Art Lead

Are you an experienced Art Lead looking for your next challenge?

Skillsearch is working with a leading studio on an exciting mobile action shooter project based on a major IP. They are looking for a highly skilled Art Lead to drive the artistic vision, manage a large internal and external art team, and ensure a high-quality, optimised experience for mobile platforms.

Key Responsibilities

• Artistic Vision & Direction – Define and maintain a stylised art style that aligns with the IP holder’s expectations and the game’s creative direction.
• Art Production & Pipeline Management – Oversee the full art production pipeline, ensuring assets are optimised for mobile performance.
• Team Leadership – Manage and mentor a large internal art team (3D, characters, environments, VFX, UI/UX, animation) and coordinate with external art vendors.
• Collaboration & Stakeholder Management – Work closely with game directors, designers, and IP holders to align visuals with gameplay and brand expectations.
• Process & Workflow Optimisation – Define efficient art processes to streamline asset production, integration, and optimisation.
• Outsourcing Strategy – Direct external art vendors, reviewing and integrating outsourced assets to maintain consistent quality standards.
• Cross-Discipline Coordination – Collaborate with Tech Art, Engineering, and Design to balance artistic fidelity with performance requirements.
• Industry Awareness – Stay ahead of industry trends, best practices, and competitor analysis to deliver a standout mobile experience.

What We’re Looking For

• 10+ years in game art production, including 5+ years as an Art Lead.
• Proven experience working on AA+/AAA mobile games with well-known IPs.
• Strong track record as Art Lead on at least one released action or shooter title (mobile or PC).
• Deep expertise in stylised art direction, ensuring consistency across characters, environments, UI, and VFX.
• Extensive experience in mobile game art production, optimisation, and performance constraints.
• Skilled in outsourcing management, working with external partners to maintain top-tier quality.
• Exceptional leadership and communication skills, with experience managing large art teams.
• Proficiency in industry-standard tools: Maya, Blender, ZBrush, Substance, Photoshop, Unreal Engine, Unity.
• Ability to balance creative vision, technical feasibility, and production constraints.
• Experience working with IP holders and major stakeholders to ensure brand consistency.

Bonus Skills

• Knowledge of procedural workflows, tools development, and AI-assisted art pipelines.
• Hands-on experience with cinematics, motion capture, and real-time VFX.
• Understanding of monetisation strategies and art production for live-service games.

? Location: Helsinki

If you’re interested, contact Joe McKernan at jm@skillsearch.com.

Years of experience and salary levels are shown purely as a guide. We will only consider applications from candidates that can demonstrate the skills or experience required for the role.

Please be aware that while we would love to respond to every application we receive, due to high numbers we cannot guarantee this. We do however appreciate any time you invest into the application and will make sure to get in touch should anything in future more closely fit your skillset.