
Editor's note: This post is part of our weekly In the NVIDIA Studio series, which celebrates featured artists, offers creative tips and tricks, and demonstrates how NVIDIA Studio technology improves creative workflows.
Principal NVIDIA artist and 3D expert Michael Johnson creates highly detailed art that's both technically impressive and emotionally resonant. It's evident in his latest piece, Father-Son Collaboration, which draws on inspiration from the vivid imagination of his son and is highlighted this week In the NVIDIA Studio.
I love how art can bring joy and great memories to others - great work makes me feel special to be a human and an artist, said Johnson. Art can flip people's perspectives and make them feel something completely different.
Learn about OpenUSD and Omniverse at SIGGRAPH, which will feature hands-on labs, special events and demo booths, and don't miss NVIDIA founder and CEO Jensen Huang's keynote address on Tuesday, Aug. 8, at 8 a.m. PT. Young minds inspire generations of artists. The story behind this piece is that I simply wanted to inspire my son and teach him how things can be perceived - how people can be inspired by others' art, said Johnson, who could tell that his son - a doodler himself - often considered his own artwork not good enough.
I wanted to show him what I saw in his art and how it inspired me, Johnson said.
Through this project, Johnson also aimed to demonstrate the NVIDIA Studio-powered workflows of art studios and concept artists across the world.
This creature is living its best life. NVIDIA RTX GPU technology plays a pivotal role in accelerating Johnson's creativity. As an artist, I care about quick feedback and stability, he said. My NVIDIA A6000 RTX graphics card speeds up the rendering process so I can quickly iterate.
For Father-Son Collaboration, Johnson first opened Autodesk Maya to model the creature's basic 3D shapes. His GPU-accelerated viewport enabled fast, interactive 3D modeling.
https://blogs.nvidia.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/week68-mj-maya-recording-1280w-sm.mp4
Next, he imported models into ZBrush for further sculpting, freestyling and details. After I had my final sculpt down, I took the model into Rizom-Lab IV software to lay out the UVs, Johnson said. UV mapping is the process of projecting a 3D model's surface to a 2D image for texture mapping. It makes the model easier to texture and shade later in the creative workflow.
https://blogs.nvidia.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/week68-mj-zbrush-recording-1280w-sm.mp4
Johnson then used Adobe Substance 3D Painter to apply standard and custom textures and shaders on the character.
Substance 3D Painter is really great because it displays the final look of the textures without bringing it into an external renderer, said Johnson.
His GPU unlocked RTX-accelerated light and ambient occlusion baking, optimizing assets in mere seconds.
https://blogs.nvidia.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/week68-mj-painter-recording-1280w-sm.mp4
With the textures complete, Johnson imported his models back into Autodesk Maya for hair, grooming, lighting and rendering. For the hair and fur, the artist used XGen, Autodesk Maya's built-in instancing tool. Autodesk Maya also offers third-party support of GPU-accelerated renderers such as Chaos V-Ray, OTOY OctaneRender and Maxon Redshift.
Redshift is great - and having a great GPU makes renders really quick, Johnson added. Redshift's RTX-accelerated final-frame rendering with AI-powered OptiX denoising exported files with plenty of time to spare.
Johnson put the final touches on Father-Son Collaboration in Adobe Photoshop. With access to over 30 GPU-accelerated features, such as blur gallery, object selection, perspective warp and more, he applied the background and added minor touch-ups to complete the piece.
https://blogs.nvidia.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/week68-mj-photoshop-recording-1280w-sm.mp4
The joy, awe and wonderment he'd hoped to invoke in his son came to fruition when Johnson finally shared the piece.
From a son's concept to a father's creation. Art is one of the rare things in life that really has no end goal - as it's really about the process, rather than the result, Johnson said. Every day, you learn something new, grow and see things in different ways.
Principal NVIDIA artist and 3D expert Michael Johnson. Check out Johnson's portfolio on Instagram.
Follow NVIDIA Studio on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook. Access tutorials on the Studio YouTube channel and get updates directly in your inbox by subscribing to the Studio newsletter.
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
09/10/2026
September 10 2026, 06:00 (PDT) Dolby Expands Dolby OptiView Platform with New Capabilities at IBC 2026
New Sports Intelligence helps providers better unders...
07/10/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, today announced the latest Long-Term Supported (LTS) release of Dalet Flex. Build...
23/09/2026
Four control rooms support B1G+ streams, videoboard shows, creative content, and...
23/09/2026
By Andrew Cohen, SVG Coorespondant
The Mountain West debuted its new Replay Operations Center at the start of this football season, bringing real-time collabor...
23/09/2026
The Taylorville, IL, native is pushing creative boundaries at Ball State, gaining reps across directing, technical directing, tape, and more than 100 ESPN+ broa...
23/09/2026
Alexander Heller, Nevada Jose, Will Brill, and Giselle Bonilla pose with cast members at The Musical premiere during the 2026 Sundance Film Festival at Eccles...
23/09/2026
Includes natural and processed patches
The Crow Hill Company's latest sample library captures a children's choir comprising a troupe of boys perform...
