The following is an interview with character and concept artist Paul “Zeronis” Kwon regarding the recent launch of the Kickstarter campaign with Clover Press for Reminiscent: Art of Zeronis, an art book collecting over 150 pages of his incredible character portraits and concept art. In this interview, Fanbase Press Editor-in-Chief Barbra Dillon chats with Zeronis about his experience in revisiting his body of work, the incredible reward tiers available to backers, and more!
Barbra Dillon, Fanbase Press Editor-in-Chief: You recently launched a Kickstarter campaign in conjunction with Clover Press for Reminiscent: Art of Zeronis. As you look ahead to the combined collection, what has been your experience in revisiting your body of work?
Zeronis: It’s been a mix of nostalgia and slight discomfort. Looking back at everything side by side forces you to see the through-line more clearly than when you’re just making the next piece. Some older work feels more raw and energetic than I remembered, while other pieces I thought were stronger at the time now feel like they were still searching. I kept putting an art book off because I never felt “ready enough,” so finally gathering it all has been both relieving and a little exposing. Calling it Reminiscent felt right because the process itself is about looking back at the different versions of myself that made each piece.
BD: Was there anything in particular about video game character design that attracted you more than other artistic media?
Zeronis: It was the combination of storytelling and function. When I first played Final Fantasy 7 and 8, then StarCraft and Ocarina of Time, the characters didn’t just look cool, they carried personality, tone, history, and immersion even in a single image or sprite. Game character design has to communicate so much with limited information: silhouette, attitude, costume details that hint at the larger world. That constraint always felt more exciting to me than pure illustration. I liked that the design had a purpose inside a living, interactive world rather than just existing on a page.
BD: In revisiting your work, was there anything new or intriguing that you took away from the imagery that you hadn’t anticipated when originally creating it?
Zeronis: I mostly noticed how certain habits stayed the same even when the style changed. Things like how I try to show personality through the pose or the costume details keep showing up across different pieces. At the time I was just focused on finishing whatever was in front of me. Looking at everything together now, those patterns are clearer. Some of the older work also feels more straightforward than I remembered. I don’t think I captured the personalities as well as I wanted to, and I didn’t take enough bold risks on a lot of them. It’s been tough deciding which ones to include in the book.
BD: What can you tell us about your shared creative process in working with Clover Press for the collection?
Zeronis: They reached out, and that was a big part of why I finally decided to do the book. I’ve always trusted their taste with premium art books, and they’ve been easy to work with. We’re still figuring out a lot of the details together like sequencing, presentation, what new pieces should be included. I don’t have a rigid vision locked in; it’s more of a collaborative process of discovering what the book wants to be as we go. That openness has been helpful because I’m still creating new work specifically for it while selecting from the older material.
BD: Are there any other projects — past or current — that you would like to highlight for our readers?
Zeronis: I’m currently at Believer Entertainment as a Principal Concept Artist, which has been a meaningful new chapter. Before that I spent a decade at Riot Games working on League of Legends champions and a few years at Timi on Honor of Kings and Arena of Valor. On the personal side, I’ve been developing my own world-building and character concepts for a while now — the kind of material that might one day become an indie game, graphic novel, or something in between. I’m not a strong writer, so that part would need collaboration, but the character and world design side is something I keep returning to when I have the space.
BD: Lastly, in light of the Kickstarter campaign, are there any particular backer rewards that you are most excited for readers to enjoy?
Zeronis: I’m most excited about the new pieces created specifically for the book and whatever exclusive prints or extras end up tied to those. Since I’m still making fresh work for the collection, it feels good to know some of the rewards will include things that don’t exist anywhere else yet. Beyond that, I’m looking forward to people simply being able to hold the full range of the work in one place, the older pieces next to the newer ones, and, hopefully, connect with the journey the same way revisiting it has made me reconnect with it.
