DOUGLAS CHAFFEE INTERVIEW

 

Douglas Chaffee is an accomplished, veteran artist of the science fiction and fantasy genre. He's illustrated for Classic and Advanced Dungeons & Dragons, BattleTech, and Forgotten Realms as well as a plethora of other sci-fi/fantasy book covers. Doug's work can also be seen on the popular trading card game Magic the Gathering. His Star Wars credits include the art for the Star Wars Insider Clone Wars trilogy, Heroes of Cartao by Timothy Zahn. He currently resides in Pennsylvania.

 

 

"Futuristic police car" Copyright, Wizards of the Coast, Inc.

TUCWS: Mr. Chaffee, I want to thank you for giving us the opportunity to chat with you. Where did you receive your training and how did you break into the art industry?

DC: Well, as to training, to quote a cliche, I've been at that most of my life. My formal training was for Art Education but I definitely wanted to be an illustrator rather than a teacher. Professionally, I broke in to the corporate world as an industrial illustrator working at generating aircraft, submarines and spacecraft,etc. This work was primarily used in advertising to sell the idea to a customer before the physical product was actually built.

"Runner with gun" Copyright, Wizards of the Coast, Inc.

TUCWS: You've been a professional artist for over two decades. When did you decide you wanted to do that for a living? Was there a driving motivation or inspiration that sparked your interest in art?

DC: Ever since I was a kid, I suppose, while reading Fairy Tales and comic books. I generated some comic work when I was 11 or 12. Unbelievably bad, but it pushed me on drawing. My dream job was to be a future car designer until I figured I would end up designing keyslots for doors or hood latches. I wanted to be a science fiction cover artist from way back when. Later, I did get to design future aircraft and spacecraft which to me was as much fun. Being the first artist to paint a series about Mars for the National Geographic magazine and having some of my space paintings hung in the Smithsonian was great as well.

TUCWS: Who are some of your favorite artists?

DC: That's tough. I know a bunch and a lot of their work I admire. The nearest one to a favorite would be Ed Emshwiller (now deceased) who was an inspiration to me when I was a kid. Ralph McQuarrie's work also inspired me, especially in the area of big dramatic scene conceptualization.

"Battlemech with red sky" Copyright, FASA Corp.

TUCWS: A good chunk of your art can be seen in role-playing games such as Advanced Dungeons & Dragons, Forgotten Realms, and BattleTech. You must really enjoy working in that genre?

DC: I gravitated from doing science fiction magazine art as well as military and aviation art into the gaming business. It seemed to be a natural fit with a great deal of work being speculative. My technical experience was helpful especially with Battletech and, of course there was the armour in the fantasy genre. I used to do quite a bit of prototyping for some of the covers which would be turned over to staff artists for the final paintings for D & D. Battletech has kept me busy with a lot of their cover and interior work.

Then there is the collectible card games and I've been busy with that work as well. I had a lot of fun with WOTC's Netrunner and FASA's Shadowrun games. These primarily involved invention again and both depicted the world of the next 20 years or so. I continue with WOTC's Magic game which presents some opportunities for conceptual art as well.

TUCWS: Do you or did you participate in role-playing games you've done art for?

DC: I'm sorry, I'll have to say no on that one. I'm usually too busy to get involved in gaming. The time for that would be a luxury.

"Dragon and Typhoon sub " Copyright, Douglas Chaffee

TUCWS: Have you done other types of art besides RPG guides and covers? Any full-length comics?

DC: Paperback and hardback covers, the Navy's program painting for the Trident submarine, magazine illustration, a World's Fair poster plus a variety of assignments for corporations, the US Air Force, and other work for countries outside the USA. Other than my childhood flirtation with illustrating a comic, I've never had the opportunity to do anything in the comics world.

TUCWS: Do you prefer doing action scenes or portraits?

DC: Actually, I like them both. The action allows for more drama I believe and that's fun to construct.

TUCWS: On average, how long does it take you to complete a project?

DC: That's a tough one. From two to four days to a couple of weeks. On some rare occasions I've had more time, but generally, I've had to work on several projects at a time and have to play dodgeball with the deadlines.

TUCWS: Are you a big Star Wars fan? How much of an influence did Star Wars have on your art career?

DC: Well, my career was going before the first movie came out, but the visuals were a stimulation. I'm not one of those that stood in line for 40 viewings of Episode Four, but I've always considered myself a big fan of the action and have enjoyed the technological and architectural effects of all the movies in the series which played to the artist in me.

TUCWS: Which is your favorite Star Wars film and character(s)?

