions?
Texture! It's always been textures and I believe it was Nikki's Misplaced Moments that introduced me to that world. When I first began, I used the default brushes on my computer to create a textured background and nothing blended, it was all cramped and out of place, thus enter the textures. They can change the entire mood of the piece and act as a last minute color change when you least expect it. They create and delete negative space and emphasize the subject of a piece. The only trick is knowing which ones suit the idea behind the piece, because the wrong texture in the wrong place with the wrong lighting looks like a chicken running around with its head cut off. Awkward. And as of late, gradients!

How does it feel to be a veteran and being an established artist who inspires others to do art?
I'll be honest, it's amazing and humbling and I still don't believe it because I look around at my peers and I still feel like I did when I first started: nervous, jealous, giddy, inadequate etc. To know that other people feel that way about my art just makes my heart swell with pride and love because I'm doing something that brings joy to my life and to have that inspire others is just lovely.

Who are you inspirations today?
There's always something in everyone's art when they've established a technique pattern that inspires you, but the people that I stop off to every day is Wendy(her blending and her colors and her understanding of the subject(s) in her pieces), Ehlwyen (her lighting), Chris aka galathea (her intelligence, her insight), Dana (her vivid coloring, like wearing one's emotions on their sleeve), Amber (her text and overpowering - in a very good way because she gives great contrast - colors), Beth (her ability to blend boxes, it's like magic), Zugma (her manipulations and gorgeous image quality), Nikki (her emotion and understanding of characters), Peace (where to begin!), Sayjay (her coloring and composition), Slaygal (her beautiful insight and daring colors and text)... there's really too many to note!

What will happen next for you as an artist?
Who the heck knows. Things just kind of pop up without asking permission. I find that I love imitating people's styles and incorporating it into my own ideas and techniques, again to create something funky to add to my site. Recently, I've been experimenting more with coloring and gradients and how they affect the piece and the characters in it. I've also been testing out pieces with the boxy style the lovely Beth has made famous.

Why Buffy and Angel?
Why not? What doesn't these shows have to offer? I fell in love with Joss Whedon because he understands human emotion so much better than most TV show creators. I've always been a bit of an angst whore, self-proclaimed, because it is reality. Fluff happens every fifty years compared to the hardships that people endure every day, and Buffy and Angel brought that to the screen, using metaphors to get the message across. And hello, vampires? Slayers? The fact that these shows based such raw human nature in a supernatural setting is just brilliant.

Which shows do your prefer working with today?
Today, I still make the rounds. As for what's on television currently, Supernatural and that's about it. I still work with Buffy and Angel and Gilmore Girls and the rare Veronica Mars, Wonderfalls, anything that inspired me, made me just fall in love with the characters and the ideas of the show. I find that as time goes on and I look back on these shows and think about how I used to feel and what I feel currently, I've changed so very much and I like to think that reflects in my pieces as I continue to make them, thus never saying no to a show.

Textures or brushes?
Textures. I did have a great crazy moment with brushes for a while where they defined everything I worked with, but they got boring, mostly because textures was my first love. Of course, when you get the sort of people who create textures that you can use in any setting, then they add so much, but I still feel that a few good textures can make a piece so much better than brushes.

What is unique about your work/style?
I like to think that my work/style contains everything, in a sense. In one piece I'll try using only one texture, while in another I'll cover it in text. Another could be everything set in the exclusion blend mode while another can be black and white to define the ide of a piece. I visit some sites and you see the same thing over and over, the same techinques with the same textures, brushes, etc applied to different subjects and it gets boring. I like to think that when people visit my site, they don't get bored, they want to see what else my crazy mind has come up with.

What do you think makes your art stand out among others?
I'm not sure, you'd have to ask them! :P I've been told that it's that I'm not afraid of change, that I can easily devote myself to something off the tree crazy while share that same devotion with a conventional blending piece. I love trying new things and seeing where it takes me and it shows in my art.

Have you gotten any "real" education in graphics and HTML/PHP/CSS?
No. Nothing. I considered taking a class way back in high school for how to build a website, but word got around that it was just a basics class, which I had already learned on my own the hard way. And in the bare naked coding as opposed to a program that assists you! I like that I don't have formal training for HTML/PHP/CSS because it makes it more personal, it makes more of an adored hobby, a part of my life that sure won't be going anywhere anytime soon. The same goes for graphics. I considered taking a minor in Graphic Design but then I thought I might start seeing graphics in a sense of right and wrong. You blend it this way, not that way, or something to that extent. I love that it's all mostly self-taught and built on experimentation and brilliant tutorials.

