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Cleveland native, Fortnite Senior Director returning for Cleveland Institute of Art talk

January 12, 2026
A graphic that shows a screenshot of Travis Scott and Fortnite's Astronomical virtual event on the left and a portrait of Tim Elek on the right.

By Alex Darus, cleveland.com

Cleveland Institute of Art alumnus Tim Elek, senior art director at Epic Games and a key creative behind “Fortnite Battle Royale” and “Fortnite Save the World,” will visit CIA next week for a public artist talk.

A 2004 graduate of CIA’s Technology + Integrated Media Environment program, Elek has worked at Epic Games for 15 years, shaping visual direction for hit titles including “Gears of War 3,” “Infinity Blade III” and “Paragon.” He also guided creative design for real-time events such as “The Rocket Launch” and Travis Scott’s “Astronomical” concert inside “Fortnite.”

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