Roman Lappat
Roman Lappat is a self-employed artist, mainly focusing on miniature art and modeling. Born and raised in Augsburg, Germany, he has been self-employed since the end of 2009 and worked with miniatures full-time ever since.
Roman is the founder of a blog called Massive Voodoo, which spreads the word and the beauty of this form of art globally.
Read more of his work at: https://www.romanlappat.com/
The GoH Interview
So, Roman, welcome to Ropecon 2023 as a Guest of Honor. We have some questions for you!
Q: What inspired you to become a miniature artist and how did you get started in the industry?
Since my first contact with the games, the miniatures and the lore of Games Workshop in the 90s I became a big fan of Warhammer. I played, collected and painted miniatures. As a young man I was starting to paint armies for friends to be able to pay for my time in the university. I studied to become a teacher for art and art history for regular schools. I never heard the call to work in a regular school, but enjoyed the teaching aspect a lot. A lot of people asked me if I would be interested in teaching workshops. This is how it all started. I made my hobby, the passion of miniature painting, my daily job. Now I create miniature art for collectors and museums, teach big workshops with many students or coach individuals. In the early days this was a rough path to shape a career in as it is not a very secure route when it comes to income, but in the meantime you can say that it has become my full-time job that I love in every aspect and I am thankful for it every day.
Q: Which miniature art works or game worlds have you found particularly inspiring, and have they influenced your work?
I do not have to think twice. I am super inspired by the worlds of Warhammer and have always been a fanboy ever since. I like the 40k Science Fiction Setting and all Fantasy Settings. Of course, Lord of the Rings and Star Wars influenced me too when it comes to my inspiration, but I would call the typical ”Space Marine” the element that shaped and influenced me the most. When I create a miniature project it is not always something from Warhammer. I like diversity and change in subjects, topics and narratives, but I always find my way back to painting a Warhammer Miniature or creating a diorama in this particular lore.
Q: What do you enjoy the most about attending gaming conventions, and what are you looking forward to at Ropecon this year?
I think the best part of such a big show is the creativity of all people and the joy everybody brings to such an event. May it be in gaming, cosplaying, painting and all the many aspects our fantasy allows us.
This is the strongest energy on such an event I think. I am particularly looking forward to seeing many crazy costumes as this is something I am not into myself and I am always fascinated.
Q: What advice would you give to aspiring artists who are just starting out in the industry?
Do not compare your path with the journey of someone else. Be honest with an open mind and allow yourself to learn everyday. Share your experiences to help others and help others to grow on their journey.
Always be thankful if you learn from others, respect your own teachers and mention them if you continue to work with the knowledge they might have helped you with. It is very important to create with joy. Find what brings you joy in your passion. Follow the path of joy. May it be dioramas, competition painting, painting for wargaming, just board gaming, vehicles, narrative board game, etc., etc. – just enjoy what you do. Don’t do anything that does not bring you joy. Find your way and you will be authentic and real.
Q: Can you share any details about any upcoming projects you’re currently working on?
Sure. I always work on many things at once. Some are miniatures I started to paint during teaching and I am finishing them. Some are commission work and some are private projects for my own hobby and joy. Some are even top secret projects.
For example, I started to paint a bust by Spira Mirabilis (Rumpelstilzchen) recently to explain something during a coaching and I will finish it soon. A commission I start very soon for a collector is a framed diorama with Blood Angels Space Marines. A project I am working on at the moment for my own hobby and joy is a framed diorama with some Cadian Soldiers. A top secret project is a diorama that I have been concepting for three years in order to take part in Golden Demon one day. I finally have everything that I need and my concept is ready, now I just have to make the time to create it. (see 2 photos attached).
Q: In addition to miniatures and gaming, what other hobbies or interests do you have, and do they influence your creative work?
Yes, they have influenced me. The hobby of Miniature Painting really became my job, meaning being creative is my job. Sometimes you need to rest from being creative and do something else to recharge energies. Photography is a thing. I do photograph nature, wildlife and people, for example with my girlfriend’s band when they play a concert. I do this fully as a hobby and it brings me joy. I do a little bit of cosplaying and I am into Batman, but I am a super newbie. I like to read a good book, play a funny board game with friends, listen to fine music, play a computer game, love being with animals and overall I am happy being in nature. These things all do influence my creative work. They bring new input, create space for new thoughts and fresh perspectives.
Q: Finally, if you could give one piece of advice to gamers everywhere, what would it be?
