Heroes Con '09 Sketches

(click images to enlarge)






Here's a few of the sketches that were done at this year's Heroes Con. Thanks to all who came by!

The Marvels Project #2 Cover

(click image to enlarge)
Marvel's September 2009 solicitations are now available for all to see, and this time they include The Marvels Project #2. Here's how Marvel describes the issue:

THE MARVELS PROJECT #2 (of 8)
Written by ED BRUBAKER
Pencils by STEVE EPTING
Cover by STEVE MCNIVEN
Variant Cover by STEVE EPTING
Variant Cover by GERALD PAREL
The award-winning and best-selling team of Ed Brubaker and Steve Epting bring you CHAPTER TWO in this definitive tale of the origins of the Marvel heroes. As 1940 hits the world is already changing -- The Human Torch is on the run, The Angel makes his masked debut, The Sub-Mariner stalks the surface-worlders who have targeted his people -- and a young soldier named Nick Fury saves a German scientist from the Nazis and leads him to the USA. The battle-lines drawn in this race to create superhuman weapons of mass destruction still reverberate today in the Marvel Universe -- as this epic espionage thriller continues to unfold and reveal new twists!
32 PGS./Rated T+ ...$3.99

Painting the Human Torch on fire is still a challenge. I probably spent as much time on the Torch alone as I did the entire rest of the cover. Below is the rough sketch that was approved, and this time around I followed it pretty much exactly when doing the final painting.


(click image to enlarge)

Summer Conventions

Hey everyone, I've got a couple of convention appearances this summer to let you know about.


First, I'll be attending all three days at Heroes Con in Charlotte, NC next weekend (June 19, 20, and 21). I've also agreed to do two stints at the Hero Initiative Booth. The first will be on Friday, June 19th from 11:30 - 12:30. This means that I won't be at my regular table until about 1:00 on Friday. I know people like to line up early for sketches, so I just want to make you all aware that I won't be sketching at my table when the show opens - but rather at the Hero Initiative booth. A similar schedule will happen on Saturday. From 10:30 - 12:00 at Hero Initiative, and then on to my regular table. Hopefully we can avoid the mix ups that happened with the sketch lines last year (for which I apologize, but it was out of my control).




I'll also be at San Diego Comicon July 23-26. I don't have a specific schedule for that one yet, but I will be doing a panel at some point during the weekend.

If you're planning to attend either of these shows, come by and say hello!

The Marvels Project #1 Cover

(click image to enlarge)
Preview solicitations are out for August 2009 featuring The Marvels Project #1. Here's how Marvel describes the issue:

THE MARVELS PROJECT #1 (of 8)
Written by ED BRUBAKER
Pencils & Cover by STEVE EPTING
Variant Cover by GERALD PAREL
70th Anniversary Party Variant by PHIL JIMENEZ
The centerpiece of Marvel's 70th Anniversary celebration! Who is the mysterious old man who lies on his deathbed in a hospital in 1939, and how does his passing mark the beginning of the first heroic age of the Marvel Universe — and signal the rise of the superhumans? Ed Brubaker and Steve Epting unveil the defining story of the origin of the Marvel Universe, revealing the hidden connections that unite the earliest costumed champions, and whose reverberations are felt dramatically into the present day! It’s a world on the brink of war, and the race is on to create the world's first super-soldier! Witness the first days of the Human Torch, the Sub-Mariner, and many more-- how they shaped the world to come, and how the future they would create in turn shaped them! The must-read event of the season for any Marvel fan from the Award-Winning creators who redefined Captain America for the modern audience!
32 PGS./Cardstock Cover/Parental Advisory ...$3.99

Lots of texture overlays and some different painting techniques this time around, resulting in a slightly different look than the Captain America covers (at least I think so). I wish I had more time to experiment, but the ever present deadlines are relentless, as always.

Invader!

Something a little different this time - a logo I did for a friend's band:



and here are a few shots of the logo in "action":






I have a background in graphic design, but haven't done much of it in the comics industry. I did however, create the logo for one of the books I worked on. Anyone care to take a guess?

Toronto!

Tomorrow and Sunday I'll be at the Toronto Comicon Fan Appreciation Event. If you're in the area come by and say hello!

UPDATE: My flight isn't until Saturday morning so I don't know what time I'll get there... but it's safe to say I probably won't be at the show when it opens. I'm coming straight from the airport and will get there as soon as possible!

Green Girl

(click image to enlarge)
Just for fun I did a very quick copy of a Jack Faragasso painting. The original has a great painterly quality I wanted to try to emulate digitally. I also love the unexpected color choices. It reminds me of something Harley Brown says - that if you get the values right, the eye will accept the unlikeliest colors.