!!!

Short and simple today. Here is a panel that belongs to the same scene as the previous two.

A PRELUDE...

...panel to my previous post. Really trying to slow things down and build the tension. Get ready for the drama!

SHOOT OUT!

A little info... There's a shoot out between some people in the street and others in a limo. The second panel is a close up of the lowered window bursting from the bullets. Have been wanting to post this for a while. I felt like I needed to get some action on this blog! I'm going to post some more already completed panels soon...

FRANKENSTEIN BOOK COVER

Right now, I'm taking a acrylic technique class in the illustration department. Never really have done much painting before, but I really wanted to focus on it because I feel my sequential art has slowly becoming more painterly the last couple of years. This was the second assignment in the class; illustrate a cover for a well known book. My first assignment didn't turn out too well (the style, color, and attitude just didn't feel like me), so for this one I went with what makes me tick - somewhat realistic, gritty, and dark. So, I decided to do a cover to Mary Shelley's Frankenstein. I forgot how much the original is different from the Hollywood rendition that has become much more popular. In Shelley's version, the monster (his name is not Frankenstein, that is the scientist) is intelligent, and was created with the use of various chemicals, not lightning. Also, he is not made up of several parts from the dead. Instead, he is more like a golem.

Anyways, the painting was really fun. It is pretty big, about 21 x 15 in. The scan isn't very good, the colors are a bit off, and the scanner picked up way too much of the gesso texture (which you can see the weird effect in the detailed photo below). I plan to get it photographed soon, so hopefully I can get a better version up. What I found funny is the act of painting didn't feel that much different than when I do pages. I'm not sure if that is good or not, butt when I was painting, I just kept it loose. I figured if I really focused on my colors and values, even if my brush strokes weren't that pretty it would still hold together as a whole. Which also made me think... is there a real difference between painting and illustration? I mean some people may consider this an illustration. Others, like me, would call it a painting. If one uses just paint to create a piece of artwork, isn't that the definition of a painting? However, I have seen so many people who create images with just paint refer to it as an illustration. Is it a stylistic issue? If it is, I don't see how style can dictate medium. Isn't medium based purely on tools? I know I am asking a lot of questions, but I feel like I have been thrown in this world of illustration and there are a lot of things that are new. The class is really fun and I feel like found something I want to do more of. I'll post the next painting/illustration piece soon...

KICKIN' IT

Here is a new panel I did for a project I'm working on. Trying to get a good balance of patterns, texture, and positive/negative space. Fun times.

NEW BLOG!!!

Haven't posted in a loonng time, and the new blog is why! I designed a new website and had my blog incorporated into it. So, feel free to browse the new blog as well as my website. My professor, Nolan Woodard, is the man who made it happen. I have never really used Dreamwever, but he guided us on publishing the design to make it live. Oh, and when I mean us, I mean Olu, the other student in the class. Check out his website as well. He says I talk too much, so I guess I'll end it now.

INK AND GUINNESS

Okay, so last night I was drinking a Guinness and looking at samples online of Alberto Breccia's gorgeous art for the graphic novel Mort Cinder (which is impossible to find, trust me, tears and Guinness are my witnesses). Three things always jump out to me when looking at his art... the man can render great expressions, he is the king of textures, and lastly, he has great balance between heavy blacks and delicate lines. I don't know if it was the beer or the fact I don't have the book, but was really inspired. So I rubbed the tears off my face and walked (with the Guinness) over to my drawing table to just draw any face, but really focus on the balance of small lines with large black shapes. I need to study light more, so I found a great photo that had a strong light source from above that I could apply to my drawn head. Man, this was fun! I am really liking the real brush. Brush pens are great, but for what I was always trying to go for, I really feel like they were holding me back. I planned to add textures, but when I was done with the brush, I really felt like it didn't need it. I am loving the act of inking right now.