Inkantations

Goyle, Gun Ghoul , and Gary Friedrich

2012-02-13T17:30:00.006-06:00

Soooooo, yeah, it's been 5 months since I last posted something. I have been kind of busy. The artwork above are the covers to 2 of the projects I have coming out this year. I am the inker of WIll Caligan's Gun Ghoul book, and I am the writer/artist/letterer of my creation , Dr Goyle. Gun Ghoul will be coming out in June at Philly Con I believe, and I plan to premier Dr Goyle at Springcon in Minneapolis in May. Add on a few other projects here and there, I am quite busy with projects. It's nice working on my own projects, cuz I don't have to worry about getting screwed over by anyone but myself.

This leads me into the situation involving Gary Friedrich and Marvel and Ghost Rider. Gary created Ghost Rider. Marvel says yeah, but you did it as work for hire. Therefore, you get nothing, and by the way, you can't claim you are his creator. People have been arguing about creator's rights for a while. IMAGE Comics was formed for that very reason. At the time of Ghost Rider's creation, both parties didn't cover their asses. But who knew that almost 40 years down the line a movie would be made about the character. But lets give Gary his credit. He created the character, give him some dough to live on, and call it a day.
I see lots of young talented folks at cons, showing their stuff to publishers, especially Marvel and DC. They think they have the next great character for them, little knowing the second that character is published by those companies, that character is theirs.

Do yourself a favor kids, create your characters, make your own comics. That way you keep them for yourself. You may not make any $$ from them, but neither will anyone else.

Wonder Woman Day 2011

2011-10-18T20:43:00.006-05:00

Coming up on October 30th, a ver special auction will be held. It is called the Women of Wonder Day and it benefits domestic violence shelters. I have 2 pieces in the NJ auction.

I have a Supergirl piece pencilled by Bat Hilliard and inked by me.I also have a Femme Noir page pencilled by Joe Staton and inked by me.

There web page can be found here:

http://www.womenofwonderday.com/

Please go check out the page and bid. The funds you raise help our mothers, sisters, daughters, cousins, and friends.

Thanks!

Fallcon and Dr Goyle goodness!

2011-10-11T20:50:00.003-05:00

Happy Autumn everyone!!! Lots going on here. Moved back here to Madison just last month, and have been helping Mom take care of things here at the house. Been good seeing lots of all friends again after a several year absence.
Going to Minnesota this weekend for my annual trip to Fallcon! I love the shows the MNCBA puts on every spring and fall. Lots of good friends and fans as well. I will have a special exclusive print, seen above, for the show.
Dr Goyle is slowly getting done. It's been a lot of work so far. Coordinating artists for pinups, writing, penciling, inking, lettering. I forgot how much time it all takes. But still looking for releasing 4 issues by the time Philly con rolls around next June, that gives me 7 months to get 4 issues ready. I think I can do it. This first issue will be the hardest, but only because I haven't penciled a comic in quite a while, and getting used to the characters is taking a bit. But in the end, it will be totally worth it.

Look for more Dr Goyle updates soon!!

Holy crap, what happened to summer?!

