sketchy characters

2011-11-17T14:28:00.000-08:00

Went WAY out of my comfort zone and drew a lady with swords...I know, always pushing the boundaries, that's me...

Sketchbook stuff

2011-11-11T07:35:00.000-08:00

Pop culture crowd

2011-10-29T02:21:00.000-07:00

Colored this recently...not entirely successful with what I wanted to do so I guess I will take this as a learning experience.

Skeletor

2011-10-29T02:12:00.001-07:00

Older drawing I finally got around to coloring.

Schism

2011-10-04T16:23:00.000-07:00

..just playin' around...:)

Rogers and Carter

2011-09-28T02:08:00.000-07:00

A little mashup here; I was thinking McGinnis with some Ashley Wood influences doing a Secret Avengers cover. My apologies to the artists mentioned, it just seemed like a fun thing to try.

....

2011-09-19T02:06:00.000-07:00

Random sketchiness....

Thor vs. Supes

2011-09-03T02:18:00.001-07:00

This is an image I drew long ago, finally got around to coloring it.

Pop culture.....stuff....

2011-07-14T09:01:00.001-07:00

from the sketchbook

2011-07-02T17:37:00.000-07:00

Don't know...was just thinking and this sorta' came out...will probably play with this theme a little more....until the ADD hits and I'm somewhere else...

Two-Gun Rex vs. the Thunder Monkeys!!

2011-06-23T23:59:00.000-07:00

Oh yeah, and Battle Nitey is there as well, a little something I've been trying to develop, might even get off my butt and make some comics about this....maybe....

Freckles

2011-06-22T01:12:00.001-07:00

Misc.

2011-06-07T19:28:00.000-07:00

Just some doodles from my desk, nothin' fancy...

Agent 13 and friend

2011-05-20T00:33:00.000-07:00

Another sketch, inked with a little color added...

Battle Nitey!

2011-05-03T09:06:00.001-07:00

Wreaking havok with Two Gun Rex, it's Battle Nitey!!

doodlin'

2011-03-30T08:32:00.000-07:00

.......I got nothin'.......

Constrictor

2011-03-20T22:33:00.001-07:00

Some sketchbook doodle I colored up...

Hellboy

2011-02-22T09:45:00.001-08:00

Poor blog, you are so neglected these days....

more sketchin'!...and not much else...

2011-01-27T21:28:00.000-08:00

sketches....

2011-01-20T09:34:00.000-08:00

sketchbook stuff....so far continuing last years' slackage....

Eddie says Happy New Year!

2011-01-05T08:50:00.000-08:00

Even after all the transformations I still prefer drawing 80's white trash Eddie...

Kirby Cap

2010-12-22T19:11:00.001-08:00

Yeah, it's a simple halftone filter, but seemed to work pretty well with this Kirby style image I did a ways back...

no feet!

2010-12-17T07:55:00.001-08:00

Not trying to pull a Liefeld here, this was just a sketch in my book I decided to ink and, well, just ran out of page when I was penciling...Yes I could go into PS and fix that but I'm a lazy bastard..:)

Lil' Wolvie

2010-12-15T07:09:00.001-08:00

Conan!

2010-12-13T18:41:00.001-08:00

I'm pretty sure he's thinking about crushing his enemies, seeing them driven before him, and hearing the lamentations of their women!

Batgirl colored

2010-11-28T17:52:00.001-08:00

Really need to get better at this stuff...but it's still pretty fun to play around with these older sketches...

HULK!!

2010-11-28T16:51:00.001-08:00

Couple of more colorin' sketches...

Black Canary

2010-11-28T14:19:00.001-08:00

Coloring some images today...

Hawkeye

2010-11-24T23:32:00.001-08:00

This was a sketch I had in the sketchbook...finally got around to doing something with it..1 down, 3,447 to go.....

stuff

2010-11-23T17:49:00.001-08:00

random sketches....

Joker

2010-11-17T07:55:00.001-08:00

2010-11-14T23:17:00.000-08:00

Actually had a free weekend to NOT work on work related stuff....so naturally I squandered my time by watching TV and slacking...I did manage a little bit o drawing Sunday night possibly out of guilt...

sketch dump

2010-10-28T09:18:00.000-07:00

random sketchbook crap...a lot of work lately and sadly can't post any of it....

