FF: Victor, tell us a little bit about your photography and your art.

Victor: I’m a 36 year old Photo Artist, from Barcelona. My college education was in the School of Architecture, as that was supposed to be my profession.
However, and due to the fact that since early years of my life there was always a computer at home, in particular, because of the job of my father and, in combination with that fact that most of the times, in my childhood, I enjoyed playing alone, using my imagination, I started to get in touch with several kinds of rudimentary CAD packages, which for me, where the best extension of my hand-made drawings and sketches.
With time, I developed some skills in Computer Graphics but just for my own fun. In the university years, I found out that I had already developed some valuable skills for architects to communicate their projects so I began to accept commissioned works from my school teachers, who with time, became my permanent customers.
Being considered and recognized professionally was definitely a good thing, but not good enough as a very important part of me was totally misused in my commissioned projects, which was my imagination. That is why I decided to quit 15 years experience of freelance works, as well as a long and stable list of customers and move to a totally unexpected and uncertain future within the world of art.

FF: How did you get started with photo-realistic fantasy architecture?

Victor: Moving into art is not such an easy step, you need something to say, an inspiring source and...at least one technique or way of expression. I somehow, found out that I had the 3 of them...so, in a way, my 15 years in freelancing, in the end served me to dominate a tool, with which do whatever I would like to.
So the step from commissioned to creative works was not difficult in terms of know-how... It was more difficult in terms of accepting a new economical situation, or overcoming the fear of bad critics or even worse, total anonymity.
At first, between project and project, some time was dedicated to art, those were tough times as, after long days in front of the computer for a customer’s deadline, I only had energy to leave the office and take some rest...but I stayed.
Then, with time, I started to dedicate more and more time to creative works until the day I decided to not accept any more commissioned works.
The whole transformation has taken place in about 5 years.

FF: Would you walk us through a typical project from location scouting to final render?

Victor: Any project starts with a living experience. A conversation, a commercial, a trip, a dinner with friends, a moment of solitude...anything is welcome.
I must admit that there’s a little journalist in me, so I tend to introduce myself into situations that normal people would reject

To give you an example:
I spent the last 2 years of my life in Tel Aviv, Israel...surrounded by Jews. I community that, the more I know them, the more I love them
For several circumstances I was forced to leave the country, I got deported, went to jail and in jail I met incredible interesting people who I interview for over 5 days. I met false prophets living in caves, Colombian refugees escaping death from the Narco, Nigerian priests performing out loud Afro-Christian ceremonies in our 8 sq meter cell 4 times a day...and so on.

Now I live in Munich, Germany, the former cradle of the Nazi movement and I’m sharing flat with a religious Muslim husband born in the Gaza strip...I bet most of my Jewish friends would refuse me for that...or maybe not.
So, without a living experience, at least for me, Art is not possible.
The rest is just a kind of routine process of computers, photography, city walks etc...

FF: What software have you used and what's the advantages it bring to the table?

Victor: I must admit that, with my age, I’m a bit old fashioned in terms of software choices. I use mainly Autodesk software, because I feel comfortable with them, I know all the bugs and I can perform fast. These packages are AUTOCAD and 3DSTUDIO MAX with VRAY.
As a 3D visualizer, I must say that VRAY changed my life because the Chaos Group technology implemented a big leap into Global Illumination.
I also use Rhinoceros when it’s time to dig deeper into weird shapes as we all know that AUTOCAD has its limitations as a 2D-born package.

FF: When do you know a certain site is “prime” for 3D building?

Victor: Generally I shoot tons of pictures with my camera, in order to have a vast range of choice. Some pictures don’t [turn out] as good as I want, or the central subject is not clear enough for me. Sometimes, instead, it’s totally clear for me that I want to shoot a building so I start to investigate ways to get a nice shot, specially from unusual points of view. I contact people, [make] some phone calls, or if necessary I sneek into [buildings and construction sites], so there’s a bit of adrenaline in it...which I love.
So, in the end, it’s a combination of facts that make a picture be finally selected to the next stage...it’s like a casting somehow.
This selection is very important as the following 3D tasks applied on it will take at least one month...I can’t permit myself to throw away a month work  (it has already happened to me ...)

FF: Do you work with other architects?

Victor: Not anymore, at least in commissioned projects. I work with them in terms of conversational meetings, discussions or any other subject related to architecture which can be valuable for me to get inspiration.

FF: What projects do you have coming up in the near future?

Victor: Now I’m working on a project that will involve the Munich cathedral. I can’t [disclose] more about it as it will be published exclusively for an important magazine in London.
After this, we'll see...I have several projects that are on the waiting list, some of them based again on Tel Aviv.

FF: Who are your influences?

Victor: Everything influences me. From an old homeless man playing, under a porch, extremely beautiful classical music with his rotten violin but right after peeing in “his” corner behind to an Indian guy I met recently who travels the world by bike spreading his message.
So I must say it’s people. No architecture influences me as is comparable more restricted than what I do for obvious reasons.

FF: How does creating art compare to teaching?

Victor: Teaching first of all is a social act. Doing my pictures is an individual act. In order to keep my insanity under control, both acts must be there. I love teaching, probably more than doing art.

FF: Can you give our readers some tips or advice?

Victor: Well...it’s hard to give advice as I don’t have any big message to say.
I would only try to invite everybody to investigate in his or her own fears and try to overcome them, reaching unexpected limits of self knowledge without forgetting that any single direction we take in life, left or right, has a price to pay...so the first question one should ask himself should be: Am I ready to pay that price?

Another thing I would say is: consume less, bring more. Feed the universe.
That idea, thought or dream that you consider silly or stupid is instead the most valuable good you can share with all of us.

Victor's Filter Foundry PAD: /victorenrich/