2011-09-04T08:25:00.003-05:00

Yeaaaah,....its been a while since I've posted. I know, I'm a fail. But it's not like I haven't been busy doing stuff. Let's see, what have I been up to? Well, I did a few shows this summer. In June I hit Wizard World Philly, in July I was at CONvergence, and in August I was at Wizard World Chicago. All great shows that wore me out.
I managed to get a few projects done. Saw the first issue Of Grimm get published. Waiting for pencils for issue 2, Bat is kinda slow. Hurry up dude!! Finished up the Marlow: River of Symbols graphic novel, and it saw print for SDCC. A wide release will be done for it in Jan/Feb of '12 according to Arcana, So I can't wait to see that. Am going to be finishing up a project for my pal Amber Delaney, aka Amber Unmasked. She's an East Coast cosplayer who does a lot of charity work for various things. SHe asked me to ink a 10 page story for a charity book coming out later this year. It's pretty fun so far.
The big comic project for me will be the return next year of my character,..Dr Goyle. I created him back in 99 with Mike Norton. We did a one shot at Arrow, and then an 8 page story for SLG a year later. He's been at the back of my mind for a while, itching to get out. Will, my editor at Alpha Dog, really pushed me to do a book for this year. So I thought about it, and made the decision to bring the Doc out of hiatus. I will be doing 4-6 issues, leaning more toward 6 right now. I will be writing, pencilling, inking, and possibly lettering. It wil be in color, and I hope to have a few issues ready for Philly next year, maybe even for Springcon in May. I'm really excited to do this project, and have enlisted some friends to do some pinups for each issue. Should be some good looking stuff!
On other fronts, I am moving.....again. Roomie decided not to renew the lease, and since the few hours I was getting at work have made it difficult to afford a place on my own around here, I needed another option. So I'm moving back home. Mom is looking to sell the house next year, and could use my help. So as of next weekend, September 10th, I will be once again back in Madison. I managed to get a transfer to a Best Buy store right across the street from where Mom works. This will make it great to carpool when our schedules are similar, and even better when the weather is bad. I'm sad about leaving friends and co-workers behind, abut I have oodles of friends in Madison who I haven't seen in 8-10 years that I look forward to seeing. This will also give me a chance to get debt paid off and actually save $$ for a possible move to the Twin Cities next year. We shall see what transpires.
So life once again is kinda crazy, but still good.

Memorial Day and Philadelphia

2011-05-30T09:35:00.003-05:00

Wow, hard to believe that Memorial Day is here already.Seems like it was just the first of the year, time has gone by too quickly. But lets not forget those who have made the ultimate sacrifice to allow us to do the things we love to do.

Lots of things going on around here. Working on the finla 6 pages of Marlow, looking to have that wrapped up this week. Finished the first issue of Grimm: Dynasty. We hope to have the first issue out for......

Wizard World Philly! You knew I was heading there didnt you. Did the banner give it away?

I will be there along with Will Caligan and Bat Hilliard, my studio mates and cohorts in crime on Grimm. We will be doing sketches, and I will have prints and originals for sale. If you live in the area, come on out and see us!!

Other than that, Not much going on. Springcon was a blast as usual, kinda wish I wasnt so busy that I couldve gotten away from the table to see people. But there is always Fallcon in a few months.

Until next time!

Springcon is busting out all over!

2011-05-09T15:24:00.003-05:00

My favorite show of the year, Springcon!! May 21 and 22 I will be at the Minnesota State Fairgrounds for a great 2 day show. I will have prints and original pages, as well as many of the drawings I have posted here and on Facebook and Deviantart.
I am also taking pre-orders for pick up at the con. A pencilled and inked piece will be $30, and color is $40. This is for one character. If you want one, email me at msartistmark@gmail.com and we'll work out the payment arrangements.

Hope to see you there!

Spring done sprung!

2011-04-15T12:03:00.003-05:00

Spring has finally arrived here in Wisconsin. The last of the snow piles has finally melted, we've had our first day of 80+ degrees, which means there's at least one more snow storm in our future. Thats how we roll in the Midwest.

Anyway, been busy around here. Been working on a few things, a couple of them will be wrapping up in the next few weeks and months. But I hope to have more work lined up by then.

Got a few ideas of my own I'd like to develop, but who knows when I'll have the time to do it! Will probably pick at them here and there, but would like to be able to really put a lot of time into them. We'll see what happens.

Anyway, here's a piece I did for the Alpha Dog Studios sketchbook that will be out this summer. My buddy and studiomate Will Caligan did the bang up colors on it. This is one of the ideas I'd like to develop if I can. Her name is Ace.

Enjoy!

Drawings n stuff

2011-03-09T16:10:00.003-06:00

So here we are again. Not much going on, other than inking Uzan, Marlow, and various Alpha Dog stuff. Been trying to do more drawing for myself tho. So I knocked this one out today. Will try to do more and post them when I can.

I do love me some Blue Devil.

Grimm sneak peek

2011-02-26T10:03:00.004-06:00

Here's a little sneak peek at one of the projects I'm doing with my buddies at Alpha Dog Studios. This is page 5 from issue #1 of Grimm: Dynasty. Written by Will Caligan, pencils by Bat Hilliard, and inks by little old me. Bats pencils are just a blast to work on. I have a feeling this is gonna be a good looking book.

