Category: Art

FX Day [A Long Day] One

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FX 2007 billed itself as “the coolest show on Earth.” After looking at their guest list which included comic superstars: Matt Wagner, Dave Johnson, Michael Golden; film and tv celebs such as Michael Biehn, Lance Henrikson, and many others, I decided to check out the show for myself.

Unfortunately the convention got off to a shaky start. None of the con workers seemed to know their roles. The lines for “will call” tickets as well as the “day of show” tickets were backed up and it was long past the early opening time before things got rolling. I had purchased an advance three day ticket knowing that the odds of me attending on Sunday were slim, but because advance ticket holders were allowed into the show an hour early, I figured that the extra cost was worth it since I really wanted a sketch from Dave Johnson. Unfortunately advance ticket holders did not get in an hour early, nor did they get the promised “goodie bag” [which didn’t bother me]. To slow things even more, all advance ticket holders had to wait while a con employee stuck a temporary tattoo on them so that they could gain admission the following days. Sheesh!

When I got into the show I made a beeline for Dave Johnson’s table. I already had one sketch by The Potentate in my collection, [a cool Rocky Balboa] and was hopeful that I’d get another to compliment it. Reverend Dave arrived about 15 minutes later and seemed surprised that he had people waiting. I spoke to Dave about my admiration for his work and he was genuinely humble. As he looked at my Stallone sketches, he commented about ones that he particularly liked. I think it’s always cool to hear artists talking about their craft and other artists that they admire. We agreed on the price and Dave said that he’d do me a nice Jack Carter.

My next stop was Matt Wagner’s table. Matt, like Dave Johnson, is one of my favorite comic creators. I’ve followed Matt’s work since his Comico days. Mage remains one of my all-time favorite graphic stories. I knew that Matt’s sketches were out of my price range, but I still wanted to meet the legend. Matt was as down-to-earth as Dave Johnson. We talked for a bit while I was looking at his pre-done con sketches. They were all sweet. Of course there weren’t any of Stallone. ; ) During the course of our conversation though, Matt agreed to do a smaller Jack Carter sketch that would work with my budget.

Getting a sketch from both Dave Johnson and Matt Wagner made my show. I wouldn’t be looking for more sketches despite the fact that it was a slow day for the artists. Still, I did make my way around the show to visit with Miguel at his Rocky Balboa booth, Andrew Robinson, Joe Pekar, Andy Smith, and the guys at Cadre’s Corner. In fact while I was talking to Cadre another guy came up and had a couple of pictures taken with some of the crew. As the guy was telling them how much he enjoyed their work, I realized that it was William “The Greatest American Hero” Katt! He must have noticed me looking at him because he reached out to shake hands and say, “Hi.” Surreal.

I decided to walk around the tv and movie celebrity section. It was cool seeing Michael “Terminator” “Aliens” Biehn and Lance “Aliens” “Near Dark” Henrikson. They had huge lines of fans waiting to get their autographs. I’ve always liked Michael Biehn and look forward to his role in Tarantino and Rodriguez’s “Grindhouse” this summer. A couple of the stars of the hit series “Heroes” were there, but since I don’t follow the show, I can’t tell you about them. I also Peter “Mission Impossible” Graves, King Kong Bundy [not as big as I thought he’d be], Ron “Serenity” Glass and a few others.
John Higashi showed up and we hung out for a bit. It’s really hard to keep pace with Higashi when he is in full-con mode. He was like a shark in fish-infested waters as he made his way from artist to artist, setting up commissions, buying sketchbooks and laying the groundwork for later art deals.

Dave Johnson finished my Jack Carter piece. It was a knockout… absolutely perfect. Then to top it off, The Potentate presented me with an autographed copy of his latest sketchbook as a bonus! [Later that evening, as I was looking at my sketchbook, I was surprised to find that my Rocky sketch was in it! Too cool.] It was a great ending to a fun day.

Drink and Draw Launch Party

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Remember when I told you about the Drink and Draw Social Club?

Ok. Do you remember when I told you about their cool art book [The Drink and Draw Social Club Vol. 1]?
Well, you won’t want to forget this… especially if you’re able to attend. [And if you do make it, be sure and tell Reverand Dave that the I sent ya!] Anyway, the Drink and Draw Social Club is having a launch party for their new book on February 10th from 6pm until closing at the Meltdown.Drink and Draw Social Club founders Dave Johnson, Dan Panosian and Jeff Johnson will be joined by LeSean Thomas, Josh Middleton, Felipe Smith, Jim Mahfood, Tragnark, Michael Avon Oeming, Kat Von D and many others.

If you can’t attend, you can still get a copy of The Drink and Draw Social Club Vol. 1 by clicking on the link. And if you do go, be sure and get some photos!

Heroes Helped by Heroes

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It’s sad to say that many older comic book writers and artists end up financially strapped in their “golden years.” An organization called Heroes Initiative works to “provide a financial safety net for yesterdays creators who may need emergency medical aid, financial support for essentials of life and an avenue back into paying work.”

