Richard Masa NFT artist interview | NFT CULTURE | Web3 Culture NFTs and Crypto Art

by James · February 27, 2023

In this interview, we get to know Richard Masa, a multimedia artist who creates abstract-surrealist art using various media, including drawings, paintings, sculptures and 3D animations. He shares his experience of being inspired by HR. Giger’s dark biomechanical world and how he found his artistic home in the dark art genre. Richard also talks about his journey into the world of NFT, how he imprinted his first NFT, and his reasons for pursuing NFT art. He shares his artistic style, which is all about movement and gesture, and how his process sculptures have evolved rapidly over the past two years. Richard also discusses his upcoming drops, including his 10-piece Rorschach Sculpt collection for Superrare, and his plans to start a secret NFT-based project. Finally, he shares his other passions, such as martial arts and movies, and how he draws inspiration from them.

Table of Contents

Can you share a bit about your background?

My father took me to the cinema when I was 7 and we saw Alien in 1979. The shock I got then was a life-defining experience. I don’t remember fear, just an immense curiosity about what exactly the creature looks like!? I thought I figured out where the legs and arms were but then it turned out it was the creature’s head!? This was my first abstract experience.
In 1991 from Yugoslavia I went to Germany because of the Balkan War, where I found Giger’s art books that answered all my questions about the creature. This opened up a new world of dark art where I found myself at home. Later at the academy I learned abstract art from Master Sandor Molnar, a brilliant mind who invented and created a new approach to spiritual growth for artists called Painter Yoga. It is a unique implementation of ancient occult teachings into an artist’s modern life.
After graduating from the academy in 2000, I started working in the games industry. It was an exciting new world where I could learn and express my visions in a virtual 3D world.
My art was always about movement. From the gesture of the brush when I paint or my body creates a performance sculpture. I am constantly moving from country to country, my mind never rests and moves from idea to idea. I move and develop with the creations I make. When my drawings and paintings are not enough, I will break into 3Dimensional sculptures, when that is not enough I bring them to life, sometimes as a huge kinetic sculpture, but mostly as digital animations.
I am currently an animation director and creature designer on an Alien franchise game which was one of my big dreams.

Process sculpture
At the beginning of 2018, I have developed a technique called Process Sculptures which is recorded with my own body movements in a motion capture studio. In the beginning I didn’t know what to start with these video artworks, but then in 2021 I jumped into the NFT world and everything was clear to me.

When did you make your first NFT? Which platform did you choose and why?

My first NFT was minted in 2021 May on Mintable.com (because it was free), which was an experiment.

Can you tell us one thing you can’t live without? (and why)

Well, for sure, making art is one of the most important things in my life after my family.

Who is your favorite artist(s) (Not NFT)? What about their style resonates with you

My favorite artist is HR. Giger. His dark biomechanical world is the biggest inspiration for me. The surreal polysemantic forms are filled with sexual energy and beauty. I see art deco and ancient Egyptian art combined in his work set in a dark monochromatic universe.

Who is your favorite NFT artist? What makes this artist unique?

My favorite NFT artist is Peter Gric who got me into the NFTs. His art is very detailed and technically advanced in a way that stays artistically traditional. His themes, lines and forms come from the same principles as Giger and Beksinski, filled with reality consciously and unconsciously.

What made you pursue NFT art?

1. The opportunity to finally monetize my Process Sculpture animations and oil paintings
2. To find my community
3. To find a channel where I can showcase my artistic life plan
4. The opportunity to be an independent full-time artist

What is the one NFT you wish you had bought but missed out on

Asymmetry – The Root from @The_Kid_Icarus

If you could travel anywhere in the world, where would you go? Why this location?

Indonesia Bali. Let yourself be inspired by the traditional sculptures.

What are your other passions besides art? Why?

Martial arts, movies. I get inspiration from movies, sometimes I can’t watch a movie until the end because I have an idea and need to write it down… And martial arts comes from the family, my father and uncle were great fencers in the 70-80 So I have continued this passion and taught others more martial arts than sports such as Kung fu, Aikudo, Kickbox. I am also a motion capture fight choreographer for movies and video games.

Do you make other forms of art?

Yes, I am a Mulimedia artist, I create drawings, paintings, sculptures, 3D animations

Are you self-taught or trained?

I graduated from the Hungarian Academy of Arts in 2000

How did you arrive at your specific style?

I come from a traditional art world and create abstract-surrealist art.
I am also an animation director on video games, and have developed a technique called Process-Sculptures which are made with my own body movements.
The movement captured in the motion capture studio is implemented on a 3D Sculpted virtual character, and I make an impression of the body on each frame of the animation. It looks as if the ghost film effect would have a three-dimensional form. The sculptures are usually printed with a 3D printer and can also be exhibited on site.
The process sculptures have a philosophical meaning and provide subconscious revelations.
During this process, the forms are transformed into polysemantic abstract works of art.

How has your style evolved over the years?

Well in my childhood I wanted to create so I started drawing, after that I wanted the entities I draw to come out in 3D so I learned to sculpt, it wasn’t enough I wanted them to move I learned the basics of animation and started working as an animator in video games.
In between, I have met my master at the academy and learned a lot about spirituality in art.
My style at the moment is all about movement and gesture. All my paintings, sculptures and animations are movements in time. I have 5 stages in my artistic life plan and I am at stage 2. My style will not change over time, only tems. My process sculptures have developed rapidly in the last 2 years due to the world of NFT. I got inspiration, help to make the quality of my renderings higher.

What is coming in the near future?

The near future is the year 2023. I’m founding a digital art organization, working on my 10-piece Rorschach Sculpt collection for Superrare, and also working on some other platforms. From March I will be a full-time artist and start a secret NFT-based project.

If you could collaborate with one artist, who would it be? (and why)

I’m bringing some fried artists that are secret for now and I’m planning a collab with them, but at the moment I think I want a Collab NFT with Peter Gric to learn from him and make and artwork more dynamic with his details and message .

What was your biggest failure and what did you learn from it?

I don’t really see anything in my life as a big failure, I just regret not hearing from NFT earlier. At least 1 year earlier 😉

What is your biggest piece sold

Rorschach Sculpt #1 on Superrare for $0.870 ETH

Link to website

Social links and NFT market links

https://superrare.com/richardmasaart
https://foundation.app/0xDE545ea984C2fC30e2B558e1C6233105e3ABadEE
https://objkt.com/profile/richardmasaart/created
https://async.market/u/richardmasaart/collection
https://twitter.com/RichardMasaArt
https://www.instagram.com/richardmasaart/