What tips do you have for new artists just starting out?
Don't be afraid to experiment. The worst mistake a new artist can make is copying other artists. There's no originality, there's no thought behind the piece. Accept constructive criticism, and it is so hard. To this day I want to cry when someone gives me harsh feedback, but then it makes me think and say what I disagree with on their part, but also the areas I can improve. There's always room for growth, I don't care who you are. Don't be afraid to speak up. It's great, this community of ours, and we're all here to help because we're doing something we're passionate and happy about.

What do you look for when you view other's art?
Basics? Blending (seamless and tight - the most beautiful thing is when two images are blended together, no edges but it's intricate. Refer to Wendy's art, if you will), text, texture, color, composition. This also ties in with the idea of the piece. I always like to pretend that I won't be using text. Do the images I chose, the coloring, the texture, do they communicate what I made the piece for? Are they saying what I want them to say and if not, what can I add? Take away? I like to look at other people's art like this, try to understand what they made the piece for, because a picture does say a thousand (million, billion) words. And if it's pretty. I can stare at a gorgeous wallpaper for thirty minutes, just seeing what they added in, the coloring, the text, how it all works together to make a lovely piece.

How does your fanart process work?
Depends on the day. Sometimes, just watching a show will turn on my muse and get me going, which in turns spawns other crazy creations. Other times, it's looking at other people's art, seeing a scene they chose for a certain piece and then bam! An image stomps into my brain of the same scene, but from Angel's point of view or what happened after and could that be used to create a wallpaper? Sometimes I just open the program and start something without even thinking, just to jumpstart my muse if its in a dry spell, but most of the time that turns into me thinking the entire program is rigged to make everything I make turn to crap and then I exit out and ten minutes later get an idea that would have never occured to me had I not blended these two images together. It's all really based on how I'm feeling at the moment.

What kind of impact has working with fanarts made on your life?
That's a heavy question! Working with fanart has really broadened my internet world, as well as my real life. I'm in touch with people who have turned into some of the greatest friends I've had the pleasure of meeting. Fanart gives me the chance to think outside the box, interpret something a different way, step into their shoes for a moment, etc. I think it has contributed heavily to my laid back approach to life because it gives me the chance to dive into different characters and see what they're feeling, which translates nicely to my real life.

Icons or Wallpapers - if you had to choose to do one or the other for the rest of your life, which would it be and why?
Wallpapers. Bigger canvas. While I do appreciate a simple image with a simple word, it's not enough. I need color, texture, room for fifteen thousand paragraphs, more!

Who/What pushes you to go the extra mile with your art?
New textures, brushes, fonts. Other artists, no doubt. Real life. I love that everyone around me has the ability to affect my life in some way and I like to think that knowing this person changed my art some way while that person literally drove me towards changing my colors this way. The people I surround myself with are my biggest inspirations because they have their interpretations of a scene and then I have mine, and it's just a beautiful dance we have.

Where does the name "Infinite Illusion" come from?
I'll be the first person to admit that I'm not the most creative girl in town. All I know is that I wanted something simple and something that people would realize has to do with art, because at the time I was trying to separate my art fom my fanfiction, so that was where the 'illusion' part came in. 'Infinite' was inspired by Slaygal's site name, and it bled nicely into the fact that this site would be my art, just infinite illusions everywhere you went.


I asked Bre to choose three wallpapers to be featured with this interview and below you'll find them together with an explanation as to why she chose them.

	Concept I adore this piece and how I chose to use the tools I had on hand to execute it. The textures, the colors, the black and white vs the color. It matches well with the pain and the angst we get from Buffy.
	Blending I wanted to capture the idea that Buffy is stuck in this horrible cacoon of pain and horror at what she is feeling (which the ghosts fed on, I like to think, as well as fueled), thus the larger image and the smaller ones showing what's happening to get that look on her face concerning Angelus/Angel.
	Execution/Focus I love the glass stock and how it brings the eyes right towards the demon and Dean. The text is simple and it explains all you need to know, as does the black and white image of them sealing the deal. One of my favorite S2 wallpapers.

MONTH AND YEAR	WINNER AND SITE	INTERVIEW
CURRENT 2009	ARTIST AND SITE	Read the Interview
February 2008	Nikki @ Misplaced Moments	Read the Interview
December 2007	Bre @ Infinite Illusion	Read the Interview
October 2007	Amber @ Reflection	Read the Interview
September 2007	Jenni Lou @ Daydreaming
June 2007	J.J @ More Adventurous
November 2005	Slayer @ Slayerverse
September 2005	Ehlwyen @ Quicksand

Be kind Rewind