DC: The new characters are great, of course, but I guess I'm still a fan of the originals. That's probably because it was such a juggernaut at that time with all the gee whiz special effects. Now, of course, everything is slick,refined and very cool, but there's a tendency to take all this computer generated material for granted. In other words, it's pretty hard to keep topping the previous efforts with mind-blowers.

TUCWS: When did you get involved with doing art for Star Wars projects and how did that come about?

DC: I have only recently done STAR WARS work commercially. Galoob Toys talked to me about doing some box illustration, but they folded before that could come about. I came across the STAR WARS INSIDER magazine in a store and thought I would contact the folks at the magazine and ask them if they would consider me for some work. After showing samples a communication was established. A couple months later, they contacted me for an assignment and I was so busy at the time, I almost turned it down. They wanted three illustrations so I managed to juggle some other work and plugged into it.

"Heroes of Cartao I: Hero's Call" Art by Douglas Chaffee

TUCWS: You did the art accompanying Timothy Zahn's Heroes of Cartao trilogy in Star Wars Insider. Did you base the paintings off specific scenes in the stories or were you given freedom to do what you wanted?

DC: I took it upon myself to follow the story as this was my first assignment for the magazine. The Art Director had some specific ideas regarding the layout of the first installment and I followed that pretty closely as well.

TUCWS: With the Cartao art, you virtually had to tell each story in one painting rather than in a 10,000 word manuscript. A picture is always "worth a thousand words." Was that a challenge?

DC: It always is. The battle inside between trying to be literal and keeping the composition under control weighs in in any decisions regarding layout of the scene(s). The time crunch also had to be considered in this case. Then, there is the artist's dilemma of telling the truth with some impact, but not giving away the point of the story or each installment's ending before the reader gets there.

"Heroes of Cartao II: Hero's Rise" Art by Douglas Chaffee

TUCWS: Did you use some type of visual aid when depicting Jedi Master Jafer Torles or did you just use descriptions from the story?

DC: The descriptions gave me ideas as to the age and character of Jafer Torles. However, I had to stay within certain guidelines as to costuming, and yet make him different enough to not look like other Jedi Masters.

TUCWS: Did you exchange dialogue with Mr. Zahn? Did he offer you suggestions on what the art pieces should look like?

DC: I've known Tim for a long time and he did give us some helpful suggestions. However, we didn't communicate directly as it went through the Art Director. I was given the opportunity to design a new Droid which was fun. However, I had to adhere pretty closely to already existing ones. I was told the folks at Lucasfilm were pleased with it.

TUCWS: Was he pleased with how they came out?

DC: That I don't know. I'll mention that the next time we run into each other. I hope he was.

TUCWS: As an artist, you probably read quite a bit. Have you read any of the other Clone Wars fiction or comics that have been published?

DC: I haven't read much of the fiction, but in research and just trying to keep up, I've read a lot of articles in the various magazines like INSIDER. I've read some of the comics as well. I do like the idea of the Clone Wars due to my interest in things military and technical.

"Heroes of Cartao III: Hero's End" Art by Douglas Chaffee

TUCWS: What sort of materials did you specifically use to do the Heroes of Cartao pieces? What materials do you use in general to do other pieces?

DC: I'm not generally a model builder for my painting subjects. I did do a little of that in working out the Droid this time. Usually, I do thumbnail sketches for a bit for quick impulse until I get the flavor of the drawing . From those I work up a rough sketch to submit to the client for approval. After that, changes and suggestions are incorporated and then I go to what I call a technical layout drawing to refine things and work out problem areas when possible. This drawing is transferred to illustration board which I have thoroughly gessoed with a ground and I begin the painting process.

TUCWS: What are you working on now? What can we expect to see from Doug Chaffee in the near future and where can we see it?

DC: I have just completed a series of Magic paintings and I am currently involved in another Battletech project.

TUCWS: Will we see more of your art in Star Wars Insider or any other Star Wars medium?

DC: I will be getting future assignments that come up that will employ my technical skills. I hope to pursue this field and expand my contacts in it.

TUCWS: What advice can you offer to aspiring artists that may read this interview?

DC: Illustration is a fun and gratifying field. It requires determination and some talent. The ability to sell one's self to a client is, of course, helpful. If you intend to stick around, don't overspecialize or stay in only one genre. Versatility and dependability are paramount! Make sure you have good samples before you call on a client as it makes it much easier to open the door to a contact and a career.

TUCWS: Finally, are you anticipating the next and final Star Wars film, Episode III?

DC: Of course.

 

Conducted by Brian Gates, November 2003.

Related Items
-The Battle of Cartao
-Heroes of Cartao Timeline Entry
-Subscribe to Star Wars Insider