Superhero Sketchbook Pages

I'm just back from Heroes Con (in Charlotte, NC) and Wizard World Philadelphia (in, well, Philadelphia, PA). I even had my own booth in Philly, where I sold prints and sketchbook ashcans (email me if you want to buy one - they're only $10 and well worth it!)

Having a booth was a learning experience to be sure. I found myself wondering about my approach. At some point, I stopped asking "What do I want to see in a comic book?" and started asking, "What are the abstract ideals of comic art? and illustrative art in general?" I don't think people care about that second question, and I'm not sure why they should. So, I stepped back, looked at the artists I admire and tried to pull some of that mass-appeal into my style. The following sketchbook pages are from after I got back.

April Sketches

From comicbook characters to catalogs/fashion books to life drawings, this month covers a fair amount of ground. Looking back on my old work, I feel pretty stoked about the progress I've made in the last year. But I'm not done yet. Check back soon, because the best is yet to come!

Extra points for anyone who can correctly identify these actresses/characters:

Stewardesses:

Storm:

Green Lantern:

 Life drawing:

Watercolor experiment (X-men Marvel Girl/Phoenix and Cyclops in their original costumes):

Another life drawing:

Cafe drawing and a catalog drawing:

A bunch of catalog drawings:

Comicbook Character Designs

These are from the past couple of weeks.

Everyone's favorite mutants, the X-men

Before Hugh Jackman, Wolverine was a lot uglier. I like both, but I think an ugly wolverine is more interesting. There are enough pretty boys in comics.

Hunting for a pleasing, exaggerated version of the female physique (it is a struggle for me)

and her male counterpart.

Hope y'all enjoy!

Cowboys and Scoundrels

Nothing huge ... just somethin' I'm working on with a comicbook writer. More on this later ...

Life Drawings and the Search for Style

Over the weekend, I started going to life drawing classes. Why did I ever stop?

Sunday's class:

Monday's class (on old comic book shop bags):

Also, I'm trying to find a style for my comic art:

NYCC Submission Pencils!

These are the pages I showed around NYCC last weekend. Good times.

Then and Now

Whenever I'm unsure of whether I've made artistic progress, I play a game I call "THEN and NOW," in which I compare sketchbook pages from a few years ago to recent ones ... I always win this game. I win the confidence that comes from knowing I HAVE made progress. I may not quite be a pro, but baby I've come a long way. Hope you enjoy:

CARICATURE

I didn't really do caricatures in my sketchbook in 2006, but this respectable marker drawing (no pencil beforehand) is the closest thing I found. The 2010 version is from memory, and it caricatures physical features as well as emotions and it describes a relationship. It might be one of my favorite drawings that I have ever done.

SUPERMAN

WONDER WOMAN

GREEN LANTERN

SUPERGIRL