Enjoy!

Contest and commissions

2011-02-14T16:05:00.003-06:00

Well first off, there's a pretty sweet contest going on with us at Alpha Dog Studios. Here's the details:

Best in Show Contest

Participants: All Creators

Prizes: $400 and published in Alpha Dog Studios Anthology
series The Dog Pound Volume 2. There will only be
one prize awarded to one submission.

Submission deadline: 15 April 11

Objective: This is the opportunity for creators to not only get your story published; you will also receive $400 for it. Alpha Dog Studios wants to help creators get their stories out there and give you a chance to see your work in print.

Rules and Guidelines:
1) The story has to be delivered to Alpha Dog Studios by email to alphadogstudios1@aol.com by 11:59pm on the 15th of April. Anything set after that will not be accepted. It needs to be marked “Best in Show contest”.
2) The story can be black or white or color. We do prefer color. It has to be 10 pages long with one Cover with a logo. Which means you should send us 11 pages.
3) The story needs to be PG. No porn, no nudity and no religious blasphemy against any religion. We are a family company. We are looking to produce stuff for any age. If you need to cuss in the writing then use the symbols or imply it. You can be creative without being vulgar.
4) Alpha Dog Studios is not responsible for paying talent. The winner gets $400. This will be paid to the individual that submits the story. If you do not own the story then do not submit it. Payment will be made using PayPal. If you do not have a PayPal account we will arrange for another way of payment.
5) By submitting your story to Alpha Dog Studios you give us the right to publish and print your story in The Dog Pound Volume 2 and to use your work as promotional tools for the book.
6) If you are selected the winner; you can not reprint the story you submitted to us for 365 days after publication.
7) You retain all your rights to your creation but your only compensation for the story you submit will be the prizes.
8) Alpha Dog Studios reserves the right to reject any submission without explanation. We will get a lot of submissions and we can not respond to everyone.
9) The winner will be contacted through email.
10) The winner will also be spotlighted at :iconalphadogstudios:

Prizes:
1) The winning submission will receive $400. This will be
paid to the winner on the 1st of May 2011.
2) The winner will also receive 5 comp issues that will be
mailed to them by the 30th of June 2011.
3) The winning submission will also be offered a chance to
produce a 2 to 4 issue mini series using the winning story
through Alpha Dog Studios for the year 2012 release.
The creator will get $400 an issue for their projects and 5
comp issues per issue. The book will be edited by the
staff at Alpha Dog Studios and it must meet the
companies standards. The $400 per issue will be all the is
compensation the creator will receive for the mini series.

Other information:
Alpha Dog Studios will have updates on submissions and
Other contest on our Facebook page, blog and DA site which
will be listed below. If you have any questions please send
them to: alphadogstudios1@aol.com and mark them "question for Best
in Show contest.”

Thanks from all of us at Alpha Dog Studios and we hope to see all of you in the future.

Pretty cool eh?

Also, I am open for commission work. I'm looking to raise some $$ for the summer convention season which is rapidly approaching.
9x12- 1 figure $30 additional figures $20 each
11x17- 1 figure $50 additional figures $20 each

These are for black and white inked pieces. Color is an additional $15.

I accept paypal for payment. If you want one, just email me at msartistmark@gmail.com.

Later taters!

Everything old is new again...

2011-02-09T13:26:00.004-06:00

The past can be a funny thing. It seems to be a place I visit a lot. There are many things about the past I wish I could change (Don't we all?), but when it comes down to it, the past is the past.
Thats why it's always amazing to re-connect with people from my past, people who I haven't talked to in 5 years or more. Especially people I haven't worked with in 5 years or more. A few weeks back I was on Facebook, where I am frequently, and was chatting with Ruben Diaz. I worked with Roo back when he was an editor at DC Comics. I did some inking work for him on a few titles here and there. He now does all sorts of multi-media stuff in Philly. But he asked me if I was interested in inking something. Never wanting to turn down work, I of course said yes.
He's been working with a local wrestling circuit to help promote them by doing some comic type art projects. They do dvds of their matches, and for covers, Roo has had some artists do re-creations of classic comic covers. The piece above is one of the covers that I did. I have also inked one that Roo pencilled.
It's been 15 years since I worked with Roo, and we just picked up like it was the old days. He's a good guy, is a believer that talent is just as important as a name.
Hopefully this will lead to more things with Roo.