23/09/2026
Plug-in offers six bands of saturation
Kreuzberg Audio's product range includes a selection of plug-ins and virtual instruments aimed primarily at hard-...
23/09/2026
Latest DAW update now live
SoundBridge have announced that the latest update for the remote-collaboration-focused DAW is now available. The release of Sound...
23/09/2026
Koori Knockout returns home exclusively to NITV and SBS On Demand in 2026
11 September, 2026
Media releases
Fans can catch all the live action exclusively ...
23/09/2026
Rohde & Schwarz acquires NEOSAT and PHYTRONIC and strengthens its competencies i...
23/09/2026
1. ABOUT THE PROGRAMME
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF) invites applications from experienced producers who own or manage a South African product...
23/09/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF) is pleased to announce the opening...
23/09/2026
Download Now!
To receive a short case study showcasing NHK Technologies, Inc. (NT) s audio setup, please enter the following details:
--
First Name* Fir...
23/09/2026
Nielsen CMI data reveals a changing fast-food landscape, with value, convenience...
23/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
23/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
23/09/2026
COW Jobs: Blender on Windows - Generalist - Remote
Brie Clayton September 23, 2026
0 Comments
Application Users - Blender on Windows - Generalist
Se...
23/09/2026
Version 1.8 recognised for new workflow tools, boosted control panel flexibility and ease of integration into IP networks...
23/09/2026
Hiltron Communications reports a successful 2026 International Broadcasting Convention, held at the RAI Amsterdam. Exhibiting on stand A37 in Hall 1, Hiltron ex...
23/09/2026
Reinforcing its long-term commitment to the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) broadcast market, LiveU is presenting the Q Era at CABSAT 2026, on Stand H1-D35 ...
23/09/2026
Agence France-Presse (AFP), a global news agency, and Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, today announced a partnersh...
23/09/2026
Berklee Connect Unlocks the Power of a Global Network Katie Vitolins BM '04 knows firsthand what Berklee's alumni community can make possible. Now she...
23/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
23/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
23/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
23/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
23/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
23/09/2026
Westminster Schools, a K through 12 school in Atlanta, Georgia with approximately 2,000 students, has transformed its student broadcast and digital storytelling...
23/09/2026
The 2026 edition of CABSAT and SATExpo may have a new home and dates in the diary, but it still retains a strong presence from UK companies in the GREAT Britain...
23/09/2026
Glensound will return to CABSAT with new developments in professional monitoring and Dante interfacing, alongside its established commentary, esports and parlia...
23/09/2026
A great watch - Radio Times
TV's most likeable proper bloke - Daily Telegraph
23rd September 2026, London: Guy Martin returns to free streaming service...
23/09/2026
Wednesday 23 September 2026
Sky Sports to show England Men's tour of South ...
23/09/2026
Comscore Partners with datafuelX to Bring Seamless Currency Adoption Into a Comp...
23/09/2026
Luxembourg, 23 September 2026 - SES today announced the appointment of Mr. Michel Scholer, Secretary General of the Luxembourg Government and Chief of Staff to ...
23/09/2026
RT One and RT Player, Friday 25 September
Ceol le Ch ile, a new series that follows Irish artists as they collaborate with musicians from diverse background...
23/09/2026
Available now on RT Listen
New information has come to light in the case of mi...
23/09/2026
When Sakeena Fiza describes her work as a validation engineer at NVIDIA, she does so in terms more befitting a detective story than a world-class engineering la...
22/09/2026
From Malaysia to Mexico and from DR Congo to Ukraine, this year's 12 finalists for the 2026 Thomson Foundation Young Journalist of the Year award tell extra...
22/09/2026
The annual preseason content-gathering event brought 36 NHL players to Las Vegas, where ESPN used 2.5 kilowatts of laser power and a motion-control camera syste...
22/09/2026
Neumann has introduced the KK 104 A (cardioid) and KK 105 A (supercardioid) wireless capsule heads, succeeding the KK 204 and KK 205. The new capsules are compa...
22/09/2026
The NFL and TMRW Sports have announced a new annual Pro Flag Showcase to be held during Super Bowl LXI week in Los Angeles. The event will feature top flag foot...
22/09/2026
Washington State University has unveiled a new end zone video display and audio ...
22/09/2026
Disney's SVP of Live Operations and Engineering details the technology behin...
22/09/2026
Cosm has announced two senior promotions. Mazen Alawar has been promoted to SVP,...
22/09/2026
Mississippi State University's University Television Center has purchased four KOKUSAI DENKI SK-UHD7000-S2 cameras since 2024, with plans to add two more, a...
22/09/2026
Net Insight has announced that Christine Kjellvard will assume the role of interim Chief Financial Officer on November 1, 2026. Kjellvard has previously held in...
22/09/2026
Net Insight has announced Zyntai TimeNode Access, a compact PTP Grandmaster designed for distributed edge sites. The product carries secure, precise time across...
22/09/2026
Sam Hazeldine, Austin Amelio, Padraic McKinley, Julia Jones, and Ethan Hawke attend the premiere of The Weight at The Ray Theatre on January 26, 2026, in Park...