Senior Environment Artist

At Velan Studios, we foster a culture of curiosity. Our games embrace diversity and are fueled by the adventurous spirit of our team. We are the creative minds behind titles like Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit, Knockout City, and Hot Wheels Rift Rally, and our journey continues! Our studio's mission is to pioneer groundbreaking gaming experiences and reimagine play in new ways. We're committed to pushing the boundaries of traditional gaming, blurring the lines between reality and fantasy, and revolutionizing the industry one game at a time. Velan Studios consists of a team of remote, hybrid, and onsite professionals, with hybrid and onsite team members operating from our Troy, NY office.

We are seeking a Environment Artist who has the skillset and passion to create art in a realistic style for our newest project. You will be creating work for the Unreal Engine, as well as implementing and problem-solving with the team. There is a small group of Environment Artists that you will work with on a daily basis but it will not necessarily be guiding them in a management capacity.

At Velan we pride ourselves in moving with conviction and precision, and would like to bring on an artist who succeeds in a well sustained, fast-paced environment. Everyone has a seat at the table here and we want your voice to shine! If you are an experienced Environment Artist full of curiosity and a passion for crafting engaging, eye-catching visuals, we want to hear from you.

Besides your ability to make great art, here are some of the key items we are looking for from you:

Responsibilities:

The responsibilities of this role include, but are not limited to:

• Build high definition, game ready models, materials, and world geometry.
  
• Collaborate with the Art Director, Game Designers, and Programmers to ensure art assets are high-quality, support the artistic direction of our projects, and are fully optimized for target platforms.
• Engage in R&D efforts on new techniques and technologies to implement into our production pipeline.
• Receive feedback and modify work based on direction.
• Work with the Art Director to develop and maintain a pipeline tailored for our Environment Art team.
• Be proactive in problem-solving, cross-discipline brainstorming, and have the ability to represent the Environment Art team in appropriate meetings throughout project production cycles.
• Provide mentoring and feedback to artists of all levels.

Requirements

• 5+ years of industry experience as an Environment Artist or other relevant experience.
• A full understanding of the Unreal world building tools
• Fully able to implement their work into a chosen engine and completely understands how their work affects the pipeline
• Able to model both hard and soft surface assets
• Knowledge of PBR shaders as well as cinematic lighting and cinematography
• Strong Understanding of art foundations and techniques such as lighting, composition, color theory, and staging.
• Strong understanding of physically-based rendering and NPR shader techniques.
• Mastery of 3d modeling with Maya (or equivalent 3d modeling software).
• Expert in both Substance Designer and Painter.
• Proficiency with ZBrush (or equivalent sculpting software)
• Solid technical art understanding better work with our engineering team.
• Strong communication and organizational skills.
• Self-direction, passion, and creativity in your work.
• A receptiveness to feedback and the ability to act successfully on direct critique.

Additional Qualifications

• Experience or skill in one or more additional disciplines (character, vfx, level design, etc.).
  
• Ability to create from your own ideas, not just from pre-existing concept art.
• Past AAA game experience
• Shipped 3+ games

The salary for this position is typically within the range specified below* per year. Please note that the actual base pay may vary based on factors such as your qualifications, skills, experience, and other relevant considerations.

In addition to your salary, our comprehensive compensation package includes various perks, such as potential annual bonuses (though they are not guaranteed), health, dental, vision, life, and disability insurance, a retirement savings plan, paid holidays, and flexible time-off benefits.

*$75,000 - $130,000