A Dream Come True

 

I guess enough time has passed since Sandman: Overture #1 came out to share some flats I did for the very wonderful Dave Stewart. Working on J.H.'s artwork was amazing, and the whole experience really was a dream come true for me.

More Covers!

Forever Evil: Rogues Rebellion #4. Pictures: Declan Shalvey.

Final colours: Jordie Bellaire. © 2013 DC Comics.

Forever Evil: Arkham War #4. Pictures: Jason Fabok.

Final colours: Pete Pantazis. © 2013 DC Comics.

Young Avengers #16/17. Pictures: Jamie McKelvie.

 Final colours: Matt Wilson. © 2013 Marvel.

Illegitimates #1 NYCC Variant. Pictures: Bill Willingham.

Final colours: Len O'Grady. © 2013 IDW.

Q2: The Return of Quantum and Woody #1 NYCC . Pictures: Mark Bright.

Final colours: David Baron. © 2013 Valiant.

Sons of Anarchy #1 NYCC Variant. Pictures: Gabriel Hardman.

Final colours: Matt Wilson. © 2013 Boom! Studios.

 Imagine Agents #3. Pictures: Bachan.

Final colours: Matt Wilson. © 2013 Boom! Studios.

Sandman: Overture

 

Over 20 years ago I picked up my now much-read and much-loved copy of Sandman: Seasons of Mist. It changed my life - I became a Sandman/Gaiman obsessive - collecting everything to do with the Endless Family. Over the years I've spent thousands of dollars on signed and rare oddities (see hmmm for example); queued for hours for readings and signings, and had brief chats with Neil Himself.

I always wanted to work on the Sandman, but never knew how that would happen, especially after it stopped publishing! When I found out that there was going to be a prequel to the series coming out this year I set about getting myself in there. Imagine my delight this morning to wake up to 2 double page spreads from issue 1 sitting in my DropBox waiting to be flatted for Dave Stewart - I don't even know how to start them!

In celebration of working on the new Sandman I treated myself to a few new goodies - a signed  Number 1 and some lovely figures.

Calavera the Undead

Here's a quick sneak peek at a page of Calavera the Undead #1 that I'm coloring for the digital edition. A print version in B&W is available over at the artist Nevin Arnold's blog. Follow Hangman Comics over on FaceBook for more updates and news.

Faster

I just bought this wonderful print by Nick Roche. He's raising money for the Irish Cancer Society.

Nick says: "I've made a limited-to-100 copies run of this A3 (29.7cm x 42cm) full-colour 160gsm print, which I call 'FASTER'. The print will cost €10, of which every penny will go to the Irish Cancer Society, with additional costs covering postage and packaging. Each copy will come signed by myself, and individually numbered."

Pop over to his blog and grab a copy before they're all snapped up!

Covers

I just realised that I've worked on lots of awesome covers over the last year, so I finally put a samples page together. I sometimes get the base colors pretty good - sometimes I'm way off – lucky I work with such talented artists! Here's a few highlights:

 The Ghost Train to New Orleans (The Shambling Guides #2).
Pictures: Jamie McKelvie.
Final colours: Jamie McKelvie. © 2013 Orbit.

 

Swamp Thing #19. Pictures: Tim Brase.
Final colours: Matt Wilson. © 2013 DC Comics.

Young Avengers #3 Variant. Pictures: Todd Moore.
Final colours: Matt Wilson. © 2013 DC Comics.

DareDevil Dark Nights #1. Pictures: Lee Weeks.
Final colours: Lee Loughridge. © 2013 Marvel.

Diablo #5 . Pictures: Joseph LaCroix.

Final colours: Lee Loughridge. © 2012 DC Comics.

First Look at Adventures of Superman #1

IGN have a preview of the digital-first ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN #1 up on their site. The first of those stories is available on the DC Comics app for a mere .99 cents, and is written by Jeff Parker with art by Chris Samnee and colors by Matt Wilson. I did the flats for this and it was a sheer pleasure to work on these pages.

Me... in Venom?

A big thanks to Declan Shalvey for my appearance in Venom #33. Here's me and Flash Thompson at my first Monsters Anonymous meeting!

Emerald Star Comics Presents

I did some production work on Emerald Star Comics Presents #1. Pop over and have a read.

Good Cake Bad Cake

A poster I did for the movie Good Cake Bad Cake: The Story of LiR about 3 years ago has finally seen the light of day. This is a fantastic documentary, by Shimmy Marcus, about one of Dublin's best live bands. There's a great interview with lead singer Dave McGuinness and the film’s director, Shimmy Marcus over at movies.ie

Good Cake Bad Cake: The Story Of LiR plays at The Factory, 35A Barrow Street, Dublin from March 21st to March 24th, at 8pm and 9.40pm. Tickets are €10, and you can book by emailing lirfilm@gmail.com or phone 087 2704132.

Inspirations

 

Here's the artwork I've been working on for the good folks over at Barretstown. A wonderful night of music and fun, in aid of a great cause, is sure to be had. Like them on FaceBook, and maybe I'll see you on the night.

How Ink is made

Peter Welfare, president and head inkmaker of the Printing Ink Company in California, talks us through the strangely Zen process by which ink is made from powder and varnish.

50 Years of the Avengers

Artist Michael Mateyko created this great Avengers poster featuring minimalist portraits or Earth’s mightiest heroes. The poster was made to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the classic Marvel superhero team. You can pick up a copy over at his shop.

Finally... Flatting updates

I had a quiet day today - so I managed to upload a bunch of new flats. Here's a brief sample.

Spider-Prize

I just won this fantastic original piece of Spider-Man artwork by Anthony Williams over at The Comic Stripper. Follow him @Comicstripper on Twitter - there may be another giveaway at another time.

Going on a Joyride

Image © Gene Ha and Todd Klein, all rights reserved.

I just picked up the tenth print in Todd Klein's 11 by 17-inch alphabetical series – I don't have a hall long enough for the entire alphabet. Artist Gene Ha has illustrated a key moment from the story of Bellerophon, a hero of Greek myth, who has captured the winged horse Pegasus and returned to his lady love, Princess Philona of Lycia to give her the ride of her life. Gene’s exceptional art is enhanced by his gray tones and pale pink spot color hand-painted by Todd on each print. Pick one up here before they're all gone! Todd also blogs about the print's creation here.

Dean White on Captain America

Fantastic interview with Dean White over at Marvel.com about his work on the new Captain America. I did the flats for this – the art by John Romita Jr. and Klaus Janson is fantastic stuff, and the finished colors by Lee and Dean are amazing. I'll pop a few flats up in a couple of weeks.