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Poetter Hall was purchased by the SCAD founders in March 1979. Classes began in September of that year.  
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Trivial Pursuits

Trivial Pursuits
 
Osterberger fulfills childhood dream through illustration

Glen Osterberger
Photo by Wayne C. Moore 
The Chronicle art director Glen Osterberger showcases some of his fantasy, science fiction and role-playing illustrations in his home studio.

By Monique Bos
Published: Friday, September 23, 2005

While Glen Osterberger, award-winning art director of The Chronicle, spends his days making the paper visually appealing, he moonlights as an illustrator and creator of 3-D models for fantasy, science fiction and role-playing companies.

Osterberger, who graduated from the Savannah College of Art and Design in 1990 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in illustration, said he first became interested in pursuing freelance work as an employee of The Georgia Guardian, The Chronicle’s predecessor.

“I wanted to do it, and I saw people who used to work for me doing it,” he said. “I tried to get my foot in the door for a long time.”

Eventually, he became frustrated with his efforts to break into the industry, but he said a visiting lecturer at SCAD encouraged him to continue trying.

“A couple years ago, George Pratt came as a guest teacher for a quarter, and he inspired me to do some more stuff,” Osterberger said. “The next year at ComicCon, I managed to slightly get my foot in the door.”

Four years later, Osterberger’s résumé includes such clients as Alderac Entertainment Group, Steve Jackson Games and White Wolf, for whom he has illustrated collectible cards, role-playing books and other products.

He said he now feels established as a freelance artist. “I’m getting fairly regular calls back from my clients,” he said.

Each year, Osterberger attends at least three conventions — ComicCon in San Diego, GenCon in Indianapolis and DragonCon in Atlanta — to meet with art directors, present his work, and see the latest trends in the fantasy, sci-fi and role-playing worlds.

“It’s good networking,” he said. “I also get to talk to other artists.”

In addition, he said his freelance illustration career fulfills a childhood dream.

“It allows me to do stuff that I dreamt about when I was a kid — just drawing fun things such as orcs and trolls and knights in shining armor and space aliens,” he said. “And I get paid for it!”

He also creates 3-D character models for Poser, a software program designed primarily for hobbyists, which allows users to manipulate forms to reference movement.

“It’s Barbie for artists,” he said. “It was an illustrative aid that allowed me not to have to jump up and down in front of a mirror to get a reference.”

In addition to professional artists for such companies as DC Comics, Poser targets creative people who may lack drawing skills, he said.

“It’s a quick reference solution for people that don’t have time to model everything for themselves,” he said. “It’s [also] for people that have never really learned how to draw … They’re finally being able to envision their characters as they want them but could never draw them before.”

While Osterberger’s job at the Guardian entailed various styles of illustration, his work at The Chronicle focuses more on design and layout. Nonetheless, he said, some of the principles overlap between his day and night jobs.

“I’m using the artistic eye that I’ve established from taking classes at SCAD,” he said. “Visually it’s a very different thing, but it’s still using a sense of style and design.”

To view samples of Osterberger’s work, visit www.glenosterberger.com.