Check Out Alex (Tianyou) Wang’s Story

Today we’d like to introduce you to Alex (Tianyou) Wang

Hi Alex (Tianyou), can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
I grew up in northern China, where my hometown is famous for the rime ice on the willow trees in wintertime. Sometimes, I see myself as the river running through my childhood window: the only river in the north that doesn’t freeze. Just like the Songhua River, I had its stubbornness, resilience, and a big heart carrying me through the flow of life.

During my earlier years, despite my dislike for regular school assignments, it was to my heart’s content to sketch daily geometries in X-ray mode, and I bind them into little booklets. I dragged my mom to the local extracurricular art school, hoping they would make an exception to accept an underage artist. Since then, I have drawn for years using traditional mediums. There are some shining moments, such as winning the artwork competition held by the International Horticultural Expo or excelling in the logo and notebook cover design for my middle school. Pen and paper still have their limitations. At the time, my artistic adventure was plain and simple.

I spent high school in an IB program, where I was among the very few who chose high-level Math, Physics, and Art. Given that I spent most of my math classes drawing abstract tessellations, M.C. Escher very reasonably became my all-time favorite artist. I continued to draw, solve calculus problems without fully understanding their potential, and enjoy watching my handy little disk spin at some physics contests. Three years flashed by. I was dealt an interesting hand; there were so many possibilities, but I had to make a play.

As a game visual developer, I was pretty late to the party. You know the feeling when you are looking for something for ages only to find it in your hand the whole time? That’s what I felt when I discovered game engines during my sophomore year at Parsons. I instantly became a professional student in this subject, attending the college of YouTube and working three shifts all by myself just to learn the last bits and pieces of game development and computer graphics. Imagine a world where artistic expression can be made through the power of physics and math— a utopic world customized for me. After years of grinding, my work was recognized by Tencent Games, which granted me a full-time offer. My experience of making digital movies and immersive visual experiences has grown exponentially as I also enjoyed freelance work. The whole industry of tech art started to unfold right in front of me during the years I was completing my OPT, which made me believe my passion is to make good-looking pixels run fast on screens, carrying stories and inspiring countless individuals. So here we are—I am a freelance Technical Artist based in LA, preparing for the next step of my journey.

I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
I went to three different high schools, which is why I am always trying to build a sense of belonging. After all those years of moving and adapting, I started to find the answer within myself: building up my knowledge and strength. At the end of the day, I am the only asset I truly own. After graduating from college, I chose to complete my STEM OPT during the economic downtrend. It was a rough ride, but I have no regrets. I believe I am already on a resourceful platform where I can learn everything I need, and I consider myself lucky to have found my passion at an early age.

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
Sometimes, I describe my profession as the person standing between artists and programmers to make sure they don’t fight. This is what I do as an employee. If explained from the perspective of a digital artist: the human eye can only efficiently capture red, green, and blue light. Computers read the colors as numbers represented on each pixel. An exquisitely designed arrangement on the screen can tell stories and create an emotional connection. I enjoy using the knowledge of math and computer science to translate my imagination into virtual worlds that can inspire and entertain people. So, I say technical art is both my profession and my passion.

What I am most proud of is that every project I put my hands on became a milestone that brought me closer to my dream. I led the development of the indie game “Tale of Bagua.” After 48 hours of rapid prototyping and weeks of polishing, the demo is up on Steam, sponsored by USC Gaming. (Go check it out!) The development doesn’t stop here, as I created tools for my level designer and promoted new pipelines for optimization. I will ensure each step is solid for my projects to see the light of day. The same goes for my YouTube channel, where I share unique visual experiences driven by real-time rendering techniques. All of the baby steps are also documented on my website, so feel free to take a tour!

Do you have any advice for those just starting out?
1. Find an exciting subject that you would love to stay awake for at 4 am.
2. Learn everything about it. Watch every YouTube, follow every tutorial, and read every research paper.
3. Make something, again and again, until everything is part of your muscle memory.
4. Start to use version control software like Git ASAP.
5. Hold ‘alt’ while dragging the left mouse button to batch edit multiple lines in Visual Studio. (Learn all your application shortcuts!)
6. Have fun.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.alexwang.work/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@Alextianyouwang/videos
• Other: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2611590/Tale_of_BaGua/

Image Credits
Nix Du, Penny Che, Lili Cai