Hawkeye

2010-10-09T15:07:00.001-07:00

Found a Hawkeye pic I did a little ways back...

sketches

2010-10-09T14:37:00.001-07:00

Lazy Saturday, spent an hour looking around at other blogs, so many damn talented people out there..

Anyway, scanned some stuff from the book, this years posts have been way below projections. Productivity is lower in the sketchbook area mainly because work has been keeping me busy and then I spend time looking at other people's stuff, which then can either lead to motivation or hopelessness depending on mood...

New Halloween invite image

2010-09-28T00:26:00.000-07:00

Man, can't believe it's already this time of year again...( I probably said that last year as well...)

more sketchbook crap...

2010-09-21T22:58:00.000-07:00

stuff

2010-09-07T23:32:00.001-07:00

Some pages from the ol' sketchbook. The first is obviously influenced by Frazetta, thought it'd be nice to see the man take a backseat to the ...chick with sword!!

I've seen that more Frazetta paintings have been auctioned and that totally sucks. The Frazetta museum will probably never re-open adding another thing to the list of regrets I have, seeing as how I never made it out there....

The barbarian/space guy was drawn while listening to The Sword's new album, Warp Riders. That CD totally kicks ass!! Not the most sophisticated review, I know, but it does.

Influences

2010-08-25T22:51:00.000-07:00

So I've seen a few of these around and thought I'd give it a go. Once you start thinking about influences it can get a bit crazy; Do I include writers, music, movies, etc.? I decided to just stick with art and kept it wide spanning. If I put guys that currently are influences the list would have some different names like Canete, Murphy, Dave Johnson, Jason Pearson, and so on...

So I went with a more all time list of just the big guns and even that was difficult. So I looked at what was on my bookshelves and these people are very prominent.

1. Frazetta. Please, I shouldn't have to say one word why he's up there, move on to no.2.

2.John Buscema. The guy is a beast! He drew more Conan issues than anyone ever and if that wasn't enough just look at his stuff in Savage Sword inked by guys like Nubres and Acala. It's beautiful and his draftsmanship was always incredible.

3. Bruce Timm. I dig his style, and I dig the animated series' his style influenced. From Batman to Beyond to JLU, he showed that simple can be brilliant. The guy can draw a mean comic as well. I also would like to put Shane Glines and Darwyn Cooke in this, both great artists in their own rights and still possessing a bit of Timms' "house style".

4. Mike Mignola. A stylistic approach so different yet effective. Add in the cool horror/quirkiness and the great storytelling of Hellboy and it's all win.

5. Ashley Wood. Zombies. Robots. Amazons......good enough for me....

6. Jack Kirby. OK, I admit; as a kid I'd much rather look at "prettier' styles like Byrne or Perez, but I just get more impressed by him the older I get. Crazy imagination with powerful shots that jumped off the pages.

7.Frank Miller. Daredevil, The Dark Knight Returns, Born Again, Year One, Sin City....

8.Derek Riggs. I saw Eddie on shirts and posters before I ever heard a Maiden tune. And once I became a fan I was drawing Eddie on everything everywhere I could. I couldn't have this list and not mention him.

9. Claire Wendling. Like Frazetta, I'm pretty sure there's nothing she can't do and not be amazing at it. Conceptual, finished, colors, design, everything she does is amazing. I don't know what they put in the water in France, I'm pretty sure they're handing conte' crayons to babies right out of the womb.

10. John Romita JR. The guy has been cranking books out consistently for decades. He has amazing storytelling and I like the blocky simplified style he's adapted over the years.

Whew! Ok, so there's the most ass kissing I've ever done on this blog, but these people deserve it. The only negative I have is that with such an impressive list of influences, I should really be a lot better at this stuff...

sketch dump...

2010-08-20T19:51:00.000-07:00

Just watched KickAss again, pretty damn enjoyable. Also saw Scott Pilgrim and really enjoyed it, very quirky and fun, the video game crowd should love it.

