San Diego Comic-Con!

Hey guys and gals, in one short week I'll be attending Comic-Con in San Diego along with about 130,000 other people. This year I'm honored to be a special guest of the Con and to celebrate the occasion I finally jumped on the bandwagon and produced a sketchbook that I'll be offering for sale at my table in Artist's Alley (that's table AA-19 by the way). But that's not all! You will also have the opportunity to purchase a limited edition Captain America lithograph for the first time. You following me camera guy? That's right, a 32 page magazine sized sketchbook and a limited edition print. The sketchbook features a lot of art from the past several years including commissions and other rare pieces that have never been published. It was fun putting it together and I hope if you're in attendance you'll come by and take a look at it.

Also, on Friday from 3:00 - 4:00 I'll be holding a panel in Room 8 trying to think of something interesting to say. Come by and help me out by asking an interesting question if you're not already attending one of the zillion other panels going on at the same time.

I plan to be doing sketches at the show, but I unfortunately cannot take pre-orders (for those of you that have asked). I just don't have the time. And while I'm at it, let me apologize for not having time to respond to the email requests that have come my way. If I haven't gotten back to you yet please don't take it personally. I'm still working on catching up.

UPDATE: I'll be signing at the Marvel Booth (#2429) at the following times:

Saturday, July 25th - 5:00pm to 6:00pm
Sunday, July 26th - 12:00pm to 1:00pm

2010 South Florida Ride for Kids announced

The South Florida Ride for Kids launches the national event every year in February, and this year 39 cities across the country will host a Ride for Kids to raise money for the Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation.

This year's South Florida Ride is set for Valentine's Day. "So, please make our kids your sweetheart and help save a life," said website editor, Yuergen Boehmke. "It will be the most memorable Valentine's Day you will ever experience."

Rain or shine, registration opens at 8 a.m., Feb. 14th and closes at 9:45 a.m. with the police escorted ride departing at 10 a.m. from the (New Location) Coral Springs SportsPlex, 2575 SportsPlex Drive, just south of Sample Road and east of the Sawgrass Expressway. All motorcycle riders are welcome to participate. Thanks to the significant support of American Honda Motor Company's motorcycle division, Honda dealers, Honda Rider's Club and other motorcycle industry companies, the program has raised millions of dollars for pediatric brain tumor research. For more information about the South Florida Ride for Kids, contact webmaster@SFRideforKids.org

The Ride for Kids program broke all of its previous fund raising records in 2008, bringing in more than $5.2 million during its 25th anniversary year. The 2010 nationwide program kicks off in South Florida and closes in November in Sarasota, Florida.

Website : www.SFRideForKids.org

Heroes Con '09 Sketches

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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

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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.


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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

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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?