[Kuruni]

_{Interview by [Linderel].}


Name: Fabiola I. Vargas, Fabi for short.
Age: 29.
Location: Costa Rica
Occupation: Freelance artist & photographer.

Q: How and when did you find Elftown?
A: I will try to make it short.

My husband introduced me to the Art of Joseph Michael Linsner www.linsner.com
and I went straight to the forums, there I met Phillip [dilandau] who told me about Elftown, I made a House, participated in my first contests and won some of them, and since then for that and other reasons I took art seriously as a profession :), so I cherish this place as the beginnings of an art career.


Q: What do you usually spend your time here doing?
A: Participating in Contests and Holding my own contest like this one Pagan God Contest
Making Friends.....and enemies.... it happens.


Q: When did you start drawing and taking photographs? What about photomanipulation?
A: Photographs about eight years ago, my husband, sister-in-law, my brother-in-law and their parents are Photographers, I met all of them when I was just 10 years old, and I knew back then I would marry my husband, so I literally grew up with cameras around me.
Art, since I remember, as I said before I took it seriously a while ago when I saw I got potential and that I could make an art career if I worked harder and learned more techniques and stop being lazy and draw things
I was afraid of. Let's say, backgrounds, difficult angles, finish my portraits, draw hair, hands, details.
Photo Manipulation came out as boredom, I was living for a while with a boyfriend, a bad one actually, but he was nice enough to give me Photoshop and a few games I like, and I started with my own photos and my family's, I used to restore old and damaged photos for people as a job, and one thing led to the other. I've been manipulating photos for 11 years now and I teach Photoshop too. I still restore photos.


Q: How long have you actively pursued a career as an artist?
A: For about five years.


Q: What other jobs have you had along the way?
A: Ok, I worked as an assistant to a 2d Animation Studio doing anything from cutting paper, to scanning and drawing like the rest of the animators.
I've worked as a Dentist Assistant; a Receptionist at a Tropical Resort literally ON an Active Volcano; a Wedding Photographer; a Designer; in House Cleaning; Cooking; as a Secretary; and a Drawing Teacher.


Q: Are or have there been any other ambitions for your life, big or small?
A: Yes sure, I wanted to Meet Alan Lee so I contacted a Festival in Belgium called Trolls et Legendes www.trolls-et-legendes.be and participated in the Artist Expo and had a stall, met lots of people and a good friend [earthkynd] let me stay at his house for two weeks. I met him here actually. So there was Alan Lee, I said hello, he made me a sketch, he examined my portfolio and he told me never to stop drawing. And so I have never stopped Drawing since then.

I also want to make music, I am composing Folk music, Irish tunes and I'm actually looking for overseas contributors to have fun with me making music.

What else.... I want to live from art, I am starting to see results after all these years, I published a couple of illustrations for Castlemourn Campaign by Ed Greenwood, and I want to be able to receive emails of people inviting me to go to their Festivals instead of me asking for a chance.
It will take a while and I enjoy every step I take to get closer to that Goal.

And I want to Produce Festivals, Concerts and I already made the first one, kinda like a sketch, but it was a great experience and I can't wait to make another one.


Q: When did you discover fantasy?
A: Since I was born. I grew up with Mom's paintings, Dad's cartoons, Dads music (he plays the Saxophone and Bass like a Real Pro)
My brother was my hero www.freakardo.deviantart.com and still is, at home we never ran off of art tools and paper.
I grew up with Movies like Dark Crystal, Legend, Labyrinth, Fire and Ice, The Last Unicorn... Books like Lord of The Rings, The King of Elfland's Daughter, The Hobbit.... Art Books like Faeries by Brian Froud and Alan Lee, Art by Alphonse Mucha, music like Jethro Tull, Allan Parson's Project, Led Zeppelin... I grew up with boys and was the youngest but we would all play outside with wooden swords and I would go look for gnomes and faeries, I did find some! I grew up surrounded by nature, mom did the best she could to get us to a place with trees and grass, birds and wind and lots of pets!



Q: You also seem to be very much into music. What was your first instrument?
A: Flute or Recorder, I still play it and I am getting quite good at it after years and years of practice.
I also play a bit of Bass Guitar, but I cannot jam with it, I can learn almost any song but cannot improvise, I just don't have it.
I used to play piano but even though I love it and I was learning fast, I rather play the flute. Now I'm learning Violin! arrrrrgh
but I love it.


Q: What's it like to live in Costa Rica?
A: Strange. Like I was not meant to be living here but here I have everything I love. My family, my husband, my daughter.

But living from art here, specially Fantasy Art is a mess, so I have to look internationally and has been working great.
People here love fantasy but it is not a culture of purchasing art and taking it home. I'm working on it with other fellow artists like [Oghirdor] so Fantasy can be recognized and valued like Something fine and expensive as it should be and that you have to collect because you simply must have it! Art takes time, skills, practice, hours of learning, trial and error, it is not something we got like a pimple in our faces. Why should it be considered something easy, cheap like a Tortilla?
It takes us all our lives to learn to draw the way we do, we are constantly learning and growing as human beings through art, emotions and feelings, this should not be taken lightly, so please artists, value your art and change the way people value your skills. Art is not meant to be cheap!


Q: Which are your favourite houses to visit? What about wikis?
A: Actually, believe it or not, I don't have any. I invite people to recommend me some!


Q: Do you have feedback on any aspect of Elftown?
A: Hmmmm, well, is Elftown meant to be a place for art lovers, artists, writers....or a Dating Site?
I am being cruel I know...sorry. I'm just a bit tired of houses filled with rubbish, bloody portraits of teens with razors or guys looking for web cam girls or almost nude little girls looking for attention
But, cannot have it all right? Not easy to control, I know.
I Love Elftown a lot, it is simple, nice, entertaining, you can be creative with your own wikies, nice contests!
After all, it was here I decided to pursue an art career.


Q: What would be your message to all fellow Elftownians?
A: Art is the door to our dreams, goals, a door for others to explore your own world. Work hard! never Stop! Value Art, respect
yourself and fellow artists, this is not all a contest, we are supposed to shape new Worlds! Not to Destroy them. the only person
you have to defeat is yourself, treasure the past and compare, feel good you are improving step by step, enjoy it.
We are meant to work as a team, we are not alone. Art must be valued like expensive jewels, but do take in mind that if you want
to live from Art, you have to take a big step, hold your breath and jump, no time for excuses, no blaming external situations,
there is always someone who will love what you do, so do it with lots of love, if you start something you must finish it and
give all you can, never conform with some color traces, blurry backgrounds, choppy ink lines, test yourself and draw or wrote or sculpt
things you have never done before even if you have no idea how to do it, you are capable, observe, pay attention! Clouds are all but pure white!
A Night scape is more than blues and grays and blacks....look closely...there is more....
Do NOT envy others, please don't steal art...we always catch you and you know it.
Be true to yourself and stay with an open mind, life is too damn short!