THOR!

2010-08-10T22:54:00.001-07:00

Another cool comics moment; Odin Loki and Thor facing off against Surtur. I actually missed this when it first came out, wasn't reading comics at the time. It wasn't till years later a buddy told me about this run. It's pretty damn epic. Walt Simonson was artist and writer and many believe this to be the best run on this book ever.

The second image is also from that run, Skurge's last stand at the bridge in Hel. I actually got goosebumps reading this, as he holds the bridge so Thor and the other Asgardians can escape. This was truly a F&%# Yeah! moment.

Sooperdooper dude!

2010-08-08T21:07:00.001-07:00

...from my book of sketches...

2010-08-05T22:56:00.000-07:00

........uh....I got nothin'....

sketchbook stuff...

2010-08-03T00:24:00.000-07:00

a zombie and a dinosaur....yep, the well runs very deep....

sketchbooky stuff

2010-07-21T12:03:00.000-07:00

Been busy with work, little time for sketchin', but here's a page from not too long ago.

Back from vacation

2010-07-09T00:39:00.000-07:00

One of the stops on what was a great vacation. It had the recipe for disaster; two parents driving 5 kids from AZ. to the east coast. Luckily, I never even had to say,"Do I have to pull this car over?!"
We stopped in Alabama to visit relatives and lo and behold there was a Star Wars exhibit at the Space Museum. Yes, I geeked out....

I'm pretty sure that kid could out eat a wookie.

Al Williamson RIP

2010-06-14T22:26:00.000-07:00

Wow, the masters are all leaving... This is a Flash Gordon piece he did from way back and it holds up to anything anybody's doing today.

Now for something a little different....

2010-06-11T02:44:00.000-07:00

When our son was about 1 and 1/2 my wife and I noticed a change; something had happened. While always a happy baby, he seemed more distant, like he was somewhere far away, like something had come in the night and taken a piece of what was him. I would see him in the back yard putting dirt in his mouth and he seemed to have different reactions to tactile surfaces and textures. My wife took him to see the pediatrician and after a few visits we were told he was autistic.

We were told that's why he didn't speak and we may have to think about sign language and speech therapy. We were also told he probably would have to go to special schools where he could learn skills to someday join the workforce and hopefully be able to live on his own. I remember it was all very scary and as a parent I wouldn't wish it on anyone.

So my wife, being who she is, quickly got him enrolled into as many programs as she could, she got him a speech therapist (Jennifer Ross, yes I'm calling you out :) She would come to our house during the week and work with him, basically training him , forcing his brain to re wire itself. It wasn't easy. And we as parents had to be very strict with what he was allowed to do and eat. He soon learned some sign language; when he was hungry or eating he would put his little hands together to tell us ,"more".

Did I say it was hard work? Oh yeah. I'm one of those guys that doesn't like a scene and there was many a time when he didn't give a damn, he'd lose his shit in the mall, in a grocery store, it didn't matter. He once tried to kick a waiter for taking his cheese crisp and if you were in Disneyland in 2003 by It's a Small World you probably remember the kid having a total mental meltdown. Yep. Good times.

Well, this was years ago and I'm glad to say he just got "promoted" from 8th grade and will be attending regular high school when summer is over. He's attended public schools most of his life, and has gotten good grades consistently. I'm not sure where I'm going with all this, but at a mark like this I can't help looking back at how I was worried he'd never have friends or be labeled the "weird guy" and yeah, he's not perfect, he throws a fit when he has to do chores, doesn't like changes in his routine too much, and can get a bit overwhelmed around big crowds. And sometimes he's just a spazz (yeah I said it) but that's most 14 year old's , right?

So, I guess I just wanted to say thanks (in writing) to the family, teachers, and friends that have helped him to overcome so much and enjoy life as a "regular" kid. You had to work so much harder than most of the kids in your class Seth, and you continue to suprise and overachieve.

To Jennifer Ross I say thank you and to my wife, Cammie, I say thanks most of all. Without you I fear what would have become of that little kid putting dirt in his mouth so many years ago.

Baron Blood, Union Jack, and some other guy...