Work is good. Work with people you know is better.

Uzan the Mighty

2011-01-11T16:57:00.004-06:00

Howdy all!! One of the projects I'm doing this year is called Uzan the Mighty. Written by Kevin Grevioux and pencilled by MC Wyman. Its a 60 page graphic novel that will hopefully be out late this year. Kevin has been around a while doing all sorts of things. He was the writer and co-creator of the original Underworld movie, as well as the writer of the third film in the series. He also acted in the movies, playing the lycan Raze. He has written for Marvel on series such as the Blue Marvel, and New Warriors. He is also the writer of ZMD:Zombies of Mass Destruction.
Uzan is a tale of an african tribesman. The pencils are gorgeous and full of lush foliage and animals galore. I don't think I've ever inked this much greenery for one project.
Anyway, here's a peek at one of the pages. Hope you enjoy!!

M

Welcome to 2011!

2011-01-07T17:45:00.004-06:00

Well here it is, a new year and I'm already posting!! Woot, its a good way to start the new year. Just want to announce my first project of the new year. Gonna be inking a 4 issue mini series thats gonna be put out by me and my studiomates at Alphadog. It's called Grimm:Dynasty, and is written by Will Caligan, pencilled by Bat Hilliard, and inked by me. Will is also gonna be doing the lettering and coloring, cuz he's a friggin monster!! The image above is one of the character sketches that Bat did that I inked. It's gonna be a killer book! I'll let everyone know the release date of the first issue once it gets closer.

I am also playing catch up on UZAN, a graphic novel written by my buddy kevin Grevioux, and pencilled by MC Wyman. We hope to have it out later this year. I'll try and post some art once I get Kevin's ok.

Lastly I will be moving in a few weeks. Life changes have forced me to find a new abode come February first. Luckily I have found a place within 2 miles of my job, and with cheaper rent. So it'll be a win/win situation for me.

On a side note, even tho I don't post it here, I am usually open for commissions. So if you're looking for something cool for yourself or a loved one, hit me up. I don't just do the superhero stuff either. I've done RPG character designs, tattoo designs, pet portraits, all sorts of stuff. I can always use the $$ and I can usually turn stuff around in a week or 2 at the most.

Until next time, which hopefully will be soon!

Happy Holidays!!

2010-12-23T16:30:00.004-06:00

Well, looks like another 2 months has gone by with out an update. Yeah, I'm a terrible blogger. But just got lots to deal with. Gonna be moving soon. Dunno where, but gotta be out of here by February 1. But I'll find something.

Just want to wish everyone who reads this the happiest of holidays! May 2011 bring you peace,health, happiness and success in your endeavors. I promise to update more. Really. :)

Off to battle the hordes of the dead!!

2010-10-27T09:01:00.002-05:00

Hey all, been a while. But of course, I've been busy. But today I'm heading off to Minnesota so I can fly out tomorrow to Seattle. What's in Seattle you may ask? Why that would be ZomBCon! I will be there at booth #202 along with John Olson and Bud Hanzel, selling copies of our book. I will be selling sketches and prints, including a signed and numbered print exclusively for the show. Only 100 will be sold. SO if you are out in Seattle, stop on by. Oh yeah, and a couple of guys like Bruce Campbell, George Romero, and Malcom McDowell will be there too. Should be a pretty good time!I'll post pics when I return!

See ya!

What I'm up to...

2010-08-28T15:03:00.002-05:00

Back from Wizard World Chicago, had a great time. Met lotsa great fans, and got to meet my studio mates in person. Oh? Didnt know I was in a studio? Well I am, its aclled Alpha Dog Studios and its got a lot of talented guys in it. I have a link to it here on my blog under "other places i'm at". That is for our DA page, and we are also on Facebook as a group under the same name.

I have been lax in pointing this out, as well as keeping up on this blog.

