3D art of the week: Pietro Boldetti

Pietro Boldetti is a 2D & 3D concept artist based in Varese, Italy. He specialises in a range of artistic disciplines from concept art to 3D modelling, using ZBrush, Blender, Substance 3D Painter, Photoshop, and Character Creator to create his unique 3D creations.

Below is a piece from his ‘Mother Reimagined’ series inspired by the MOTHER video games. In these 3D sculpts he reimagines the castle gate guards. If you’re new to 3D art take a look at our guide to the best 3D modelling software and check out our best laptops for 3D modelling to keep your creative kit up to date.

“I began by limiting my reference pool, using a very simple sprite taken from the MOTHER video games as the main reference for the entire design process. My inspiration was taken from traditional ceremonial French armour from the 16th century, along with not-so-traditional armour such as those from Elden Ring.

While sculpting, I kept my subdivision levels and baked the Normal maps pre-emptively. That way I could maintain high-quality details along with a low-poly mesh that could easily be modified. After the texturing, I brought the model into Character Creator, where I used the magic of AccuRIG to get a basic rig for the model.

I then finalised my project by making a few keyframes and used Blender’s EEVEE Next to get a fast render before switching over to Photoshop for the final touches.

When it comes to the creative process, I believe in the value of balancing aesthetic beauty with functionality. I use shapes, colours and silhouettes to get the design how I want it, but also keep a keen eye on the purpose of the design choices taken.”

This content originally appeared in 3D World magazine, the world’s leading CG art magazine. 3D World is on sale in the UK, Europe, United States, Canada, Australia and more. Limited numbers of 3D World print editions are available for delivery from our online store (the shipping costs are included in all prices). Subscribe to 3D World at Magazines Direct.