Akai Yona — Bio

My name is Akai Yona. I'm an artist, writer, and worldbuilder, using digital tools to create images, places, and stories of my own.

I started working in 3D in 2016. Over time, it became the main tool behind my visual work rather than the limit of it. In 2022, I began moving away from conventional 3D art and toward something more stylized, combining 3D with painting, compositing, and other digital techniques. By 2026, I had developed my own approach to digital illustration, using 3D to create work that feels closer to traditional 2D art. My influences include Gustave Doré, Kentaro Miura, Giovanni Battista Piranesi, Q Hayashida, Tsutomu Nihei, and others.

Right now, most of my work is centered around Under Fallen Gods, a mature dark-fantasy graphic novel set in a brutal, decaying world where faith, violence, power, superstition, and survival are woven into everyday life.

It follows people living beneath the shadow of old powers, broken religions, ruined kingdoms, and forces they do not fully understand. The world is harsh and deeply human, filled with war, exploitation, cruelty, desire, intimacy, poverty, belief, fear, and the constant struggle to survive without losing whatever remains of yourself.

The story is raw and uncensored. It does not soften the uglier parts of its world, and it does not separate beauty from brutality. Violence can be sudden and ugly, sexuality can be uncomfortable or intimate, faith can inspire or destroy, and people are rarely cleanly good or evil.

At its core, Under Fallen Gods is about people trying to find meaning, belonging, power, love, or simply a reason to keep going in a world shaped by things much larger than them.

I don't see 3D as the end product. It's part of a larger process I use to build worlds and tell stories, alongside whatever other visual tools the work calls for.

Outside of art, I'm someone who likes making things with his hands, enjoys nature, loves walking to clear his head, and would probably go camping a lot more often if bugs weren't a thing.

I enjoy simple things and a simple life. I don't really care about following some checklist of what I'm supposed to want, achieve, own, or become just because society says I should. I'd rather find small moments of happiness, live in a way that feels natural to me, and make choices because they actually mean something to me.

At the end of the day, I'm just trying to be myself. That's probably the simplest way to describe both how I live and how I create.

Art

Q & A

What tools do you use for your art?

A PC, a Huion drawing display, and occasionally good old paper and a scanner. Software-wise I use whatever the job needs. Blender for 3D, shading, texturing, animation and rendering. Substance Painter when Blender isn't enough. Photoshop and Clip Studio for painting. After Effects for compositing, post-FX and motion graphics. DaVinci Resolve for video editing. FL Studio for music. Autodesk Fusion 360 for CAD and hard surface modeling. And more.

Why do you mimic 2D with 3D?

Honestly? Because I suck at drawing. I originally started with 3D after learning Autodesk Maya in college, and I already had CAD experience from studying Mechanical Engineering. It just clicked. 3D gives me more freedom and creativity, especially with shading. And the reason I went stylized is because I like it more. It's more expressive, it lets you dramatize everything, and it feels more special than just trying to look realistic.

What got you into art and writing your own stories?

I was always into art indirectly but never really chased it until 2016. At some point it just made sense to use something I actually have a talent for. I've always been creative, mostly because I spent a lot of time with myself. As for writing my own stories, I think I reached a point where my art was good enough to put something out there with real meaning and value, rather than just posting random art. I'd rather build something around a purpose. Having something to chase and big ambitions, that matters to me.

What is your current goal?

Honestly? I just want to be happy. I want to be understood and break the cycle I'm stuck in by actually focusing on one thing. I genuinely believe I can pull it off and achieve something great with everything I'm working on right now. And ya boy just wants some extra bread, build his castle, live in peace and enjoy what he loves. I think we all deserve that.

Why not make an animated series?

Good question but no, at least not yet. I need a solid story first, build everything around it, and improve on what I'm still lacking in terms of animation skills. It's going to take time and I don't want to hire people for it. I want to create the whole thing myself.

Can you make tutorials and teach your artstyle?

No tutorials, no courses. I'm not a teacher and it's never been something I want to do. Not my goal, not my interest. And honestly? You Korean fucks had the opportunity to get 20% of my knowledge for the first time and fumbled it. I will never work with any platform ever again.

No Patreon?

Same reason as the tutorials answer. Nothing to give, nothing to share. Sorry.

How many languages do you speak?

I speak Russian, Hebrew and English. If I need to I'll learn more.

Favorite anime?