Jana Schirmer is a freelance artist currently based in Berlin, Germany. She was inspired to pick up a pencil at a young age after watching the Sailor Moon anime. Though her work does occasionally exhibit an affection for anime and manga, the bulk of it is very much grounded in realism. Schirmer’s portfolio is filled with still-life studies and portraiture. Observing the real-world, honing traditional skills, in order to make her fantasy artwork more convincing.
Some of Schirmer’s previous clients include Wizards of the Coast, Applibot, EA, Sony, Ubisoft, and Riot Games. Early in her career, she worked as a colourist and cover artist at Marvel Comics. In 2011, she collaborated with fellow German artist Johannes Voss to create artwork for the Magic The Gathering cards sets. You can read a Milk and Cookies interview with the duo on the Wizards website.
You can listen to Schirmer’s more recent interview with Ricky Martinez. It covers a spectrum of topics from inspirations and painting techniques to sleep paterns and diets. Whilst there be sure to check out Schirmer at work, as she paints a portrait of a live model.
You can see more of Jana Schirmer’s work on DeviantArt and ArtStation.