Creator Spotlight: Interview with Saturn – Artist & “The Founding Father of Negrofication”
Hello, beautiful readers! Happy Halloween (yes, October is Halloween. Don’t argue), and welcome to the first of many “creator spotlight” interviews. This time around, I reached out to artist & character designer, Saturn! I came across Saturn’s art on Twitter as a result of seeing his redraw of Asuka from Neon Genesis Evangelion accompanied by the caption “Negrofication Beam–!”.
Shortly after, I began to see other Black artists joining in, posting Black redraws and fanart of their favorite non-Black characters. It appeared that the popularity of Saturn’s take on Asuka resulted in the “Negrofication Beam” art challenge.
I can understand some people taking issue with the name, but I personally appreciate its cheekiness as well as the sentiment behind it, particularly as someone who is passionate about diversity in media representation (and someone who just really loves fanart). Intrigued by both the art itself and the colorful term used, I decided to reach out Saturn for an interview.
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Tell me about yourself (age, background, pronouns, general “about me” information – but only what you’re comfortable sharing!).
My name is Saturn, I’m a 23 y/o Black Carribean Transmasc (he/him), from Belizean and Nevisian Background, and I’ve been drawing for well over 15 years. I’ve been drawing since I was 9, and started getting serious around 13! I usually draw a plethora of characters showcasing different aspects of blackness, from different backgrounds, all around the world.
What inspired you to create the “negrofication beam” trend/art challenge?
I have to give a huge shoutout to my pal Erik (@bikenesmith on Twitter) for making the negrofication beam image! Basically I’ve been drawing your faves being Black since 2014, right after the first blackout started. I used to be a smaller artist on Tumblr, drawing various video game characters as Black doing Black things. It brought me euphoria, as a Black Caribbean person from a poor neighborhood, and it made a lot of people from the same background feel seen, so yeah!) I started making a name for myself in the Kirby gijinka fandom, and it wasn’t until negroficiation beam meme started, and seeing my inspirations jump on it, that I started drawing more well-known characters, and there you have it!
Walk me through the thought process from your brain to the tweets!
Oh lord, What brain… LOL tbf I just say whatever, but if it’s the characters themselves, I kinda started getting big so I’m a bit more ‘professional’ if you can call it that, but I still like giving a solid description to my artwork. When I start on a negroification beam tweet, I usually look for characters I can definitely see rock a particular hairstyle.
How long have you been creating art, and what inspired you to become a character designer?
A veeery long time, like I said prior, I’ve been drawing for a longer period of time than I haven’t, it’s not until I started becoming a gijinka artist when I felt confident enough to call myself a character designer. I feel alot happier designing characters, utilizing different aspects of their character into the design, and creating a piece that will make people say: oh shit, it’s that character!
What’s your favorite piece you’ve created so far?
My favorite piece from the meme has to be The Rei Ayanami (Neon Genesis Evangelion, 1995) one. Rei is a huge comfort character of mine, ever since I was an angsty quiet teen, So drawing her looking like me brought me pure joy! It’s not the most popular piece, but it’s the one that means a lot to me. There isn’t a lot of love for the quiet, cold-at-first-appearance characters, So I connected to this particular character first. This scene shows her smiling for the first time on screen, and It was a very special part to me, as for other anime fans, So I just had to recreate it!
What advice can you give to fellow artists concerning how they handle racial diversity in their art?
I think there’s different perspectives on how one can write a genuine Black character, But one advice I would definitely give is to have a group of Black readers/creators/editors on you if you can. Sensitivity readers are important, your Black fans are even more important. Find someone who’s Black, who’s lived to tell our story and support them, allow them to have a voice. This challenge is fun and refreshing, but it also shines a light on the lack of Black characters in animation, and that different aspects of our culture are taken into anime and either appropriated or demonized. This challenge shows that any character can be Black, can be a leading role, can be a game and anime protagonist. We can be katana-wielding swordsmen, magical girls, witches, superheroes, ninjas, children of gods, even gods ourselves in these imaginative worlds. Walking into a Black space and expecting to create a perfect story if you’re not Black is impossible, but what non-Black artists can do is make sure we’re including these topics, so that a good story or anime is made properly, and with good intentions.
Is there anything else you want to share or would like people to know about you?
Oh goodness, I’m pretty sure that’s it. I do a lot of Nintendo art and draw a lot of Black Nintendo characters, including Kirby, so if you’re a cool Kirby fan, I’m your guy.
Any social media or websites you’d like to promote?
I’m very much on Twitter (Taranzaswig) & Tumblr (Magoloranlaunch)!
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And that’s all! Shoutout to Saturn for allowing me to interview him, and for creating such awesome art! Additionally, shoutout to talented artist Erik, aka “Bikenesmith” for creating the “Negrofication Beam” meme; be sure to check him out on social media as well!
Additionally, shoutout to readers for, you know, reading! Be sure to subscribe to my mailing list if you’re into nerdy pop culture, cosplay, and the occasional spicy hot take.
~DeLa Doll
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DeLa Doll is a culture writer, cosplayer, and artist based in Florida. She has been writing professionally since 2016, with some of her work being featured on sites like HuffPo and /Film. She is an advocate for meaningful diversity and representation in media, a gamer, a mom, and an avid user of DIY hair dye.