2010-06-07T23:58:00.000-07:00

A classic story by Roger Stern and John Byrne which re-introduced Union Jack and the Nazi vampire Baron Blood(now that's a villain, he's a Nazi AND a vampire?) This was a great story and it's reprinted with the rest of their run in "War and Remembrance".

My dad bought this issue for me at a gas station on our trip from Va. to AZ. I read it over and over and it ended with a great cliff hanger! I checked every gas station the rest of the way just hoping to find the next issue. It wasn't until we arrived in Phoenix did I find a copy at a Circle K. I totally spazzed and my aunt gave me the $.63 (with tax) to buy the copy and I couldn't WAIT to get to their house so I could see what happened .That was 1981 (yeah, I'm old).

I still have those issues, they are all beat to hell and only worth the memory of that trip and what it was like to be a kid and get so excited over a story with pictures. In other words, they are priceless.

Ronnie James Dio RIP

2010-05-16T19:57:00.000-07:00

Wow, what a shitty week. First Frazetta, now Dio. The image is from a high school folder, looks like a concert date I'd written under his name. I saw many a Dio show and even recently saw him with his ol' Sabbath mates.

Frank Frazetta RIP

2010-05-11T00:19:00.000-07:00

Goodbye, Mr. Frazetta, and thank you.

sketch page

2010-04-29T18:33:00.000-07:00

From a sketch page I have sitting at my desk, been busy so this about all I've done... the gladiator is inspired by Spartacus the series. It's over the top on the blood, but I can't deny that I've watched every episode. I'm pretty sure the pitch for that show went like this;

"What do people like?"

"Sex and violence.......lot's of it."

"..........We can do that."

Better late than never...?

2010-04-25T21:18:00.001-07:00

So there was an AJ topic two weeks ago calling for a cover recreation. Since I was already drawing these lil' super types I thought I'd try to cover the classic Secret Wars cover. Unfortunately, I've been slammed with work and was not able to work on ANYTHING but that. So, two weeks later, here it is. It's got some problems (tangents) but I'm moving on. This took more time than it should.

Frank Miller's Daredevil

2010-03-25T23:03:00.001-07:00

Another favorite from the 80's. A really great run.

Spidey_Juggernaut

2010-03-24T00:52:00.000-07:00

Another old school story, it was a two parter in Amazing that had Spidey getting his butt kicked...but never gave up, really good stuff

Iron Man and DOOOOM!

2010-03-20T12:11:00.000-07:00

A quickie for AJ. I want to say it was issue 150 from early 80's , these two battle in the age of Camelot, cool stuff.

Black Canary

2010-03-15T19:55:00.001-07:00

Recent pen and ink.

Cap sketch

2010-03-02T07:46:00.000-08:00

Wow, Feb. was pretty busy, hope to post more this month...

Mr. Ecko

2010-02-15T22:29:00.001-08:00

Big fan of this show, nice characterization and half the fun is trying to guess what everything means and how's it all going to end.

Sonja

2010-01-24T22:43:00.000-08:00

....Ladies....

2010-01-18T22:54:00.000-08:00

Eddie Munny

2010-01-18T14:49:00.000-08:00

I need to get a Munny and paint this up...

Raven

2010-01-14T22:13:00.000-08:00

Willem Dafoe in Streets of Fire.

Ms. Summers

2010-01-11T23:13:00.001-08:00

Can't leave it alone....

2010-01-03T23:16:00.000-08:00

I can't leave anything alone and there's just some little things that bothered me about the first Batman image so I tried it again.........now I have other things bothering me about this one....going to walk away now..................maybe....

Happy New Year!

2010-01-01T01:26:00.000-08:00

Image for a buddy...

Sketchin'

2009-12-23T00:37:00.000-08:00

Marvel wimmins

2009-12-13T22:16:00.000-08:00

Took the poses from the DC characters and made some changes...

DC wimmins

2009-12-13T17:56:00.001-08:00

Some DC wimmins that I drawed...

Beware the Beard!

2009-12-07T19:45:00.001-08:00

So AJ had a "bearded superhero" week, here's wut ah drawed....

