Community Spotlight: Dana Nicole

This month’s Community Spotlight shines a light on Dana Nicole, a talented digital artist! A fan of Metroid since 2009, Dana’s art focuses on Samus outside of her Power Suit, as well as her former commander Adam Malkovich. Dana shares how she fell in love with Metroid, and how she hopes her work will increase interest in the series.

Dana Nicole

Hello! My name is Dana and I am a traditional and digital artist who has been drawing for about 20 years. I studied Studio Art in college, but have since expanded to doing a lot of digital art. My favorite traditional mediums are pencil and ink, and I use an iPad Pro for my digital illustrations. I enjoy drawing people and their emotions, so that is the centerpiece of most of my art. Nowadays, I have less time to draw, but when I do have time, I still find myself drawing Metroid fanart! In 2019 I started my own Etsy shop where I sell some of my Metroid creations, such as keychains, stickers, and pins. In the future, I hope to have more time to draw, to expand my online presence, and to introduce more fans to the Metroid series!

I have been obsessed with Metroid ever since 2009 when I played my first Metroid game, Metroid Fusion. Watching the cinematic trailers for Other M at that time also helped pique my interest because I had never seen a Nintendo game that looked so much like a movie! I was determined to beat as many Metroid games as I could before Other M’s release. I was able to beat Fusion, Zero Mission, Super Metroid, and play through parts of other Metroid games all within that timeframe. Since then, I have beaten several other Metroid games, and have also read the Metroid manga. Metroid means so much to me, and I can’t imagine where I would be artistically without it, as it was and is one of my biggest inspirations.

In my art, I primarily focus on the Samus under the armor, because that is the character I fell in love with so many years ago. I like to draw Samus in her Zero Suit, in her civilian clothing from Other M, or sometimes in outfits that I come up with myself. I also really enjoy drawing Adam Malkovich, as he is one of my favorite characters from the Metroid series. As I mentioned before, I think one of my biggest dreams is that my Metroid fanart will draw new fans to the Metroid series. Moving forward, I hope to grow and improve in both my fan art and original art!

Our Thoughts

RoyboyX

Dana’s drawings of Samus are some of the best I’ve seen. They are vibrant, detailed and tasteful, a refreshing change from what usually comes up when you search for Zero Suit Samus art. I especially appreciate how each of the pieces she contributed to this Spotlight pay tribute to several of the series’ endings, and the inclusion of Adam Malkovich, a neglected character in Metroid fanart. Thank you to Dana for taking part in this Spotlight! I can’t wait to see what you create next.