V Magazine chats with 3D artist Jason Ebeyer. The Melbourne-based creative is the talent behind our latest cover for V129, an illustrated feat inspired by musical sensation Doja Cat. Known globally for his glossy figures and sensual surrealism, Ebeyer transforms the already beguiling songstress into a digital nymph. Below, he talks us through his inspirations and creative process and gives us insights into bringing this cover to life with revered photographer Steven Klein and pre-order V129 now.

VMAGAZINE Can you tell us about your background? Where are you from?

JASON EBEYER I’m an Australian 3D artist from Melbourne. I’ve been creating 3D artworks for about 6 years now, prior to that came from a graphic design background.

V Was art always a part of your life? If so, how?

JE Yes, I would say I have always been creative. For as long as I can remember I have created these exaggerated characters and forms.

V How has your work evolved over time and as technology advanced?

JE I’ve worked across lots of different mediums, from traditional illustration and painting, through to photo manipulation and collage and then finally falling into 3D softwares. I settled with this medium because it truly enabled me to produce the work and figures that I imagine.

V What are some of the main inspirations for your pieces?

JE My work is heavily inspired by the human form, or more so how far I’m able to exaggerate and push it. In terms of structure and how I set out a scene, I take a lot of inspiration from cinematography and photography. I remember back to being a kid and I used to watch this Ghost in the Shell anime on VHS over and over, there is one scene in particular where the main character has these rippling muscles bulging as she is destroying a machine and that has stuck with me forever. I think subconsciously this is the main inspiration for why my figures look the way they do.

V What is your creative process like?

JE My creative process normally starts with a little scribble or the tip of an idea. From there I will start to build out my character and then start to develop the scene/shot. Very rarely will my original concept or idea be what the finished image looks like. I love to dive into each artwork with my ideas floating loosely and not restrict the flow of new ideas as I’m working on the particular piece.

V You created a Doja Cat-inspired digitally rendered cover in collaboration with her and Steven Klein. What was that process like?

JE This was a really fun process. Firstly I had a few calls with Steven to discuss our ideas for the overall editorial work. From there I had a call with Doja just to get to know a little more about her and help me get a better understanding of herself and also the stylized character we would be producing. My first step in the 3D process was to create a realistic model of Doja after which Steven and myself went in and adjusted to create this stunning stylized embodiment of Doja who exists in this digital environment.

V What were some of the key inspirations or traits of her character?

JE When I create my stylizations of real people, it is important to pick certain elements which will pull the likeness together. For this particular stylization, we focused on Doja’s beautiful eyes. As much as we exaggerated and stylized certain parts of the figure and body to belong in this surreal world, I also wanted to maintain her personality and charisma within the images.

V How did you go about and create the fantastical world in which Doja’s character resides?

JE Creating the world or environment was a collaborative effort between Steven and myself. Steven initially had mentioned he would love if we could combine Hoover Dam with the surreal and bizarre worlds which exist within my work. So essentially I built out a 3D version of the dam and from there we added different coloured plants and the creatures which inhabit the water.

V In a few words, how would you describe Doja’s character?

JE Powerful, Inspiring, Charismatic, and Unique.