Hey Reader,

Alan here, I help manage CG Boost.

It's our Christmas/holiday break at CG Boost, I wanted to write you a thought piece. My goal with this email is to give you a bit of breathing room and maybe help you make a few wise choices on your creative artistic path.

I want to start at the end by making two suggestions. Nothing too dramatic, but two clear ways, I invite you to be a bit of a rebel as a 3D artist.

Rebellion Suggestion #1

Say no to hustle culture more often.

When was the last time you created something purely for the sake of it?

Not for a portfolio, not for a client, not because it was “strategic” or “on trend.”

Just because you were curious. Or because you wanted to see what would happen.

How about, sometime this week or month, you open Blender (or your tool of choice), put on some calm music, and create for a while without a plan?

No outcome required. No pressure to finish. Just you and the process, let it be a reminder of just how fun and cool just creating can be.

Rebellion Suggestion #2

Great art doesn’t always need to deconstruct.

I want to invite you to push back against an artistic trend that feels like it is becoming too prevalent, one that brings short-term attention, but will not sustain in the long run.

I’ll come back to both of these in a moment; first, a bit of context.

This email isn't about a single project or trend. It’s something I’ve slowly become aware of over time, in my own habits and in the work I see around me. It's about how easily creative focus gets pulled apart when the internet and our devices are always asking for more attention.

Creating 3D art for the sake of it

I can’t be the only one this is happening to. Have you noticed how the moment you turn on almost any screen connected to the internet, it immediately starts asking something from you?

Watch this. Click that. Play this. Respond here. React now!

And it’s not even random. It kind of knows you, what makes you hesitate, making you anxious, and it keeping you scrolling.

At first, it can feel useful. But often it quietly drains your focus, and emotional energy.

For me, it's starting to feel almost painful to lie down to sleep and not open my phone. Maybe you opened your device compulsively, or perhaps with a clear goal in mind. And depending on how tired or vulnerable you are that day, the outcome can range from mild friction… to losing several hours down a rabbit hole that leaves you oddly tense and unfocused, wondering what happened.

And it’s frustrating that it’s not something we can just turn off, or reject the internet altogether. There’s still a lot of great stuff on the internet (like our own CG Boost content 😜).

As much as I've tried in my personal life, I don’t have the answer on how to combat something as massive as the internet, and the multibillion-dollar companies that run the platforms we use daily.

But I can share what has immensely helped me:

• Every once in a while, create for the sake of creating. Just enjoy the clicking sounds, the polys moving, and the samples… umm, sampling! Just remind yourself sometimes of the joy of just doing, and take back some of your attention and time.
• Spend 70-80% of your creative time offline or on online safe zones. For example in Blender, you are in near complete control of all information and goals presented to you, the tool is made to serve you and your creativity 100%. Find tools and apps with clear goals and transparency that serve your own goals as well. I also use Notion. I read books and play mostly single player games that are designed to be enriching instead of addictive. I tend to avoid shock value too, I’ll come back to that later.
• When you do go online to the “wilderness” of YouTube, Discord, Twitter, etc. First, know that there is real value there, but it’s dangerous, and it’s only a matter of seconds before the algorithm tries to hook you. Think of a clear goal before you go, accomplish the goal and leave, then set a new goal. My wife and I often tell each other what we want to do online, and give each other permission to yoink each other out if it seems like we are wasting time. Overall, don’t let these platforms feed you whatever they want; do your best to decide what you are doing beforehand, then go back to a safe zone, like the CG Boost Community, or a paper notebook. (If you have played Arc Raiders, just picture that, you’ll know what I mean).
• Fast social media regularly. Pick a few days, weeks, or a month when you are disconnected from social media; it helps you recenter, and when you do go online, you are less vulnerable. You won’t be missing out on much, really.

As you are rebelling and taking back more of your time and creative brain power, that leads me to another point.

What I mean by “Great 3D art doesn’t always need to deconstruct”

I want to encourage you to consider intentionally pushing back against a creative trend that’s quietly becoming default.

This point feels a bit more fresh and will take me longer to explain:

There’s a growing assumption that for 3D art to feel impactful or “deep,” it has to lean almost entirely toward deconstruction. I see this pattern not just in 3D, but across films, games, and streaming content as well.

It often shows up as an escalation:

• Violence is becoming increasingly graphic.
• Characters defined primarily by trauma or psychological damage.
• The human form is pushed toward distortion rather than coherence.
• Sexuality is framed as aggressive and transactional.
• Suffering is shown in more explicit and prolonged ways.
• Innocence is treated as naïve or unserious.
• Spirituality dismissed as outdated or irrelevant.
• Wonder and mystery lead to disappointment.
• Etc.

And to be clear, I believe darkness, tragedy, and decay can be very fascinating parts of art. The issue is when they become automatic.

I think some artists, in a genuine attempt to stay relevant, end up following this trend, sometimes intentionally, sometimes without even realizing it. And to be fair, it does work in the short term. It gets attention & creates impact.

But over time, it often leads to a negative cycle. When intensity becomes the main currency, you’re forced to keep escalating it, chasing an audience that’s gradually becoming more desensitized. And in the process, there’s a real risk of becoming numb yourself.

If you do want to explore dark themes, I think there’s a simple rule worth holding onto:

The heavier and more deconstructive the subject, the more care, skill, and intention it demands.

Otherwise, it easily slips into shock value, intense on the surface, but shallow underneath.

Difficult themes aren’t a shortcut to depth. In fact, they require more restraint, not less. It’s usually better to approach them once you’ve developed enough craft to handle them responsibly, when you can suggest rather than overstate, and trust the audience instead of trying to force a reaction.

And just as importantly, if you’re going to take people somewhere dark, you need to have something worth saying. Darkness on its own isn’t insight. It only becomes meaningful when it gives suffering meaning, dignity, and direction.

A recent example of this, one my wife and I genuinely enjoyed watching together, and she isn’t into anime, is the series Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End.

On the surface, it’s gentle and understated. But the show can feel like a direct answer to the deconstructive trend. It deals with time, regret, death, deep trauma, and the weight of memory in a way that feels deeply human.

It doesn’t avoid darkness at all; it just doesn’t sensationalize it.

The emotional impact comes from restraint, structure, and trust in the audience.

That approach might not always be the loudest. But it tends to stay with people far longer and more deeply. As artists, I think that’s something worth paying attention to.

Also, I’m not saying this is the only way to approach mature subjects, but man, this show was refreshing in a time where so much feels shocking and dark on the surface, with very little depth.

If you’re still early on your journey, I’d recommend setting less ambitious goals in your subjects and themes, but taking those few ideas seriously, and doing them well.

My main point is depth doesn’t require extremity. You can explore quiet moments, simple emotions, or familiar situations and still say something meaningful.

A believable expression, or a character that feels internally consistent, often carries more weight than layers of trauma or spectacle added too early.

Working this way lets you focus on fundamentals: form, anatomy, lighting, composition, and storytelling clarity. And as your skills grow, so does your ability to handle heavier themes with care. Darkness, when it’s earned, tends to emerge naturally, not because it was forced in, but because the work could support it.

There’s no rush to prove seriousness through intensity. Your art skills mature over time, and themes tend to deepen alongside it. If you build that foundation first, you’ll be able to explore more of you later, and do it in a way that respects both the subject and the audience.

Thank you for reading until here. These subjects have been weighing on my mind for a couple of years, and I hope in sharing what has helped me, it can also help you on your creative journey.

All the best,

~Alan