F.A.Q.

1 ~ Me, in Short

  1. NAME: Robaato (AKA Robert Porter)
  2. NICKNAME: Rob, Robbo, Robo, Robot
  3. D.O.B.: April 22, 1986
  4. ETHNICITY: African-American
  5. HEIGHT: 5’11”
  6. WEIGHT: 215lbs.
  7. LOCATION: Chicago, IL
  8. Where do you live and who do you live with? I live with my beautiful wife, Amanda, in the Southwest suburbs of Illinois, about 45 minutes away from Chi-Town. People consider this area “Chicagoland”. I also live with an “overgrown” Shepherd-Lab Mutt puppy who goes by the name of Cody and an actual Siberian Husky puppy who goes by the name of Vash. :)

2 ~ Inculcation & Education in Art

  1. How long have you been drawing? I’ve been drawing practically all my life. I started drawing more seriously when I was at the ripe innocent age of 14.
  2. What schooling have you received in art fundamentals and study? I have no further education beyond High School. The only education I received in art is your basic Art class in High School, which mainly consisted of making Paper Maché and painting pottery, LITTLE to do with drawing. It was rather boring for me.
  3. Then how did you get so “good” at drawing? I don’t consider myself a great artist, but I do know I improved and continue to improve so here’s some of the things I’ve done to advance: I always draw everyday. Even on my bad days where I have this massive block. I also examine my pictures constantly and spot out what I need to improve on and work towards pulling off better. And I also find new things to draw. Even though I don’t post everything I draw, I do delve into drawing different things to expand my horizons. I really think that’s the key to ‘getting good at drawing’.
  4. Who or what were you main influences when starting off? Wow, so many great artists I’ve looked up to when trying to become a budding one myself. I’m a BIG fan of the Disney style of animation. I guess that’s what really sparked my like of art in general. I was drawn to video games and RPGs on my SNES like Secret of Mana and Chrono Trigger and those influenced me GREATLY as far as imagination and storytelling goes. I was introduced to Anime (“Japanimation” at that time is what it was called, ha) with the shows Sailor Moon, Dragonball (like most kids) and Dirty Pair. That’s what sparked my like of Japanese styled art. I always wanted to get into reading comics, but couldn’t really with the normal Superhero ones, until I was introduced to Manga; my first favorite manga artist not even a Japanese manga-ka, Adam Warren, when I read his Dirty Pair titles. THEN I was hooked. Getting spun in the web of that era in uprising comic talent, I then got attracted to the Cliffhanger crew (Joe Mad, J. Scott Campbell, and Humberto Ramos). I then got introduced to Japanese concept artists and illustrators like Masamune Shirow, Tatsuya Yoshikawa, the original CAPCOM crew (Akiman, CRMK, Edayan, Kinu Nishimura), Nomura Ryouji, Tetsuya Nomura, Akihiko Yoshida, Ryo Hirata, After that, there are so many artists and things that shape my style today. Some of my current faves (legitimately and illlegitmately) in the game right now are Cre.o.n., Luke Mancini, Chamba, Adam Law, Rose Besch, Enrique Rivera, Pedro Delgado, Royce Southerland, Ree Ree, Nemurism, Matt Humphreys, amongst so many others. I must also say it’s an honor to be friends with some of these amazing artists. :)

3 ~ Tools and Apparatuses

  1. What materials do you use to create your work? I’m now a completely digital artist for all my work. For sketching and drawing digitally, I use my Cintiq 21UX and Autodesk Sketchbook Pro. For coloring, I use Photoshop CS6. 
  2. What about traditional media? I use a combo of a 0.3 Mech Pencil, COPIC Markers, and Faber Castells brushpens. And also that one other important thing. My brain.

4 ~ Things I Dig

  1. SO you like video games! Do you consider yourself a gamer? Or do you just know about them. I HEAVILY consider myself a gamer (even finding time across my busy schedule to even play the latest and greatest if I can). My favorite platforms are: Sega Genesis, Super NES, Playstation, Playstation 2, and the Xbox 360. 
  2. Do you have a list? Chrono Trigger, Metroid, Megaman Series, Super SMASH Bros. Melee, Final Fantasy Series, Metal Gear Solid, Super Mario World, Super Mario RPG, The Original Perfect Dark, Growlanser Series, Rival Schools Series, Legend of Zelda Series, Jak and Daxter, Ratchet and Clank, Odin Sphere, Grandia 2, Final Fight Series, Donkey Kong Country Series, Tales of Destiny and Vesperia, Starfox, Xenogears, ONLY Halo 2, Resident Evil Series, Viewtiful Joe, Guitar Hero, Sonic The Hedgehog 1-3&Knux, Marvel Vs Capcom 2, Gitaroo Man, Street Fighter… And I’m pretty sure I forgot some… Heh… :) 
  3. I want to play a game with you! What console do you have? For those who own a 360, my gamertag is I2Gauge64 (the first letter is the letter “I”, by the way), so hit me up if you wanna play somethin’.
  4. What music do you like to listen to and is it important in your creative process? Oh, music is VITAL when I need to be in the creative mode. I usually set the mood of what I have to draw by creating a iTunes playlist with the same frame of mind with the piece I’m working on. I love Video Game soundtracks, those get the most play from me. I’ll even go to the extent of playing girly J-Pop, Techno music or Opera to grasp a mood of what I’m drawing. It really helps.
  5. Who are your favorite musicians and composers? Some of my favorite lyricists, musicians, and composers are: Michael Jackson, Nobuo Uematsu, Yasunori Mitsuda, Motoi Sakuraba, Yoko Shimomura, Coldplay, Paramore, The Neptunes, T.I., TImbaland, The Killers, 311, Jay-Z, Lupe Fiasco, Justin Timberlake, and Aerosmith. :)
  6. And you like Anime, eh!? HECKY YEAH! I mean; it IS a major influence on my style…! Both Anime and Manga! My top favorite Animes are: Fullmetal Alchemist, Lupin III, Dragonball, Gurren Lagann, Samurai Champloo, Sword of the Stranger, Code Geass, FLCL, Dirty Pair and Dirty Pair FLASH, Samurai Pizza Cats, Gunbuster, AKIRA, Those Who Hunt Elves, Princess Mononoke, Gatchaman, Trigun, and Ghost In The Shell. :) 

5 ~ Freelance and Business

  1. Are Commissions Open? Commissions are currently open. I’m also open for larger scale contract work. EMAIL me to inquire.
  2. How do I know when my picture is completed? Emailing me to find out the status is the best way to be updated!
  3. Do you take free requests? Nope. Only if I say I will in some journal, my blog, or sumthin.
  4. Do you collab? Sometimes with close acquaintances. But I have yet to actually collab with someone. They don’t like my work THAT much.
  5. Can I use your art for other things, like, PSP’n or just printing out for my fun? Ehhh, touchy subject. I know there might be folks who are gonna do things anyway despite what I say, just like how people bootleg movies even though they say it’s piracy. (I’m guilty of doing that once too.) So here’s the thing with that. As long as I don’t catch you making loot (profit) or discrediting (sayin’ the art’s yours and not mine), then I’m all good. Cool? Cool. :)