So here's whats been happening, what is happening, and what is gonna happen.
Working on Marlow with Dario Carrasco.Fun stuff, very much a pulp adventure feel to it.
Doing cover art for a band called ENEMY STAR. They are local and it was put together by a buddy of mine. They have a Facebook page (who doesnt these days!) so go check it out. They are doing a cd release party on October 9th in Milwaukee. I'll be there, details on time and place wil be made available as soon as I know them.
Doing more illustrations for Nick Cuti's third MOONIE novel. Moonie is an adults only novel. Nick created her many years back, and is now doing novels with illustrations scattered throughout. I'm inking the illos. It's a lot of fun to do when I have time to get to them!
Lastly, my zombie book is now out and available on Amazon.com. They are behind in their ordering so its been listed as out of stock often. Be patient, the books are coming.
As far as shows go, I will be at the previously mentioned ENEMY STAR cd release party on October 9th. I will be at Fallcon's one day show in Minneapolis on October 16th, and if all goes according to plan, I will be at the first ZomBCon in Seattle on Halloween weekend (Oct 29-31).

WHew, i dont think I'm busy enough.

Yeah, Yeah..I know.

2010-07-30T13:42:00.003-05:00

Ok, remember when I said I'd update more..well,...yeah I lied. Another 2 months goes by and nothing. And it's not like I havent done stuff too!

Got a few things in the pipe. Working on a book called Marlow, with my old pal Dario Carrasco (A link to his site Panday Studios is in my links area). Dario pencilled a few issues of Nova that I inked way back in the day. He and I re-connected last year and have been doing some pieces here and there. But I'm looking forward to the Marlow book. Its a pulpy kind of Indiana Jones feeling book. So very fun.
Also hope to be starting some more Buckaroo Banzai with Shawn Van Briesen again soon. Shawn finally has a blog up, so go check it out. It is also in the links area.

Working on a webcomic that I hope to post weekly. Called Pub Dread, and will be at www.pubdread.com very soon. Got 3 weeks worth drawn up already, just gotta prep the site and have it looking the way I want before I post.

I finally have a release date for the DIY Guide To Surviving The Zombie Apocalypse.
We are going through Amazon for our initial print run. Diamond has been giving us a runaround so we decided to take the zom by the brains and get this thing out there! It will be released on August 13th, a Friday. Quite appropriate. I believe orders can done starting the 5th or 6th of August, with shipping on the 13th.
We are also doing a release party/signing at the Source Comics and Games in Minneapolis on that day from Noon til 9. John, Bud, and I will all be there, so if you are in the area, stop on by. It'l be an awesome time for sure. For more info, go to www.sourcecomicsandgames.com.

I also have an Etsy store now, so if ya feel the need to buy some of my art, you can. Also in my links area. I have prints, and some originals there as well. I will be putting some more originals in there soon.

Until next time, enjoy the art I've posted. One is a page from Marlow, the other is a page from another project of Dario's called the Mask Of The Gargoyle. Dario asked me to ink it, I had a blast with it! Enjoy!

Well well well, look who finally posted something..

2010-05-22T08:55:00.002-05:00

Well I'm back after a 3 month lazy ass absence. Its not like I havent been working on something, but I just didnt get around to posting.

What I have been working on the last 6 months is this: The DIY Guide To Surviving The Zombie Apocalypse. Written by my pals John Olson and Bud Hanzel, withh 130 illos by me. This was probably the biggest art project I've ever tackled, but it was worth it. We had preview copies at Springcon last weekend in Minnesota, and I cried when I saw this in print form. It's just beautiful.

I know the picture I have up has a typo on the cover, but we fixed it!! So right now we're waiting to hear from a backer who wants to bankroll our first printing. Hopefully a bigger publisher will pick us up and want to get this bad boy out into the mainstream where it should be!

We plan to premiere it at CONvergence in Minneapolis on July 4th weekend. It runs july 1-4. I will be there in Artists Alley doing art, and selling books. John will also be there. Bud hopes to make it, but its iffy at this point.

Hope to see you there.

I do plan on being a little more frequent with updates. I promise.

Avengers Assemble!!

