William Zolla (Arte Zolla) is a Boston-based scientist, illustrator, and emerging artist. His work uses imaginative realism to blend the real with the surreal and mythical, shaped by early obsessions with Magic: The Gathering and The Lord of the Rings, and by artists such as Brian Froud, Alan Lee, Rebecca Guay, Brom, Mark Tedin, H. R. Giger, the Hildebrandt brothers, Tony DiTerlizzi, and other classic fantasy illustrators. Grounded in close observation and research, he aims to ground creatures, characters, and places that feel believable.

After a decade primarily in digital media, he now centers analog sketchbooks and watercolor for the tactility and honesty of physical materials, while using digital media for concepting and vector design. A lifelong worldbuilder, he threads new pieces into an evolving story world he’s developed since childhood, exploring a full emotional range from the uplifting to the ominous. In parallel, Zolla has worked in biotech since 2010 and in gene therapy since 2014 (Dimension Therapeutics, acquired by Ultragenyx), specializing in analytical development and cell-based potency assays. He credits his process, style, and subject matter to his passion for science and the natural world, and considers close observation, iteration, and rationality to be pillars of his art.