Interview Fool's for the site Smileypad.com

What is your real name?

Fool: Virtually I would prefer to be called Fool . It's short, homey and close enough to my real nature.

Where are you in the world?

Fool: I've resided in Cleveland, Ohio, US, for some time now.

What tools do you use to create your emoticons?

Fool: Photoshop 7 and it's build-in animator - Adobe ImageReady.

What inspires you when making emoticons?

Fool: Most of them have appeared in buffonade (playin'fool) we used to make on our forum. The main inspiration for waves though comes from my favorite girl, who used to participate in such acts (and who I've called my wife for some time by now) and SpongeBob SquarePants.

Have you any formal training in computer art?

Fool: No, I haven't. Frankly speaking, I still keep bunch of books for dummies by my hand.

What got you started?

Fool: Curiosity. To see if I capable of doing things. Which, of course, could apply to pretty much everything I do.

And the hardest part is?

Fool: To make 15pixel-round feel alive, perhaps.

What software did you start with compared to what you use now, and why is it better?

Fool: I started with Adobe Photoshop and still stick with it. The main reason for such love... I'm too lazy to learn other gigs. Besides, I found Photoshop a simple and very advanced program at the same time, which is friendly to any level of users and have a lot to dig in.

What do you do 'outside' of the Internet?

Fool: I'm a violin maker.

What is your view on people that use your emoticons without permission?

Fool: I couldn't care less about permissions, copyrights and other stuff. I let smilies out of my head (to be honest, they are very annoying in this state:) - that's a goal. After that - they are on their own and free to go.

Who is your favorite emoticon artist other than yourself?

Fool: There are a lot of smilies out there I like which have been created by numbers of artists. Especially, I like those made by InDustReal - I actually feel things looking at them, isn't it the best reward for an emoticon maker?

What is your most favorite thing in the whole world?

Fool: Well...It's hard for me to isolate one or two things out of it without ruing the whole picture. Wise man said, there is no more or less important thing in the world around you. Everything equally important and equally nothing. And only the way you apply to it makes it so. I would prefer to treat things equally. Equally important.

Can you create a special emoticon just for EmotiPad?

Fool: I do not create smilies if creating means sitting in front of computer and giving a birth to ideas. They just come to me and demand themselves out. Of course, if any of them will fit EmotiPad family I'll gladly give them for adoption. At least I'll know - they are in good hands.

And finally, do you have any advice for emoticonists' out there?
Fool: Well...Have fun.

You can find the rest of Fool's work here: http://www.foolstown.com/.

Interviewed for Smileypad.com on 30 January 2004.