About Neimar Duarte
Second place winner of Fine Art Fantasy category
Neimar Duarte is a self-taught artist, born and raised in Belo Horizonte/MG - Brazil in 1985.
Have been working in the field since 2005, when he started airbrushing. Due to his passion for Muscle Cars, Hot Rods, and Custom Motorcycles, his art has a big influence from these cultures.
Neimar has a unique style, mixing photorealism and fantasy; he mostly works creating designs and doing custom painting on motorcycles, cars, music instruments, helmets, portraits, pinstriping, etc.
Regular contributor editor of international magazines such as, Airbrush Step by Step Magazine (Germany), and Pinstriping and Kustom Graphics Magazine (UK), Airbrush Action Magazine (USA).
Three times winner in the Sparmax International Airbrush Competition; The most prestigious competition in the field.
Neimar is currently transferring his business to the United States to explore new challenges and experiences.
Winner’s Interview
1. Can you tell us a little bit about yourself, what is your background? When did you start airbrushing and what was the learning process like for you?
I’m a self-taught artist who started airbrushing in 2005. I had studied drawing techniques since around 1998 through books and magazines, so I had a good foundation to start learning airbrush painting. I kept learning through the internet, magazines, and more recently videos on YouTube. Nowadays I’m constantly learning and updating myself. I believe it’s an endless process, and that’s why it’s fun.
2. Can you tell us a bit more about your winning entry piece? How / why did you choose it? How long did it take, and what inspired you?
The Majestic Freedom is painted on a Composite Aluminum panel (ACM) 60x40cm, entirely using airbrushes and automotive paints. It took me 68 hours to paint it, which is around 2 weeks of work.
The painting symbolically represents the purity of nature in its natural form, where war and harmful ambition don’t exist.
Because of its beauty the macaw bird is a big victim of human injustice by being kept in cages and treated like object.
I chose it because it’s a piece that I’ve created for myself and it’s been my favorite so far. It also fits the theme of the competition as it’s intended to transmit a message of peace.
3. What challenges did you encounter during the creation of this piece? What is your favorite part of the work, and why? What airbrush techniques did you use in this creation?
One thing that I had in mind during the painting process was that I only wanted vibrant colors, primary and secondary. So I avoided mixing 3 primary colors in the same place, that way I would not make any brownish colors.
One of my favorite parts of the painting is the light effect, which gives the illusion that it’s glowing.
I did this painting mostly freehand, only using one template to paint the background and also the butterflies. It was a lot of dagger stroke and texture work.
"Airbrushing for me means endless possibilities"
4. What does airbrushing mean to you and what drives your passion for airbrushing and creating art? Also, how do you find the ideas for your other works?
Airbrushing for me means endless possibilities, because it can be applied to any kind of object and makes it unique, and that’s what moves me.
On my daily routine I work with commissions, so the client bring me an idea, theme or a concept, and I work with that in mind to create something unique for them.
5. What are your goals / targets for airbrushing? What do you want to achieve?
My goal is to keep evolving to stay relevant and active in this business. And also to have more time to create paintings for myself, to sell or to put together an exhibition.
6. Do you specialize or prefer to work on a specific surface?
I’m specialized in working on hard surfaces, what we usually call automotive kind of painting. And I prefer to work on flat surfaces, although the tridimensional pieces are fun to paint sometimes.
7. How would you describe your style(s) in airbrushing?
Well, I like to mix photorealism with fantasy art. And even when I’m doing something photorealistic, I like to enhance the image, make it something different than a photo. The photo already exists, so I try to add something special to it.
8. Any advice to beginners looking to start airbrushing? What would you tell your young self?
I would advice to a beginner to study drawing techniques as much as you can. At least basic drawing techniques, because that’s a perfect foundation for airbrushing. It will make your learning curve so much easier.
" ...study drawing techniques, because that’s a perfect foundation for airbrushing."
9. Do you have a website or blog? How can people reach you on social media?
