As Sixers, we like to showcase our small, yet mighty team and highlight their amazing abilities. This month, we’re introducing a few of our employees who are hard at work making our dream for a virtual society happen.

Maya Mahalingam

Maya joined S6 last year as our Environment Artist. She has a strong passion for art and was encouraged early on to explore these skills. Check out her work on ArtStation!

Get to know Maya by reading our conversation with Maya below!

How did you get started in this profession and what drew you to a career as an artist (no pun intended)?

I have been super passionate about art ever since as a kid, and I loved to draw and paint. I was always very sure that I wanted to pursue a creative career and do something different, so I did a Visual communication bachelors to figure out where my interest was. During my childhood, I remember playing a lot of GTA and NES games after school which fueled my curiosity even more. And so, I ended up working as an artist at a mobile game company and I really enjoyed the experience. I kept up to date on trends and looking into tools that are constantly changing in the 3D space and became super interested in VR. So, I came to the US to further my career and expand my knowledge by doing a Game Dev program at Carnegie Mellon. Since then, I've had the opportunity to work with multiple teams across games, VR and AR space for the past few years.

When you were younger, how did you discover a passion for art?

When I was growing up, I played tennis professionally for a while and art was like my side interest due to lack of time. But I still enjoyed going to art classes a lot. My parents really encouraged me to explore my creativity and I started painting and doodling whenever I could.

What excites you most about being an Environment Artist?

What I really like about environment art is that I get to translate my real world observations and bring them to life directly. And, the other nice thing about being an environment artist specifically is that I get to touch a lot of topics in the pipeline, be it technical or purely art itself because of the nature of the role. That I think widens my knowledge and interest of continuing to learn and grow. Also, I've found a recent love to write and share the process about my work and here's my last one: https://80.lv/articles/001agt-005cg-crafting-a-mossy-oakwood-forest-in-ue4-at-cgma/. I wish to continue to do more of that through personal work and our game here at S6.

What brought you to LA / S6?

It was a combination of my interest in environment art, and looking to relocate to LA for personal reasons. So S6 was a great opportunity to be able to do both. I wanted to try something new and different after having worked in VR/AR projects, I wanted to work on a project where I could create a vibrant virtual environment that the players could spend hours exploring and having fun.

What have you learned about yourself since becoming an artist?

I think over the years I've learnt how much I can push myself to face challenges and try out new things. I've become more comfortable with accepting what I don't know and what I can do to fix that. And, definitely to be a good person, because at the end of day I think that's what counts.

What things in life are still a mystery to you?

Haha the question itself is a big mystery to me. Honestly, I see myself as a mystery because I'm still constantly trying to figure out my traits, my interests and where I'm heading towards in life. So, having to learn about myself and finding solutions for the questions in my head has been really interesting so far.

Of the many things you do, which one makes your heart beat the fastest?

Art! I think if you make something that you enjoy and if it’s something that people find fascinating then that's something to work on with pride.

What are you currently working on, without giving anything away?

Currently I'm working on getting the different aspects of environment art as close to the art bible as possible. And, I’m working on getting Houdini engine setup for some procedural modeling integrated into our pipeline for customizable options in game.

What is the one thing in life that makes you happiest?

First thing that comes to mind is good food, especially dessert! I can literally eat a Tiramisu or a cake any time. If I am not eating a cake then I am probably baking or thinking about one :D

For aspiring kids who want to be an artist/designer one day, what advice would you give them?

I would say following your passion is what brings the best out of you. Other than that if it has to be specific to becoming an artist, I would say keep yourself updated constantly. Train yourself to be in a position to be super adaptable to whichever tools become the standard. The industry changes constantly, so having a lot of self discipline and motivation I think is very important. And to make some time to work on personal projects cause I think that really helps to shine a light on your interest.