Five things that I have learnt

Sometimes I get the question: If you could go back in time and give your younger self some advice, what would it be?

I would start by saying: "Take it easy and enjoy the process!" Then, before the vortex pulled me back to my own time, I would try and give myself some solid advice for a long life of painting:

Keep it simple

When I first started painting book covers, I was very untrained and unskilled. I didn't feel that I had the necessary skill or foundation to try anything difficult or spectacular. I shied away from complicated motifs and went for single figures with a minimal background. This limitation became a strength. In the simplicity I found I could explore colors easier and try for better expressions. The fewer elements, the more I could double down on what I had, and make sure it was done well.

Over the years I have stuck with that basic rule and have kept my images and figures as simple as possible. When painting a Magic card, it is really important that you can see what’s going on in a very small size. But I found that even if I ham doing bigger scenes with multiple figures, keeping it simple helps with the readability and the clarity.

What's the story?

In every picture there is a story. No matter the story, you got to tell it right, and in the clearest way you can. This is at the core of being an illustrator. Often an assignment comes with a story, but if it doesn't, then you better make one up.

The narrative in an illustration is what connects the audience to the image and drags them into the picture. The storyline is what captures you and make you want to explore what’s going on.

There was an image by Larry Elmore that stuck with me always. A fighter has been smashed by a giant and is now being resurrected by a female cleric. In the distance we see the giant walking away. The image had such a cool narrative that implied so much from the moments both before and after the “Fantasy-Photo” was taken. The made up story is where the ideas for expressions design and character comes from.

If there is no story it's just a character with lots of details. Rather than a ton of details, imagine a guy with only a pair of worn down pants and bare feet. He is missing the hand on his left arm, but in a string around his neck, resting on his bare chest hangs a dried up cracked and bluish hand. that simple single detail makes a whole lot of a better story than a lots of crazy design would have.

Exercise

“Jesper; if you plan on sitting in that chair for the rest of your life painting, you better balance it out with some exercise!” Ohh, I wish I could have made that one thing seem more important than it did when I was 20. Or 30. There is just no way that a body can stand the hours of sitting that I have forced it to, without taking damage.

A few years ago I was diagnosed with arthritis in the lower spine. That means that I cannot paint the hours that I used to. And it means I have to exercise every day, just to keep it from NOT hurting. Looking back I wish I had done something 10 or 20 years ago. When you are young you feel invincible and never imagine that sitting on your behind can hurt. Treating your body right and balancing the sitting with some training or running or walking will make this career possible for longer. The hours you add in healthy living early on, is like putting time in the bank for painting later.

Starting over

Never continue down a wrong path. In illustration there are a multitudes of ways to tell a story and endless paths to take while doing so. So how do you know if you are gong down the right one?

Sometimes my instincts are fooled, and I will go along with a sketch that is not good or a direction that is wrong, thinking that I can fix it along the way. But once it comes to the actual painting process it's per definition the point of no return. You don't want to spend days painting a drawing that you don't really like.

Ask yourself: “Could it have been better? Simpler and clearer? Could the expression be better? Is the mood right? And if any of these questions are answered with a yes, I say: Try some alternatives.

It all comes back to my very first advice: “Enjoy the process!” This also means taking your time and being 100% clear that you are going with the right sketch and right composition. It not only means the resulting painting will be better, it also means that enjoying the process so much more. Sure; it might take a day or 2 longer, but every time I have had to throw away a work in progress and have started over, it has ALWAYS been worth it.

Rinse and repeat

After you have finished a painting take a little break. Just sit there with the picture in front of you and think about the process. Did you succeed in what you set out to do? Could anything have been different, and if so, what and why?

I find that these moments of self-reflection over a painting is perhaps the most important part. Every thought you have in this short period goes with you into the next painting process. Every lesson learned makes you improve and makes it easier for you to choose better between different paths to take in the next painting process.

By taking a conscious moment to learn from yourself you will grow as an artist, in every single drawing, in every painting made. And best part is: No mistake is a failure. It's just another thing you can learn and evolve from.