Dibujante Nocturno

Dominic Carter talks to the phenom about rediscovering his love of art, working on Magic: The Gathering, and how daily drawing habits are vital

You might have heard of Dibujante Nocturno. The sensational Spanish artist – real name Francisco Garcés – currently boasts over 400,000 followers on Instagram thanks to the outstanding quality of his elegantly dark artwork.

Having recently celebrated the launch of his artbook with 3dtotal Publishing and a new course on Domestika, his career continues to hit new heights. But how did he go from studying electronics to becoming a world-renowned artist?

Tell us a little about your career as an artist. How did you start and how has it been so far?

I drew when I was a child, I loved it. But I stopped in my adolescence because I had no interest in art. It was when I was 18 years old that it occurred to me to trace a photo of myself, and for some reason that process took me back to when I was a child. I really enjoyed tracing those lines and from then on I have never stopped drawing.

Originally, I studied electronics. I worked as an electrician, installing television antennas and things like that. These jobs didn’t make me happy, so finally I decided to quit and go to art school. I didn’t finish my studies, but the year I spent there was the happiest year I can remember.

Ever since then I’ve been progressing little by little, at first doing work for local bands and freelance writers. Later, in 2012 I got my first job working in a publishing house. I did more than 100 illustrations for them and learned a lot.

Over the last few years I’ve managed to make my work known through social networks and some great opportunities have arisen from this. I published several books including my most beloved project: my own artbook with 3dtotal Publishing.

Other projects include working for Magic: The Gathering. I create illustrations for them while I also continue to create my own work at the same time, which is very fulfilling. This year I also launched my course

These jobs didn’t make me happy, so finally I decided to quit and go to art school

on the Domestika platform, which has been a new experience for me.

Which artists have inspired you the most and why?

When I was starting out, Frank Frazetta was an amazing discovery. His was the first fantasy art I got my hands on. And the strength of his paintings and characters made me fall in love. I literally didn’t understand how someone could paint like that.

Then I discovered Luis Royo. I was able to buy one of his books and I went through it a thousand times. I was just starting out, without any knowledge of drawing, and the references it contained were a great help. That’s why it’s so important to admire someone, it’s an engine that excites you and guides you in a direction that you like.

Some time later came my greatest inspiration: Kekai Kotaki. It was an explosion in my way of seeing drawing. I had never seen illustrations with such strength, epic qualities and freshness. He paints with ease, with big spots and texture. The settings in his images are magical and he usually has great contrasts between the planes. All of this inspired me and I have tried to apply it to my art as much as possible.

Has there been a defining moment in your career so far when you felt you’ve “made it”? If so, what was it?

I’ve felt that joyful moment several times, but life is very effective when it comes to stamping reality on your face! When I got my first job as an illustrator at a publishing house in 2012 I cried with excitement and ran to tell my family. The job lasted a year-and-a-half and I learned a lot, including good things and some not so good things about the industry.

Then I had many more moments where I thought I had made it: when I reached thousands of people on Instagram; when I had a good year with lots of work; and when I started working with Wizards of the Coast.

And now, at 36 years of age, I have that understanding that life comes in stages. Everything changes and there is no specific place to get to. The most important lesson is to enjoy the path and the process that you take along the way. Life is an end in itself, and so is drawing for me.

It’s an engine that excites you and guides you in a direction that you like

POSITIVE FEEDBACK Personal and professional work feed into each other. “Having both makes me feel fulfilled and capable of tolerating obstacles and frustrations.”

DELICACY These days, he likes to draw more delicate images. “I try to bring out that touch of darkness.”

OWN IT “The beautiful thing about art is that each person takes their own path, their own way of facing challenges.”

BREAKOUT HIT Some images such as this start out as a sketchbook drawing before becoming larger pieces.

TESTER This pair of ice giants were created as part of annual drawing challenges.

BEETLE ABOUT “The most important thing for me is to enjoy the process, to have fun drawing and creating.”