2010-03-03T21:58:00.003-06:00

Wow! Was this piece fun! Recently in the past 2 years or so I have been discovering lots of cool new artists. This is one of them. Mahmud Asrar is an artist from Turkey who is rocking out comics right now. Bursting onto the scene as artist on Dynamo 5 over at Image, he has recently been doing stuff over at Marvel and DC.
This piece is from a recent issue of Avengers: The Initiative. Anything with Thor in it rocks, and the dynamics of this page just kicked ass. So i had to ink it.
I just recently upgraded my studio with a new Asus laptop and a Brother printer/scanner. The beauty of the printer is that I can scan at full 11x17, and with photoshop, I can take pencil scans, convert them to bluelines, and then print them on comic board. I can then ink them without having the actual pencils, and scan them again. Fuckin awesome,eh?
So I had to try it out on Mahmud's piece. Inked with a brush and Hunt 102 crowquill nib in some spots. Add a little white out for effects, and there ya go!

More cool stuff a-coming!

Iron Man coming atcha!

2010-03-03T18:40:00.004-06:00

Nothing is more iconic of Marvel's silver age than a pic of Iron Man blasting some commies! Kirby and Heck did it with fucking style! Here's my shot at it. Done as a commission piece for my buddy Jason. He's going to Emerald City ComicCon next weekend and plans to have the pic autographed by none other than Stan "The Man" Lee himself. I dunno whether to be excited or scared pissless. We'll find out when he gets back.

Done on 9x14 bristol board with pencils, and Pitt artist pens. I used a brush for the blast effects on the ground.

Enjoy!

The Black Beetle

2010-02-22T12:47:00.006-06:00

All righty then,back at it. Been a while, but Ive been busy with lots of things. Time to post some art though. This is a pic of Francesco Francavilla's pulp hero, The Black Beetle. It was last weeks subject on ComicTwart. If you don't know what ComicTwart is, it's a blog by a lot of different creators who talk a lot on Twitter. Every week, one of them picks a character, and they all do their version of it. Lots of great artists doing some great stuff there. I have a link to the blog on my list of links. Check it out.

Although I am not an official member of the Twart, I wanted to do something anyway.The character just looked too fun not to do.

This was done in pencil, inked with Pitt artist pens and some brush work as well.

Hope ya like it!

Welcome to Sherwood, I mean, Gotham

2010-01-28T15:26:00.005-06:00

Cory Walker is one of those guys who has stayed under the radar for a while. Yet has a following that is pretty big. If you don't knw who he is, he co-created Invincible with Robert Kirkman, and recently did The Destroyer with Kirkman over at Marvel.

Cory's stuff is pretty cool. Very solid yet minimal in his linework, at least as far as using lots of lines. He makes forms so simple, even if its complex mad scienist machinery! His list of credits in comics isnt very long, but what he's done has been pretty damn kick ass. This Robin piece comes from his blog, where he posts almost daily. A link to it can be found in my links section.

For this piece I decided to ink Cory a bit differently than he is accustomed to. Cory usually inks himself, using minimal line weight variation. Usually opting for a fairly constant holding line. I decided to go with a slicker look for him. I used a sheet of heavy transparent vellum and went in with a hunt 102 crowquill nib for about 90% of it. Giving it a look much like Scott Williams early work, but less extreme in line weight variation. I then took a #3 brush for the cape and filling in of blacks. The border was done with a Pitt artist pen as was the staff.

I like Cory's inking on himself. I've been doing a similar style on some of my own pieces, and I like how its been turning out. Hopefully we'll see more from him this year.

Not George, Paul or John...

2010-01-22T18:53:00.003-06:00

What can I say about MIKE WIERINGO that hasn't been said by everyone else in the biz?
Nothing. Not one damn thing.

Mike was a class act, a fantastic artist, and one of the best people to have walked this planet. It doesn't seem like we lost him 3 years ago this coming summer, but I don't think a day goes by that a bunch of us don't miss him.

I always wanted to ink Mike. His work has a wonderful flow to it, his figures all have this energy to them, even when they are at rest. I printed off every piece Mike ever posted to his blog. They sit in a stack by my art table.I hadn't looked at them in a while, but when I paged through them all to find a piece, i just had to sigh a bit in disappointment. Disappointment in the fact that there won't be any more Wieringo books coming out. No more daily blog posts. This is all we got, so we'd better damn well cherish it.

