Fanartivation Interview with Leyna55

Interviews by Fans
Title:	Fanartivation Interview with Leyna55
Interviewer:
Interviewee:	Leyna55
Date(s):	January 4, 2012
Medium:	online
Fandom(s):	Supernatural, Final Fantasy, Stargate Atlantis, Blake's 7, Pirates of the Caribbean
External Links:	online here, Archived version
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Fanartivation Interview with Leyna55 was posted to Fanartivation in 2012.

This interview contains examples of the artist's work and their comments about them.

Part of a Series

See: Fanartivation Interviews

Some Excerpts

I’m more a lurker than anything else. I usually have a couple of main fandoms and several others that I follow at any time. At the moment I’m most active in Supernatural because the art community is inspiring. In the past I was active in Stargate Atlantis, for similar reasons (large active art community and lots of challenges). Otherwise I’ve dabbled in Final Fantasy, Due South, Highlander, Dr Who. I read fic in lots of fandoms that I haven’t painted in, too.

I love challenges and art exchanges and Big Bangs, because I find my best inspiration from prompts or in illustrating for someone else. Plus, I like deadlines – they force me to finish things. The adrenaline of the challenge helps, too (both with the spark of inspiration and meeting the deadline).

I’m a scientist in a high stress job, and art is my hobby, and often my stress relief, too, though sometimes I need to step away from the challenges for a while and do something without a deadline. Maybe just paint some portraits or step away from the art entirely to play the PS3 for a while until I feel creative again....I've been drawing and doing illustrations for books I liked ever since I was little. I was in fandom in my teens, mostly making fanart for print zines (many years ago!), wandered off to other interests for some time before rediscovering fandom. I lurked for years until I finally bought a tablet and digital software, fell in love with fanart all over again and got together the courage to post something.

I've spent quite a lot of time lurking in fandom, because I love listening to people talk about my favourite books, shows movies games etc. and seeing what other people are inspired to make. In the fandoms I'm active in, I also love the energy, sparking ideas and inspiration from other people, the challenges and collaborations, even and despite still being a bit of a lurker.