Artist Information
Name: Federico Bertozzi
Cards created: 61 - Caudipteryx Zoui, 81 - Sinosauropteryx Prima
Primary techniques: Digital painting
Paleo-artistic period: Renaissance
Historical period: Early Cretaceous
This is your first time collaborating with Tomodachi Press. How did you first get in touch?
“Yes, it’s the very first time. In fact, it’s one of the first collaborations of my life. Before this commission, I knew very little about Tomodachi Press, but I have a friend—without whom I wouldn’t be here answering this question—who has always been very passionate about their products. One evening, knowing how much I love illustrations, he privately sent me a story from Dario in which he was looking for artists for a new project.
I still had no idea what it was about, but the idea of taking part in an unknown project with many other artists excited me enormously. The next day I sent in my portfolio, and that same evening I received the confirmation email, which I had to read a couple of times before realizing that I was actually in.
The memory that stayed with me most vividly concerns the Telegram group I was added to: I was amazed to see among the members the names of some absolutely incredible artists whose names, before then, I had only read at the bottom of Magic: The Gathering cards.”
Release the creatures: Dinosaurs! was created under the artistic supervision of Dario Moccia, as well as the scientific supervision of Zoosparkle. How stimulating was this dual review process?
“Since I’m at the beginning of my professional career, I don’t have much basis for comparison, but as a beginner I can say that the speed and precision I saw in every response from both of them were incredibly useful in helping me take my first steps and understand how to work as part of a team.
Until now, I had always painted mainly out of passion. The only feedback I asked for came from my brother and my partner, who aren’t easy people to please, but with Dario and Willy we were playing in a completely different league!””
For the set, you created 2 cards, both from the Renaissance paleo-artistic period. Looking through your Instagram profile, there seems to be a leaning toward fantasy settings and subjects. How did you find creating these creatures, which are so "far" from your style?
“Well, more than with the creatures themselves, I found it a little difficult to work with the painterly style assigned to me. I needed more than a couple of pointers from Dario to properly understand the direction to take: those strong contrasts and sharply defined blacks are somewhat outside my usual style, but that was also the beauty of the journey.
As for the subjects, I didn’t have any particular problems: in my mind, dinosaurs are mythological creatures that really existed. It was like painting two dragons... with a lot of rules!”
Let’s take a closer look at the individual cards: number 61 depicts two Caudipteryx Zoui facing off, ready to fight in a sort of natural arena, with a nest and broken eggs beneath one of their feet. How did you come up with the idea for this scene?
“The initial idea and the final result are often very different. At first, I had imagined a horizontal composition, with one specimen shown from behind, about to engage in a fight. The specimen facing the viewer was only there to provide information about the dinosaur’s appearance.
After some corrections from Dario regarding the composition, viewpoint, and distance between the two specimens in order to make the best use of the space on the card, the nest appeared. It was essential for giving the scene some context. Among the foliage behind the specimen facing the viewer, I also wanted to add the head of the hatchling that had been inside the opened egg, almost invisible, simply because it seemed to me that the dinosaur was defending something: a pile of eggshell fragments wasn’t enough!”
Let’s continue with number 81, which in my opinion is a stunning card, depicting a group of Sinosauropteryx Prima fighting over a small prey animal beneath an almost divine backlight. What inspired this piece?
“Aaaah, I really had fun with this one! I had a great deal of material on these specimens: from their remains, it was possible to determine the color of their plumage and the fact that they fed on these lizards. Willy was keen for the illustration to include a hunting scene or otherwise feature this prey animal.
I chose the hunting scene, inspired by the pose in which one of the fossils was found, which I wanted to transpose onto the specimen about to catch the lizard. I then wanted to heighten the contrast between such a frantic moment and the charm of the little lizard, making this grotesque scene forcibly poetic and sacred.”
If you could choose another dinosaur and a paleo-artistic period to interpret for a new card in a timeshifted style, which would you choose?
“Of course, my gut reaction would have been Spinosaurus, a classic. But thinking about it more carefully, perhaps I would have loved to create an Ankylosaurus in a Renaissance style, tough and violent!”
How has your perspective on the world of dinosaurs evolved after this project?
“Less than you might think! Even with all the information I’ve learned and the fossils that have been discovered, it still seems incredible to me that animals like these existed. I still see them the way I did as a child.
P.S. I refuse to accept that the Pterodactyl isn’t a dinosaur. It’s a bit like Pluto being demoted to dwarf planet status!”
Before we say goodbye, is there anything you would like to say to the collectors reading this?
“Of course, I’d like to thank them. As I gradually try to turn my passion into a profession, I truly realize that without people like them, who appreciate and love our work, we would be forced to settle for a real job!
Obviously, I’m joking, but that’s the point: if I can have the ambition and satisfaction of working on projects of this caliber, it’s only because there are people on the other side willing to invest in art.”
Federico Bertozzi’s favorites
- Layout: Modern Period
- Paleo-artistic period: Postmodern Period
- Historical period: Late Cretaceous
- Favorite card in the set: Maip Macrothorax by Nicola Saviori
- Artists: Nicola Saviori, Lorenzo Lanfranconi, Domenico Cava, Mirko Failoni, Francesco Mazziotta, Ivan Bigarella
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