Ibby Karim is a relatively new name in art direction and key art, and and his experiences and insights are bound to be of interest to anyone interest in breaking into the industry. Having started his career as a graphic designer, he's now art director at ICHI and has worked on campaigns for the likes of the upcoming Metro Awakening VR.
Ibby will be speaking at Vertex 2024, providing insights into his approach to art direction and strategy and the importance of experimentation.
Vertex 2024 is our live art event at London's Business Design Centre on 19 April. Join us to learn from professional artists working in film, games and VFX, including speakers from Pixar, nDreams and Maxon. Tickets for Vertex 2024 are on sale now.
Vertex speaker Ibby Karim Q&A
Hailing from the Scottish highlands, Ibby began his career as a graphic designer after studying at the University of Dundee. He gravitated to video game advertising and is now art director at ICHI, a Keywords studio. Below, he introduces his experience in the industry ahead of his talk at Vertex 2024.
How did you get started in art and your area of expertise?
"I started my journey in the creative field as a graphic designer in 2018, combining my skills in brand, composition and typography with my passion for video games. This convergence paved my way to working in video game advertising where I found my place at ICHI.
"As I grew my experience and understanding of the industry firsthand in ICHI, I naturally transitioned to an Art Direction role which allowed me to utilise not only my design skills but enhance our projects with innovation, strategy and lead our incredibly talented team."
Is there a piece of art, campaign or project you’ve worked on from your portfolio that you really love and why?
"Our recent work for the upcoming Metro title 'Metro Awakening VR'. On this project I designed the logo and directed the principal key art which was recently announced during PlayStation’s latest showcase. The reason why I love this project is because it was my first foray leading key art for a beloved franchise and an IP that ICHI has worked with for over 10 years.
"Utilising Unreal Engine 5, Z-brush and Photoshop editing, the mixture of craft resulted in a highly polished piece of artwork with unique tone and flavour which will stand well alongside the main titles of the Metro series."
What advice would you give to your younger self?
"I would tell my younger self to:
Keep learning to draw and never stop doing it. Producing scamps and quick sketches is super handy to direct someone and show them your thinking. By continuing to become more proficient with drawing the easier it will become to convey ideas.
Trust the process of experimentation. Executing the first idea might not give the best outcome, allow yourself when possible the time to test and experiment, focusing on creating something new. This greatly improves your craft."
Can you tease what the audience can expect to learn from your talk at Vertex 2024?
"I’m a fresh face when it comes to both Art Direction and Key Art so I expect to discuss with the audience what that experience is like, while giving little nuggets of information I’ve learned working on some of the industry's big name IPs in that short time."
Find details of more speakers at the Vertex 2024 website.
