Starlet's Stars: Syyd Raven

I guess maybe because I consider myself an artist I get easily enamored with people who seem to master the creative side without any effort at all and one of the people that my affection came quickly for was Syyd Raven.  Syyd is the superstar business mind behind RuntimeDNA and so many of the amazing products that have become crucial parts of users Poser runtimes.  Long before I was ever a member of the Content Paradise team and working with her on a business level, I was quietly admiring her ambition and edgy art from the dark shadows of the Curious Labs office.

 To me, Syyd was a Poser goddess and I remember the first time I met her and her partner Colm Jackson at my very first Siggraph in Los Angeles in 2001.  They gave a Poser presentation in our demo theater and I quietly stood in the background in awe.  I think Dick Van Dyke also came by the booth that week, but still the woman who could take the application I believed in and make images that were beyond my own imagination as a painter was more of a star to me.  My relationship with Syyd grew into a friendship over the course of my time here, working closely with her as a premiere partner of CP and the magician behind many of our figures textures, but my awe of her art still has not subsided.   

A year ago at Siggraph in Boston we sat next to each other at dinner and I finally told her of my amazement of her talents and asked what her number one tip was.  She said lights.  Buy light sets and get started.  (I had to laugh because for years of reviewing image submissions, the strongest complaint was the lack of attention to light and shadows in the definition of realism.)  It's amazing to me what a difference the dramatic effect is when the attention to shadowing is taken to the next level.  Syyd has an amazing talent for portraying the dark side and one of of my favorite images ever is "Mommie Dearest" to the right.  I remember the first time I called my mother that and she sat me down to watch the movie and told me to never call her that again and I understood why.  While Syyd's depiction is no where near the sweet facade of Joan Crawford, she manages to succeed in taking the pretty side of Poser to a dark and dreary place at times.  You can read a really old customer story about Syyd, but still with some great art, or check out her top sellers or all of RuntimeDNA's products at Content Paradise.  (Many of RDNA's products are now on sale as part of the Splicing DNA 50% off sale that was extended through December 16, so you can shop now and save.)  I definitely think Syyd is a monumental part of the community and if you don't know her name, then you've probably been under a rock, so crawl on out and learn about one of Poser's oldest and dearest artists!