Influence Map

My influence map!

The first half is more music, movies and literature, while the bottom is actual artists.

Now I'm gonna explain it a bit more, from top to bottom:


1. arctic monkeys

My favourite band right now. The albums "Humbug" and "Favourite Worst Nightmare" are massive sources of inspiration for me, brilliant music.

2. the good, the bad & the ugly

One of the best movies ever made, and inspiration for a lot of people (including Quentin Tarantino).

3. the dark tower

An epic 7-book series written by Stephen King. It's the prime of Kings work, he wrote on it for more than 25 years.

4. gorillaz

I like them since I've been a little child. It was the crazy cartoon characters by Jamie Hewlett that caught my attention. The latest album "Plastic Beach" is the best, imho. Just weird, but beautiful music.

5. black sabbath

Who doesn't know Ozzy Osbourne? When I saw "The Osbournes" on MTV as a child, I didn't know that Ozzy made this brilliant music when he was younger. The Paranoid LP and Vol. 4 are 2 of my personal favourites, high on top of my own "best album" ranking.

6. watchmen

The best graphic novel ever made. The story and the detail in it are just mind-bogglingly awesome. There's also a movie, witch is very close to the book and definitely worth watching.

7. stephen kings it

Another story by Stephen King, yay! Simply my favourite book of all time. I read it 3 times (I think), and it's like 1200 pages. Every read is as good as the first, because there's sooo much to discover.

8. corey taylor

Where to start with this dude? Well, he's the singer of Slipknot and Stone Sour. I don't like the early Slipknot stuff, it's way to aggressive for my taste.
But Vol. 3: the subliminal verses kinda might be the best album I know. Really. It has everything, it's fast, it's slow, it's loud, it's quiet, it's weird.
And the recent Stone Sour stuff is just superb (Come Whatever May & Audio Secrecy). Everything Corey worked on the last 10 years appeals to me.

9. heath ledger as the joker

One of the best performances in recent movie history. A tragedy, that Heath had to die at such a young age. This role makes him immortal.

10. lord of the rings

I read the books by J.R.R. Tolkien and love the movies. The creatures, the look, the architecture, the armor and weaponry ... there's to much to say here. It simply defined my whole vision on fantasy.

11. volkan baga

In my eyes, Volkan Baga is the best illustrator alive. His work is so stunning...When you look at one of his pictures, you think you are looking through a window right into a world full of epic fantasy. His work reminds me of the great art of the Renaissance, just in a more perfect, modern way. If I could paint like he does, I would. But I can't, unfortunately. Oh, and he's German, too, like me!

12. indiana jones

My role model . I always wanted to be like Indy, you know, lashing the whip, discovering some ancient artifacts, getting the beautiful ladies and saving the day from the nazis. Best job ever.

13. star wars

Well, who really dislikes STAR WARS? The new movies of course aren't classic, as the old ones, but I enjoyed them, too (mainly because I grew up with them). Star Wars is THE definition of Science Fiction for me.

14. venom

I love Spiderman (not the movies, the 3rd one was whack!), and I think Venom is the ultimate villain. He's just so cool and creepy, there's no better concept for a comic villain at all.

15. monkey island

Monkey Island 1, 2 and 3 defined my childhood. They are the best Point n' Click adventures ever made (esp. I and II) and massive inspiration for me. (Behind you, a 3-headed monkey!!)

16. keith parkinson

I particular like this picture by Keith. It's a Nightstalker, a very cool creature, imho. I always wanted to paint like this, I hope one day I can.

17. terese nielsen

Terese Nielsen is a very relevant artist for Magic the Gathering, and I absolutely love her artwork. It's just soo beautiful.

18. red dead redemption

Best game ever made. That's it. I never played a game before that was made out of so much WIN like this. Bravo, Rockstar Games, bravo.

19. paolo parente

Another MtG artist. His style is a crazy comic-crossover, and I love it.

20. glen angus

And yet another MtG artist. He died not long ago at a very young age, but his paintings will not be forgotten. He had a very bold style, his pictures always were just "different". That's why I adore Glen.

21. mark tedin

His style is just unique. You could give me 100 different pictures and I could definitely tell you, witch one was made by Mark. He works with lines and curls a lot, that's what makes him special.

22. quinton hoover

Quinton Hoover just is the man. He knows it all: comic style and more realistic stuff. A master of his genre.



That's it. That's what made me the person I am today, these are my influences from music, cinema and art.