Never lose that inner child of yours. Let it dream, let it travel, let it create. Be brave. And if you fall down and hurt your knee, get up to run again and repeat.
Shut Up & Sit Down
Shut Up & Sit Down is the world’s best and biggest board game review show. For more than 10 years their team has offered – often simultaneously – the smartest and dumbest criticism in the tabletop scene. And with board game design being better than ever, they have no intention of stopping anytime soon. Check their pages at https://www.shutupandsitdown.com/ for more information!
The GoH Interview
Welcome to Ropecon 2023 SU&SD! We have some questions for our Guests of Honor if you don’t mind.
- What is the origin story of SU&SD? What brought you all into board games, and how did you get started with a podcast?
- Which games have you found particularly inspiring or influential?
- What is the most difficult or weird thing in creating (very popular) gaming content?
- What do you enjoy the most about attending gaming conventions, and what are you looking forward to at Ropecon this year?
- What advice would you give to aspiring game journalists or podcast creators?
- Can you share any details about any upcoming projects you’re currently working on?
- In addition to gaming, what other hobbies or interests do you have, and do they influence your creative work?
- Finally, if you could give one piece of advice to gamers everywhere, what would it be?
SU&SD:
“Thanks for having us! Sure thing, here goes!”
Q: What is the origin story of SU&SD? What brought you all into board games, and how did you get started with a podcast?
Shut Up & Sit Down was created by a group of professional video game journalists who realised, with no small amount of shock, that (a) modern board games are amazing and (b) hardly anyone was talking about them. The mission was simple, then: tell as many people as possible about these fantastic games, while making them laugh and being respectful of their time.
Q: Which games have you found particularly inspiring or influential?
Of course, you’ll get a different answer to this question depending on which member of the team you ask. For Matt, the simplicity and wild energy of a game like Quacks of Quedlinburg keeps him coming back over and over again. For Tom, the fusion of heavy rules and stunning storytelling found in Cole Wehrle’s Oath: Chronicles of Empire and Exile made a tremendous impression. Ava is looking for a certain undefinable magic or energy, sometimes found in a cute card game like Songbirds, sometimes found in the crunchy clockwork of a game like Mottainai. And for Quinns, most recently campaign games full of surprises like My City or The King’s Dilemma have been where he finds the most joy.
Q: What is the most difficult or weird thing in creating (very popular) gaming content?
Without question, the hardest part of our job is maintaining our team’s passion and energy. The dark twist of making your hobby your job is that everything you love can become work. We find that giving ourselves the space to breathe and simply enjoy games (without also dismantling the design in our heads) is vitally important.
Q: What do you enjoy most about attending gaming conventions, and what are you looking forward to at Ropecon this year?
Our team is so, so excited about Ropecon. This is related to the last question, actually! Conventions are where we often find that we can recharge our enthusiasm for the hobby a little bit. We get to see people and fans simply enjoying the tabletop scene in an uncomplicated way, and you folks’ enthusiasm is so, so infectious!
Q: What advice would you give to aspiring game journalists or content creators?
Make the content that you wish existed, but doesn’t yet. What’s the corner of gaming which you wish had reviews that were a bit more characterful, or more comprehensive? How do you talk about games with your friends that you feel aren’t represented in the current podcasts offered out there? Figure out your niche, post about it in communities that you hope would enjoy it, and think about your work very critically. Ask yourself (or other people) ”What about this could be better, and where am I losing folks’ interest?”
Q: Can you share any details about any upcoming projects you’re currently working on?
If people want to know what coverage might be coming up on the site, they should simply keep an eye on what we’re playing at Ropecon. *Smile*
Q: In addition to gaming, what other hobbies or interests do you have, and do they influence your creative work?
With all of us turning tabletop into work, other hobbies are so important! Quinns loves reading, Ava has an entire DJ setup at home, Tom inhales tricky video games like they were oxygen, and Matt is currently in the process of fixing up an entire house. Although that last one is less of a hobby than it is ”a necessity to live”.
Q: Finally, if you could give one piece of advice to gamers everywhere, what would it be?
Games are for everyone and the games we all get to play are better when everyone feels welcome. Since we founded Shut Up & Sit Down, the tabletop space has made decent strides in making women, 2SLGBTQ+ folks and people of colour more welcome, but we have so, so, so much further to go. So I guess if we could magically beam one thought into the heads of gamers everywhere, it would be ”Think about how you can make that new person feel like they belong here!”
Artikkelikuva: Laura Myllyviita
Muut kuvat omistavat: Roman Lappat ja Shut up & Sit Down