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 A few recent color pieces.

 

Batman '66. Inks by Daryl Shaw.

Spider-man. Inks by Nate Stockman.

The Life and Adventures of Sherlock Holmes Cover. Inks by Stephen Downey.

DareDevil. Inks by Nate Stockman.

Howard the Duck. Inks by Daryl Shaw.

Tarzan. Inks by Paul Bolger.
 

The Sandman. Inks by Daniel Warren.
 

The 9th Doctor. Inks by Daryl Shaw.

Judge Dredd. Inks by Eoin Coveney.

Granuaile. Inks by Robert Carey.

Monster Motors. Inks by Daryl Shaw.

Sandman: Overture Flats

Here's an update of a few samples of flats for Sandman: Overture #2 and #3.

A Dream Come True... Part 2

I just received my copy of Sandman: Overture #2 Special Edition and was pleasantly surprised to see that Dave Stewart had given me a shout-out in his Color Process: From Theory to Execution piece. And a page of flats I worked on was also featured. From reader to collaborator in a little under 20 years!

Sandman Overture #2 3D Motion Cover

I've been having a fantastic time flatting pages for Sandman: Overture. J.H. Williams III's inks are amazing, Dave Stewart's colors are outstanding, and of course, Neil Gaiman is weaving another beautiful tale.

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.

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.

Concept Art From The Sandman Movie That Never Was

A long while ago Neil Gaiman pitched a three-part cinematic adaptation of his comic book SANDMAN to Warner Bros. The project never got off the ground and was then canceled. What we're left with is this stunning concept art by SANDMAN and BEASTS OF BURDEN illustrator Jill Thompson.

This art is up for sale and available for ogling. Gaiman announced the release of this concept art on Twitter: "Some years ago, I had to pitch/explain SANDMAN to Warners. Jill Thompson illustrated the pitch. That art's for sale."

View the entire gallery over at Cadence of Comic Art. Each image is priced from $800-$900. I only wish I could afford even a corner of one of these beautiful pictures,

Sandman Prequel Announcement

Twenty-five years after one of the most celebrated graphic novels of all-time hit shelves, award winning and critically acclaimed author and screenwriter, Neil Gaiman, announced his return to THE SANDMAN. Gaiman made the surprise announcement, via video, at DC Entertainment’s Vertigo panel at this year’s San Diego Comic-Con.

Karen Berger, Executive Editor of Vertigo, then revealed that Gaiman is paired with artist, JH Williams III, with Dave Stewart on colours for the series.

THE SANDMAN mini-series will be published by Vertigo in 2013, and I might have a bit of exciting news myself regarding this in the future – stay tuned!

Another Sandman for my collection

Here's a scan of that DC Commission I won by following TMC Illustration on Facebook the other day. It's a fantastic sketch of my all-time favourite comic book character, The Sandman, by the ever talented Thomas Crielly. I can't wait to stick this up on my ever expanding comic art wall.

For your chance to win a commission from TMC Illustration make sure to follow them on Facebook and/or twitter to be in with a chance of winning.

I won!

I just won a DC Commission from TMC Illustration. I will be getting an original A3 illustration of the Sandman (Morpheus) by the talented Thomas Crielly.

For your chance to win a commission from TMC Illustration make sure to follow them on Facebook and/or twitter to be in with a chance of winning.

Don't worry – I'll stick up the illustration when I get it.

Dave McKean portrait of me

I met Dave McKean at a seminar a few years back and he gladly signed my Absolute Sandman Vol 1, which I had carted around all weekend in the hope of meeting him – have you ever try carrying one of those Absolute books around for any length of time? I also managed, at a later date, to get Neil and Amanda to add their srcibbles to it too! Dave also did a quick-as-you-like portrait of me in my copy of Dustcovers: The Collected Sandman Covers 1989-1996 – so this is now one of my prized possessions.

Dustcovers is one of my go to books when I'm out of ideas on a project – it's full of astounding images that invigorate the creative juices. Actually, 100 Best Album Covers by Storm Thurgerson, is another great go to for me as well.

My Sandman

This is one of my numerous Neil Gaiman sketches – it's probably my favourite. It's inscribed in my The Sandman: Endless Nights. I have an unhealthy appetite for Gaiman signed stuff, much to my wife's and bank manager's displeasures.