Artist in Residence: inside the bustling studio of Marvel, Netflix and Disney artist Charles Ratteray

Artist in residence; inside the art studio of Charles Ratteray

I spend a lot of time in the library each day. I’ll sit on the couch as I go from book to book, and often take an organic approach to studying. (Image credit: Charles Ratteray)

Charles Ratteray is an LA-based storyboard artist, concept designer and illustrator who has worked in the entertainment industry for 25 years with major companies including Marvel, Netflix, Riot Games and Disney. Below Charles, in his own words, takes us on a tour of his studio, a creative space crammed with inspiration and a mix of media that inspires him every day.

Inside the artist's studio

Artist in residence; a tablet is surrounded by art supplies — The typical setup I’ll have when I engage in a creative sketch session. Papers, pens, and a light table at the ready to refine ideas with traditional tools. (Image credit: Charles Ratteray)

Artist in residence; a large lightbox and Wacom pen display — Here you can see my light box, which I’ll use when I’m creating my initial sketches and concept ideas before I get to scanning them in. (Image credit: Charles Ratteray)

I often think of my workspace as a lab. I spend so many of my waking, working hours experimenting in here, tinkering, fashioning, ingesting new knowledge, and fostering explosions of creativity. I have several areas designated for different activities.

The Wacom Cintiq area is where I do all my digital professional storyboard and concept work. On the other side of the room I have a wall that I’ve set aside for brainstorming. I like the idea of writing out ideas as they come to me, and have taken a section of that wall and layered it with a roll of whiteboard film, which allows me to quickly jot down ideas with Col-Erase markers. I like leaving it up like that because I can remind myself with notes and quotes as I go in and out of the room.

Artist in residence; a portrait painting — I often draw on blocks of wood with ink, paint pens and coloured pencils. Sometimes I burn them with a torch lighter for an airbrush gradient effect. (Image credit: Charles Ratteray)

Artist in residence; sketches on a storyboard — Sketch compilations from a page of the sketchbook that I’m currently working on and developing. (Image credit: Charles Ratteray)

Artist in residence; a black and white character sketch — Sketch of a character I’d been toying with but hadn’t realised fully. He’s a man seasoned in the arts of war; a swordsman by trade. (Image credit: Charles Ratteray)

By the window, I put most of my wooden artworks that I’ve drawn on with markers, pens and pencils. I really enjoy making things with my hands in 3D space and have paintings, clay sculptures, and pieces of wood that I’ve treated and drawn on dotted all throughout the studio.

Traditional art is truly my favourite, and I usually reserve that form of expression as gifts for people, or for personal use. I typically express what I like to call freestyle art, which is art that’s allowed to flow freely from my subconscious and through to my hands, manifesting as it is without any judgement. I’ll find myself expressing lots of symbolic, abstract writing and shapes. The characters can manifest, blending and morphing into the next stream of elements.

Artist in residence; a man sketches on a wall — A large pen and ink drawing treated with watercolour-type shading for the tone. The ideas on the wall are written with Col-Erase. (Image credit: Charles Ratteray)

Artist in residence; a wall filled with sketches — As I don’t really keep sketchbooks so much as drawers full of loose sketches, I’ll often put them on the wall to see differently at a glance, juxtaposed with each other. (Image credit: Charles Ratteray)

I love my library. I reference many subjects daily to further my awareness in both the arts and filmmaking. The majority of the books in the library are technical or graphic novels and related to architecture.

As far as the lighting goes in the studio, I prefer soft light. During the day I like to have the windows and blinds open, and the beige-coloured drapes offer a nice softening of the light. In the evening, however, I enjoy controlled low-lit amber LED lighting accompanied by string lights. I also like to burn candles and incense, as both set a pleasant tone in the studio with lingering aromatic notes.

Artist in residence; a table of art and sculptures — This sculpture was given to me as a gift, rather than being made by me. It’s just something that I like to keep among all of my woodworkings. (Image credit: Charles Ratteray)

Artist in residence; a clay sculpture — A sculpture experiment I called Surrender. It features a seated man with his shoulders at an off-angle and multiple arms grasping the base. (Image credit: Charles Ratteray)

If you've been inspired by Charles' studio and life as a professional artist then why not upgrade you art kit and studio setup? Take a look at our guides to the best drawing tablets out now and our pick of best laptops for drawing. Don't forget comfort, read our guide to the best chairs for backpain.

This content originally appeared in ImagineFX magazine, the world's leading digital art and fantasy art magazine. ImagineFX is on sale in the UK, Europe, United States, Canada, Australia and more. Limited numbers of ImagineFX print editions are available for delivery from our online store (the shipping costs are included in all prices) Alternatively, you can access us instantly through our digital options:

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Ian Dean is Editor, Digital Arts & 3D at Creative Bloq, and the former editor of many leading magazines. These titles included ImagineFX, 3D World and video game titles Play and Official PlayStation Magazine. Ian launched Xbox magazine X360 and edited PlayStation World. For Creative Bloq, Ian combines his experiences to bring the latest news on digital art, VFX and video games and tech, and in his spare time he doodles in Procreate, ArtRage, and Rebelle while finding time to play Xbox and PS5.