2009-11-24T17:38:00.000-08:00

Got a couple of days off soon, so hopefully I will put that to good use and actually draw something...until then, here's some sketches from scraps of paper sitting around my desk...

Trio of awesomeness!

2009-11-11T19:32:00.001-08:00

Oh, why do you hate me, Gods of Color?

Ninjas!

2009-11-07T21:32:00.001-08:00

Some ninjas for AJ

Union Jack meets new Cap

2009-11-02T20:58:00.001-08:00

some Halloween fellas

2009-10-29T00:38:00.000-07:00

just some recent sketchin'

Misc.

2009-10-15T03:05:00.001-07:00

Just some misc. pages from the sketchbook...notice once again I didn't get the feet in on a page....

October!

2009-10-05T23:27:00.000-07:00

A pic for AJ...and it seemed a nice image to start October...and speaking of which , the Halloween party is comin' around again, don't how many hangovers I got left in me...

Zombie

2009-09-21T23:32:00.001-07:00

Another pic where I was just doodling in the sketchbook, decided to ink, and yes, did not have enough room on the page for feet. I'm like the Rob Liefield of sketchbook drawings....except for the fact that more than three people know about him....

Hellcat

2009-09-09T22:34:00.001-07:00

sketch......stuff.......

2009-09-09T21:18:00.000-07:00

Black Widow (no feet!) and some sketches...and a chick with sword!

A moment to pause

2009-09-01T21:04:00.000-07:00

WIP, still figuring out some color issues...

WW

2009-08-29T15:02:00.001-07:00

I did a drawing of this a while back, finally got to making a color image in Flash.

T-cat sketches

2009-08-28T19:35:00.000-07:00

Just some sketches for the AJ topic...

Thundercats...70's style

2009-08-28T17:59:00.000-07:00

Panthro swingin' the chucks!

Cap an' Bats

2009-08-13T23:15:00.000-07:00

More sketches from the sketchbook.

70's Marvel stylin'

2009-08-13T23:12:00.000-07:00

DD

2009-07-26T21:42:00.001-07:00

While everyone was at Comicon I stayed home and did this.....

The top is a close-up

Crazy Ed's dad

2009-07-18T01:04:00.001-07:00

The theme was rednecks for AJ, so I had to draw this guy that lived down the road from me when I was a kid. He always wore those red speedo's and not much else and looked a lot like Richard Petty. He had a son everyone called Crazy Ed, even tho' he probably only weighed 100 lbs everyone in the trailer park was afraid of him because you did'nt know what he'd do at any time.

I could seriously write a book about the characters in that trailer park...

Comic booky stuff....

2009-07-12T20:23:00.000-07:00

Random stuff....

2009-07-06T03:08:00.000-07:00

Just some stuff from the sketchbook, hope everyone had a nice Fourth!

Sketches

2009-06-27T18:57:00.000-07:00

Some sketchbook stuff and a "Hug" for AJ...

Wilma Deering

2009-06-23T02:02:00.001-07:00

Wilma Deering from Buck Rogers...one of the best space-girls ever....and I'll fight any man that sez different!!

...meh...

2009-06-10T18:07:00.001-07:00

Been busy with some things so I'm just posting my sketch paper I have at my desk at work, I left it in color, I like drawing in pen, blue pencil, red pencil, etc.....

Some Cap drawins'....

2009-05-26T23:34:00.001-07:00

One from my sketchbook and the other on a blank cover I found for dirt cheap at the LCS...Drew them both after watching a few war movies on Memorial Day.

nekked wimins

2009-05-16T02:32:00.000-07:00

Just more playin' around in PS...

Page o' punches

2009-05-15T23:13:00.001-07:00

Sometimes it's fun to just draw people getting punched in the face....

Black Cat

2009-05-08T00:43:00.001-07:00

Image for AJ.

Rhino

2009-05-02T00:22:00.000-07:00

Just playin' around with some colors...

Cowgirl for AJ

2009-04-30T19:41:00.000-07:00

Still tryin' to get better at photoshop....

Some claw......guy..

2009-04-28T22:26:00.000-07:00

Sketched this claw guy....think he's rather popular with the kids these days....