Today we talk to 2077 (sometimes NSFW) artist and virtual photographer Noxi from the west coast of the USA. Currently working in the game development industry as an artist they give some in depth insight to their views about their art, 2077 and the hobby as a whole. Take a read and let us know your thoughts in the comments below;

First can you tell us a little about yourself, where you grew up and what attracted or inspired you to get into this art form?
Hi! My name is Noxi, and I grew up in California! I grew up in a family full of artists, so it was a no-brainer on what I would do later in life. Initially, I trained in fine art, but after discovering anime and games, I pivoted to design and illustration.

How, and when did you learn the drawing art style? What got you interested in learning such?
I’ve been drawing since I was a child, but I formally got into art pretty late in my mid-twenties! I wanted to turn the skill into a job but realized that I would need some kind of formal training if I wanted to enter the job market.

How did you get into digital art forms like virtual photography?
I’m new to virtual photography and dipped my toes with Cyberpunk 2077. Thankfully the modding community is robust and supportive, and with their help, I’ve been taking photos I didn’t think myself capable of! It’s unbelievably fun and allows a massive range of scenarios that would be impossible/expensive to do in real life.

What drew you to Cyberpunk 2077 or/and the cyberpunk genre as a whole?
As someone who works in game dev, I’ve always enjoyed games that tackle heavy themes and topics. Cyberpunk as a genre has always busied itself with reflecting our society in a way that forces the audience to examine the systems they live by critically.

As for Cyberpunk 2077, beyond the thematics, I’m a sucker for open-world AAA rpgs, and CDPR has proven itself a known quantity in the industry. Of course, many issues were plaguing the release, but I had faith that the development team would do their best to fix the problems as soon as possible.

Do you have a favorite cyberpunk setting aside from 2077? If so, why do you like it so much?
Actually I’ve always been a bigger fantasy fan, but that’s mostly because fantasy is, on some level as a genre, much easier to tackle than Cyberpunk. This means the market always has more decent-to-great fantasy than Cyberpunk. However, I hope that with Cyberpunk 2077’s success, more companies will be willing to take the risk.

What message, to you, does the cyberpunk genre imply or relay as a viewer or fan?
I feel that Cyberpunk has never been about the ‘future’ more than it is a tool to critique the era’s general anxieties and call into question the systems and morals we live by and aspire to. By lifting a mirror to the absurdity of society, it can force the audience to reexamine their sense of normalcy with more clarity and objectivism than before.

What photo/GFX tools that are not in 2077 would you like to see in the sequel Project Orion?
I think one of my favorite features of user-created mods is the ability to grab animations from the game and use them as poses! A photo mode system with animations that you can pause would be amazing!

What keeps driving you to keep making 2077 content?
I’m an easy sell to what I call ‘headcanon-rich’ worlds- media that give me a big playground in which to create. Cyberpunk 2077 has deep lore, unforgettable characters, and an incredible community. As long as there is space to explore the characters I make and, in turn, explore the world they exist in, I’ll keep creating content! I’m an easy sell to what I call ‘headcanon-rich’ worlds- media that give me a big playground in which to create.

What about the 2077 characters specifically got your interest? What’s your all-time favorite NPC in 2077 and why?
My favorite NPC would have to be Johnny Silverhand. He’s a dangerous, selfish person with magnetic charisma and zeal, serving as a fantastic example of a victim born from the society that hurt him. I think he’s a fascinating exploration of narcissism and disaffection, how an inability to learn from the past will only prolong the cycles of abuse and corruption.

What tools do you use to make your art? How long does it take to go from idea to posting an image?
My primary painting tools are Photoshop and Clip Studio paint, but I’m a big fan of using every tool under the sun: Daz3d/Blender/Photos- whatever it takes to get the job done! Usually, it depends on the complexity of the image/my day job, but most times, it's one to two days from inception to finish!

Where do you get most of your art inspiration from?
I primarily take most of my inspiration and guidance from my emotions. I always want the audience to experience precisely what I’m feeling (or want to feel) as clearly as possible.

What attracted you to doing the spicy side of digital art?
Spicy work has always been an outlet. I create content that I would love to see and, more often than not, can never find. Beyond that, it’s a fun experience/challenge to draw characters in positions and scenarios games/movies would never dream of putting them in!

I've seen a lot of memes from artists that imply if you do vanilla art, you will hardly get any notice, but if you do spicy art, you'll get tons of attention. Do you feel those memes are accurate for better or worse? What are your thoughts on that?
Art has always been an outlet; few things require an outlet as profoundly and explosively as sexuality.

I think sexuality and its many facets have been taboo in a lot of cultures. Human history has always busied itself with erasing desires that don’t fall within the bounds of accepted norms, and anything that doesn’t satisfy the status quo is never surfaced, let alone been explored. This is a shame because, as we all know, sexuality is both natural and comes in many forms. The internet is one of the only true collective safe spaces where people can find, create, and consume sexual content catered to desires outside their cultural norms without fear of judgment or ostracization.

General media has only recently started exploring things like LGBT+ and the rest of the sexual spectrum, while art and online spaces have been catering to it since their inception. I think people entering these spaces are drawn to sexual content over ‘vanilla’ work because it satisfies a part of themselves that society usually starves.

Fav couple (not necessarily official couple), you have done spicy art for and why?
My personal favorite is my V(ee)/Takemura. I often use sex to explore characters and power dynamics that I don’t see in general media. For Vee and Takemura, I love drawing an inversion of the standard male/female portrayal of domination/submission and using that to explore Takemura’s arc and resentment at having his world turned upside down.

I have noticed on Twitter and art sites a large amount of "futa" (female characters given male sex organs) or artists who do 'standard' versions and 'futa' versions of their female characters. I really didn't realize that was a thing or how big it was until I dug into it. What are your thoughts on that whole subject matter, and why do you think it has the following it does?
I think the big draw for content like this is linked to my earlier statement about sexual exploration. We’re only just beginning to tap into the broad sexual spectrum of humanity, and it’s no wonder that the internet is the best place to find and explore topics and artwork you’d never see in the general media.

Do you think these are skills you'd like to make a career of on some level, or do you prefer it as a hobby?
I’m actually in the game-dev industry as an artist!

For those artists that don't want to get on the spicy side of things what advice do you have?
Just two!
1: Draw what you love! No matter what you’re doing, whether it’s a study, work, or just a fun doodle: find a way to put in the things you love! Life is too short to torture yourself! Don’t be ashamed of the things that bring you joy. You’ll find that others can and will share in that joy with you.

2: There’s a lot of discourse (often negative) around using 3dtools/photos/etc in the art community. Don’t listen! There is no ‘right way’ to do art. Tools are created to be used, so use them! If you are not plagiarizing/stealing, use whatever means you have to get the job done. As long as you keep your mind open, you’ll continuously improve and actively learn.

And my most controversial question... Which of the following labels would you assign to whom (one each)? ;)
Marry, BFF, FWB(friend with benefits), Casual Friend, Indifferent, Hate, Kill
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Evelyn: Casual Friend
Goro: FWB
Johnny: Kill
Judy: Hate
Kerry: Indifferent
Panam: BFF
River: Casual Friend

And finally, what are the socials people can find you, and do you do commissions? Any final words to the readers? Thank you for your time!
I’m on Twitter as Noxi_Lumi and on Tumblr as Neon Prison! I’m not currently doing commissions, but I’m usually open to trades. A really big thank you to the readers and every one part of the community! You guys make this space a fun one to play in <3.