I decided on this Superman piece mostly cuz it's Superman, and I really liked the pose. I used a lightbox to pencil it onto Canson comic art board. I really like their comic board. It's got a nice tooth to it, and it takes ink really well. Brush work turns out fabulous on it. I haven't used a quill on it yet, so I don't know if it bleeds. I inked it with a #3 size Kolinsky series 8404 brush. I used a Pitt artist pen for the 'S' shield and belt buckle. Ink was Dick Blick's Black Cat brand ink with a little Kohinoor ultradraw ink mixed in.

I think I could have done a bit better job on a few of the lines here and there, maybe making some holding lines a bit heavier, but I do like how it turned out. Karl Kesel is still my favorite 'Ringo inker. The work they did on Fantastic Four was pretty damn awesome. Check it out if you can find it.

Tell me about the rabbits George..

2010-01-18T20:03:00.005-06:00

Well, here we are at the first art post of the blog. Woot!!
This piece is brought to us by the uber-talented Tom Raney (you can find a link to his blog here on my blog). Tom is currently pencilling the Black Widow mini series at Marvel. Tom's credits include Annihilation, Thor, and an exceptional run on Stormwatch written by Warren Ellis. Tom's stuff is pretty cool! He's got a graceful, organic feel to it, and it drools with texture. Texture is one of my big things. I love inking it!
He called this fellow Lenny. I thought that was a good name for a flesh devouring Zom. I inked this piece on standard 8.5x11 copy paper on a lightbox using Pitt artist pens. The Pitt pens come in various sizes and are pretty durable and inexpensive. I started with a size S (superfine) for most of it, and finished with a size F (fine). If I was doing this piece on comic board, I'd probably go in with a nib for a lot of the fine detail work and finish with a brush. But depending on the paper quality, I may just say screw it and go with all brush. I look at the lines the penciller has put down and see where the stroke began and ended. That gives me the feel for it, and tells me where the energy of the line is. It's a zen thing sometimes. But Tom's piece was a pleasure to ink. I've always liked his work, so I figured I'd let him break the blog in. His linework requires a delicate touch, but not so delicate as to let the depth of the form be lost. I think adding a bolder holding outline to his stuff would work nicely, but not too much as to make it look like a coloring book.

Speaking of Zoms, please keep an eye out in May for the release of The Do It Yourself Guide To Surviving The Zombie Apocalypse. I am lucky enough to be doing the interior illustrations as well as the cover. Written by my pals Bud Hanzel and John Olson, it is a tongue in cheek tome of guidance to surviving the downfall of us and the rise of the zoms. Publisher to be announced soon. I am proud of the illos I have already done, and cant wait to get through them all. I'll be posting some of the art on here from time to time the next few months.

So there you have it!

Meet the new boss, same as the old boss...

2010-01-16T16:58:00.002-06:00

Welcome to the new blog. After totally screwing up my last one to the point of not being able to access it ever again, I've decided to start over. My goal with this one is the same as my old one, show off my art and make commentary about stupid crap.
But, I do plan to do some things differently. I do plan to make a concerted effort to post art on a weekly basis, hopefully several times a week. It's just a matter of doing it. I also plan to show what I do. I know, you're thinking "you draw, duh." Well more to the point, I'm an inker of comics, I take other peoples work and add my spin to it. To quote one of my favorite artists, Terry Austin, who stated in an interview once that "an inker's job is to take what's there, and make it better". If you dont know who Terry is, than you need to get slapped. He was the inker on Chris Claremont and John Byrne's run on X-Men in the 70's and early 80's. He also inked the late, great Marshall Rogers on Detective Comics in the 70's as well. The guy is a master and one hell of a nice guy.
I'm planning on showing off my inks. I'm a follower of a lot of different artists blogs, and lots of these guys post their pencil work, be it sketches, pages, whatever. Each week, I will find one from the many I follow and ink it, to see what I can come up with. It may not be in my style either. I might decide to go into a slick Scott WIlliams style, or a heavy Klaus Janson. I may just experiment with different tools. I dunno yet. I just know it will be fun, and hopefully will show how inking is an artform. Hope you will join me.

Not a tracer!!