Introduction

Hello, my name is Sarah Paiva. I'm an Illustrator and Concept Artist. I have a degree in Digital Games, and I'm currently studying 3D at Rafa Souza Academy. I like exploring different art styles and creating new things.

My first contact with digital art and 3D was during college, where I learned a little bit about many different areas, but only on a basic level. After graduating, I decided to focus my studies on 2D art, so I spent a long time working without 3D. But last year, I decided that I wanted to try 3D again.

At first, I tried to learn the basics of the software, and that was when I discovered the Rafa Souza Academy. I had access to some courses there that helped me a lot with my development. Many of the art fundamentals I had studied before also helped me understand forms better and made it easier to make artistic decisions during the process.

For now, in my 3D portfolio, I'm showing the work I created for the courses along with some personal projects, but I always try to bring my best to each one.

Getting Started with Saber

I created Saber back in 2024. It was a concept for a bust that a friend of mine was going to turn into a 3D model, but the project ended up not moving forward.

When I started studying 3D again, I always had the desire to see how she would look as a 3D sculpture and whether the idea I had back then would work well as a 3D piece. During my studies, I was mainly focusing on creating models for my courses, but I wanted to work on something personal, and she was the first character that came to my mind.

My main reference was the artwork I had created, but I gave myself some freedom to make changes. For the other references, I focused more on finding direct references for specific things I wanted, such as doll faces, official Artoria Pendragon artwork, pictures of clothing folds, etc.

For indirect references, I looked at artworks from different artists that inspired me in different ways, whether it was the overall piece, the rendering, or the painting. I think it's always important to have several references when working on a project. They can help with inspiration, developing new ideas, and solving problems during the process.

Modeling

I started by thinking about the overall piece, about how I could bring the pose I had in mind into a 3D space, and how the different elements would work when translating the design from 2D to 3D. Since the head was an important element and one of the main focal points, I spent quite some time making the initial blockout for it.

For the body, I began by posing it using simple shapes, such as a cylinder for the arms and a sphere for the body. For her face, I already had a specific style in mind. I didn't want to follow a more typical anime aesthetic, but create something closer to BJD dolls. After the initial blockout, I felt that I needed to build the body using symmetry first and then put it into the final pose, which is similar to what I had done before.

I gradually added the different elements, constantly thinking about the overall piece. I refined each element and made small changes whenever necessary. Clothing is something I've always found difficult, so I looked for lots of references to better understand how it works and how I could translate it into the model.

One of the choices I made during the process was to keep her without armor, because I felt that the armor took away some of the fluidity of the piece. For the hard-surface parts, I used the ZModeler tool, which made it much easier for me to define those elements.

I did the entire sculpt in ZBrush. Aside from that, I used PureRef for my references, Marmoset Toolbag for the render, and Photoshop for the final adjustments.

Texturing

I did the painting using Polypaint in ZBrush. At first, I was planning to use only base colors with some light and shadow gradients, but I felt that something was missing from the golden parts. When I saw some sculptures that had been printed and hand-painted, I noticed how much the painting could enhance the sculpture, so I decided to try that approach on this piece. Because I already had some knowledge of painting, it was something I was able to apply relatively easily.

For the skin, I added some warmer, reddish tones and a subtle grainy texture. For the clothes, I darkened some of the folds and areas where light would have more difficulty reaching. The part I paid the most attention to was the golden material. Instead of simply using a material that simulated gold, I wanted to create a painted effect that would communicate the look of gold.

Rendering

Rendering is something I'm still developing my skills in, but I had a fairly solid idea of what I wanted for this piece. First, I thought about the feeling I wanted the artwork to convey. I wanted it to feel subtle and peaceful, so I didn't want to use very strong or contrasting lights.

I added a main light coming from above, which left her face mostly shadowed. However, she ended up being too dark, so I added some secondary lights to bring more clarity to her look. Finally, I brought the render into Photoshop to adjust saturation and contrast a little.

Challenges & Takeaways

For this project, I wanted to work without a deadline and without rushing. From the day I started to the day I posted the final result, almost four months had passed, but I wasn't working only on this project during that time.

While I was working on this piece, I noticed that I was rushing to finish it. There was a stage where I kept working on it a lot, but I wasn't really making any progress, so I decided to take some breaks from the project and try to slow down. That was one of the main challenges I faced: the desire to finish everything quickly and the anxiety of seeing the final piece.

Because it was a personal project with no deadline, I learned that sometimes we need to slow down and that being too focused on the final result can actually hurt the process. Another challenge was the more technical side, especially the rendering and UV mapping. My computer was struggling quite a lot at each stage, but in the end, I was able to finish the piece the way I wanted.

The most satisfying part is looking at what you've created and actually liking the result, knowing that you managed to make something you're proud of. The part I enjoyed the most was the initial blockout and working on the character's face. During the initial blockout, you have more freedom to explore. It's the stage where you don't need to worry about details yet, and you can start turning the ideas you have in your mind into a 3D sculpture.


Sarah Paiva, Illustrator & Concept Artist

Interview conducted by Amber Rutherford