Hi there! My name is Alexander Martin, but you can just call me Alex. I am from Ireland but have been living in the UK most of my life. I’ve been drawing for as long as I can remember and have always been seen as a hard-working, motivated and creative person despite my struggles with autism and ADHD.
My primary art style is reminiscent of cartoons and anime, and I enjoy a plethora of genres and using a variety of mediums to bring characters and worlds to life. I aspire to be a digital artist and animator, hoping to someday launch my own original webcomics and indie animated series. To be honest, getting into what specifically influenced my visual style and my passion for art and animation would be like giving you my whole life story, but I can tell you one thing for certain: nothing inspires me more than wanting to tell exciting and interesting stories and bringing smiles to peoples’ faces through the things I create.
Ember Set Ablaze is the title of my final major project. It is a superhero-sports graphic novel with a plethora of manga-like action and a touch of drama. It is set in a contemporary world where superheroes and supervillains with all sorts of powers compete in high-stakes, high-octane boxing. It follows a young fire-wielder named Ember as she takes on a formidable opponent who’s fear-inducing powers awaken intense feelings of anxiety and regret within her.
The story’s central themes are self-doubt, imposter syndrome and overcoming the odds, which were partially influenced by my personal mental struggles during my time on this course. However, the words I would hear time and time again that ultimately allowed me to persevere were “if you did it before, you can do it again.”, and this is a message I want to convey to any young adult readers of this graphic novel. No matter how unsurmountable the challenges ahead of you may seem, you are more than capable of pushing through and achieving greatness.
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