A good question that came up with a coworker of mine at Martin Brinkerhoff' Associates. If an environment artist is strapped for time, perhaps very invested in providing a wide-range of styles, and still can polish, would a series of dioramas instead of a WHOLE level be just as effective for an environment portfolio piece…
Yes. Honestly most environment piece I've ever made for my portfolio is a diorama. I've never made a level for portfolio/personal. That would be more of a World Builder/Level Designer/Level Architect position I imagine. Also it allows you to focus the viewer better. A good read on that topic is:…
Dioramas are awesome! but Personally I've always built bigger things, obviously it takes a ridiculous amount of time and effort to do it but I also feel like the best environment pieces out there shows an artist that can create a bigger environment with excellent skills in art-direction, composition, modelling, technical…
Agree with Geezus and garcellano. Most employers are aware of how much time goes into creating a large-scale environment and would much rather see a very well done albeit small diorama rather than an expansive environment that is half-assed or rushed because there was too much ground to cover.