Nerd Horror Artist Spotlight: Plastiboo
by Rachel Liebowitz
Plastiboo (@plastiboo on Instagram) is primarily a digital freelance artist based in Spain. They are best known for the variety of horror illustrations they post online, but also for published work that includes cover illustrations for music artists as well as multiple books centered around world building with Hollow Press. As of writing this, Plastiboo has two books out, Vermis I and Vermis II. While their focus has shifted over time, they’re mostly inspired by J-Horror and video games. Themes that Plastiboo’s wide portfolio of artwork touch upon include but are not limited to transformation, death, consciousness, and things that are ancient. Their work is incredibly surreal, and is imbued with emotion that is almost indescribable.
Some of Plastiboo’s work has been compared to early-era Playstation games, and the aspects of those inspirations are clear. Some games in the PS1 and PS2 era gave off an air of uneasiness, and even if some of these games were not intended to be horror, they were creepy nonetheless. The rendering is both pixelated and incredibly detailed, feeling like old point-and-clicks that one knows has more beneath the surface.
Their work tends to vary in focus. While older pieces were video game-inspired, newer ones lean more into dark-fantasy. But it is incredible the amount of detail that Plastiboo utilizes in every single piece of work, regardless of whether rendered to be more pixelated or more painterly. Adding to and amplifying the horror—besides rendering alone—is Plastiboo’s color palette. It’s not neutral, but Plastiboo tends to gravitate towards a muted palette that varies in its swatches depending on the piece. Most notably though are yellows, greens, and browns, which make the utilization of other colors outside of the palette, including white, stick out more, drawing the eye.
Sometimes, Plastiboo’s style of people tows the line between cute and horror, creating a compelling contrast. Their more recent work, though, is near unexplainable in the way their detailing adds so many layers to a piece. Tiny details, winding “branches”, lines that are used in every aspect and subject in artwork, turn their art from regular horror to something that almost feels as if their pieces are breathing, are alive. While yes, sometimes less is more in horror, Plastiboo’s work is a clear example of how impactful a high level of detail in every facet amplifies the fear that it was already being created and shown to the audience.