One of their recent efforts involved recruiting over 80 comic book artists [and even a writer or two] to draw a custom sketch on the blank cover of a specially produced issue of Ultimate Spider-Man #100.

Drink and Draw

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Artists, for the most part, live solitary lives. They usually work alone, spending long hours at the drawing board. In an effort to combat this isolation, Dave Johnson, Jeff Johnson and Dan Panosian formed the Drink & Draw Social Club. Once a week these talented artists would get together to eat, drink, draw and socialize. The idea was such a great one that more and more artists began to join in.
Soon talents like Andy MacDonald, Josh Middleton, Jim Mahfood, Lesean Thomas, Kat Von D and others began to swing by for some drawin’ and jawin’.The idea was such a natural that similar groups began to spring up around the country. Heck, even “Big” John Beatty started his “Sketch Society” last year wrapped around the same concept.Can you imagine how cool it would be to hang out in a relaxed atmosphere with these talented artists as they drew stuff that THEY wanted to see? Well, you might not be able to hang out with these talented cats, but you can see some of the cool art that their Drink and Draw sessions produced! The Drink and Draw Social Club Volume 1 is now available. Featuring over 100 pages chock full of art,! My order is in!

300: The Art of the Film / Z-View

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I received my Art of 300 book today and it’s a beaut!With 300: The Art of the Film you get to go behind the scenes and see how director Zack Snyder (Dawn of the Dead) translates Frank Miller’s award-winning graphic novel to the big screen. The book includes more than 100 pages of production photos, concept art, and much, much more. What makes the deal even sweeter is that if you order using the link provided you can save over 33%!Now if the movie’s release date would only get here!

300: The Art of the Film rates an “A”

007: 002 Views – 001 Vision

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The caricature of Daniel Craig aka “The New James Bond” is the work of Tom Richmond. Tom is perhaps best known for his artistic endeavors at Mad magazine. I’ve been following Tom’s work for some time now, and regularly check out his blog. Initially it was Tom’s art that kept me coming back, but that’s not what I’m writing about today.

Tom posted his thoughts after seeing “Casino Royale” yesterday. While I was reading Tom’s review, I kept nodding and thinking, “My thoughts EXACTLY.” I couldn’t agree more with Tom in regard to his take on “Casino Royale” and the James Bond franchise. So if you want to know what I thought about the movie, then click HERE… as an added bonus you’ll get to see a bunch of Tom’s cool art as well.

 

Scalped… a Sly Recommendation

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Today I’d like to recommend Scalped, a new comic series which premieres in January. It’s a crime comic set in the “world of gambling, gunfights, G-men, Dawg Soldiers, massacres, meth labs, trashy sex, fry bread, Indian pride -”

Hey! Wait a minute. Did you say Indian pride?

Yep [and thanks for asking].

Scalped comes to us from Vertigo comics [for mature readers] and is written by Jason Aaron with art by R.M. Guera. For a preview of the issue click HERE.

The first cover is by fan favorite Jock and can be seen here. Now is it me or does the face on the Native American look a bit like Sylvester Stallone from this Herb Ritts photo? Want to see them both together? What do you think?

Truth be told, it does look like Jock used a Herb Ritts’ photo of Sly for reference, but it may have even been another photo from the same session. I can’t lay my fingers on the photo, but here’s a digital painting that John Beatty did of it.

It’d be cool if Jock was a Stallone fan… but either way, I’d still recommend Scalped.

Almost Time for Tampa

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If all goes according to our plan, in two weekends [November 12th to be exact], I will join my buddies, “Big” John Beatty, John “Star Wars” Higashi, and “The James” Howell for our tri-annual trip to Tim Gordon’s Tampa Comic Book and Toy Show. That’s Tim pictured above. He’s the guy not wearing a mask.

The show is always a blast. If you’re a long-time ZONE reader, then you’ve heard me speak about the show many times before. If you’re new to these parts, then click HERE and you’ll get a preview of the fun.

Hope to see some of you at the show. I’ll be the guy looking for Stallone sketches!

Chaykin’s Blade

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If you’ve been keeping up, then you know that I’m looking forward to Howard Chaykin’s art on the soon to be released Blade comic series from Marvel. Heck, you’ve probably read my post about it here and here. And since you’ve been keeping up, you probably already read this interview with Chaykin.

I guess the only thing left is to buy the comic!

 

Beatty & Carter @ the Society

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Last Saturday, Big John Beatty called together the second monthly [at least so far] meeting of the Sketch Society. I first told you about Sketch Society here and posted my reports on the first and second meetings here and here. Big John has posted pics and his report of the second meeting over at his blog. I’ve also posted the quick sketch that John did [without reference] of Sly as Jack Carter.

The next Sketch Society meeting will be held in October at a date and place to be determined. One thing is for sure though, my birthday is in October and I’m going to push for the Sketch Society meeting to have a Stallone theme! ; )