Check out David Fitzmaurice

Today we’d like to introduce you to David Fitzmaurice.

David, we’d love to hear your story and how you got to where you are today both personally and as an artist.
I’ve been doing art since I was a kid in Chicago holding crayons, lol. I loved drawing superheroes, Transformers; you name it. In high school, I was lucky enough to get some real training at a Chicago public school for the creative and performing arts. Art was treated as a major in addition to regular school courses. The teachers were great, and it was an inner city school, so kids from all over the city attended. That was a hugely diverse artistic perspective that was opened up and on display. We learned so much from one another, and not just about art. It was a good time. Afterward, I just kept at it. Art has been part of my whole life, even after joining the military. Paintings, drawings, and eventually, customizing action figures. One of the best parts of this journey is that I’ve met so many creative people: other artists, comic book creators-both famous and not-so-famous, cosplayers, photographers. It’s just been an awesome ride so far!

We’d love to hear more about your art. What do you do and why and what do you hope others will take away from your work?
Currently, my passion is for creating custom action figures, and only do projects I’m interested in artistically or subjects that I like. Getting into this was sort of an accident. As a huge comics/collectibles fan, I had picked up a custom action figure on eBay for my own collection in my home office. Statues were not my thing-I wanted something I could pose and display, and be able to change the pose from time to time. Once it arrived, my wife looked at it and then at me, and said ‘You could have done that.’ She knew my love of art and was always encouraging it. That was a ‘challenge accepted’ moment, lol, and I started to make them. One at a time, trying to get better at prepping, sculpting, and painting. I start with an off-the-shelf figure, usually something that has the articulation I want, and is the basic frame for the character I want to make. Then I clean it off, to take factory oils or other dust, etc., off, for better paint adherence. Then I sand or prime it, and then sculpt or paint as necessary. Sculpting needs to be done slowly and in layers. The sculpt I use dries overnight to a stone hard resin, and holds up pretty well. Then I paint and add accessories like wired cloth capes-which really make the caped figures POP, or gear like belts. Initially, I was just making characters from comics that I liked, but later I worked on projects for friends that were not my character choices. I’ve been able to make some custom figures for independent comic writers/artists of their creator-owned characters. Those have been pretty rewarding, helping someone ‘see’ their character in action figure form. I really enjoy the creative process, and that became my motivation-making something that fulfilled me artistically. I enjoy working with toy photographers who use dioramas or real-world locations and set the figures in ‘scenes’ to create cool photos. Now I am now starting to dip into more varied projects, including developing my own concept figures. I still make comic characters, but I’ve worked in more mixed media, such as cloth clothing and sculpted armor pieces. Another thing I’m working towards is making my own characters. Ultimately, I just enjoy making cool action figures; pieces for people’s collections that are unique and can be displayed in a variety of ways to compliment someone’s changing aesthetic.

What do you think it takes to be successful as an artist?
Defining success is such a subjective thing, and for me, it evolves regularly. Early on, success for me was an effective media application. For example: having the sculpt coming out right, or good paintwork. For a really short time, success became being able to make things for others for a small profit to supplement my income. Honestly, though, I don’t do this as a job (I have a full-time job), and so that allows me to be able to feel success in a variety of ways. Success for me today is enjoying what I’m creating, enjoying the creation. It’s taking on projects agnostic of anything except that they interest me in and of themselves. Sometimes they are more ‘commercial, like superheroes, sometimes they are one-offs. My opinion is that art is first and foremost what the ARTIST sees it as, and that determines their motivation and consistency to a process, whatever it is for them. Some artists paint abstracts or bright color, some make costumes, some choose black and white photos as a media. Art is as varied as people are and each artist has their own personal, singular star in which they orbit to create.

Do you have any events or exhibitions coming up? Where would one go to see more of your work? How can people support you and your artwork?
Most of my work is available for viewing on my Instagram account, @fitzjedi. The account is named as a merger of my nickname growing up ‘Fitz,’ and my Air Force callsign, ‘Jedi.’ Occasionally I’ll post on my Twitter-which has the same name as my Instagram. Anyone interested in supporting me can check out and like or comment on the work on the Instagram account and can let others know who may be interested in custom figures. They can also retweet any twitter posts if they like, as that always helps to spread the word and maybe reach a broader audience. I’m always up for creative talk and love to meet other people making unique things like art, music, or literature. I try to keep things fun and light and always positive.

Contact Info:

• Address: People can reach me on my Instagram site, @fitzjedi and can send me messages there.
• Email: fitzjedi26@gmail.com
• Instagram: @fitzjedi
• Twitter: @fitzjedi

Image Credit:
All photos taken by the artist, David Fitzmaurice.

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