It’s time for random thoughts Monday, my time to rattle off whatever is on my mind.  Lucky you!

Dungeons & Dragons Version 4:  Man, I was deeply, deeply tempted to buy these today.  They looked so cool, and the rules just look like they seriously rock!  The new character classes…  New races…  Easily customizable monsters…  Oh man, I wanted it bad.  But, sometimes you have to let the past just stay in the past.  At $104 bucks, I just can’t buy it for a group that can only get together a couple times a year these days.  Getting old sucks.

The Umbrella Academy: This looks cool, but I haven’t read it yet.  Grant Morrison wrote the intro, so has to be at least somewhat cool, eh?  I’m looking forward to it.

Fire From the Sky: I had never seen this UFO movie, and it wasn’t bad.  I like Robert Patrick, and he was fine in it.  I give it a workmanlike “B-.”

Mothman Prophesies: This movie was wonderful!  So dark, dreamlike, and moody.  So damn creepy, so sad.  It’s a tale of sad, lost people in a gray, sorrowful world, and I loved it!  It was very artfully done, and Richard Gere proved once again that he is just a great actor.  I award it an “A.”

The Art of John Howe: I found this in a clearance bin for about $9 bucks.  What’s wrong with people?  Why didn’t they buy it up?  One of the great fantasy artists ever!  He’s right up there with greats like Howard Pyle, Frank Frazetta, the Hildebrandt brothers, and Alan Lee, among others.  So, why was a book about him on a clearance rack?  Sacrilege, I say!

Airbrush Magazine: I don’t use an airbrush, but this magazine had a long interview with Alex Ross, another artist I adore.  The rest of the magazine was a rare glimpse into the art and techniques of the airbrush world, which is all well and good, but the Alex Ross interview was quite enjoyable.

Well, I was going to post some new art today, but I rambled on long enough that I think I’ll save the new art for Wednesday.

Be Good, or at least Be Lucky! Scott

Artistic Influences

Over the years, numerous people have hazarded guesses at who my artistic influences are. I’ve never kept those influences a secret, but I also don’t think they really show in my art style. Now, to set the record straight, I present the definitive list.

Cheesecake: Joseph Michael Linsner, Gil Elvgrin

Digital Painter: Greg Horn

Figure Artist: Andrew Loomis, Burne Hogarth

Others: Alphonse Mucha, M.C. Escher
Painter: Norman Rockwell, Frank Frazetta

Pen & Ink Artist: Charles Dana Gibson

Water Colorist: Alex Ross, John Howe, Alan Lee

Penciler, Original Influence: John Buscema, Gil Kane

Modern Comic Influences: Al Rio, Bruce Timm, Frank Cho, Frank Miller, George Perez, Jack Kirby, Jim Lee, John Byrne, John Romita Jr., Mike Mignola, Neal Adams

If you are an artist, who are your influences? The same question may be asked of writers and their influences.

Working on turning the guest bedroom into my den is continuing right on track.  Today I cleaned out the glass cabinet of Batman goodies I stored there.  Handling this collection again made me smile—I mean, there are Batman bandages, Batman chicken & noodle soup, Batman cake toppers, a Batman night light, Bat signal projectors, Batmobiles, Batman Easter Egg set, etc. etc.  In my defense, most of the stuff in this collection was pretty low cost, all the Batman Pez dispensers, Batman tooth brushes, Batman suckers, Batman pencil toppers, etc.

But, back to my future den.  This is going to be my secret hideout, with a wall of shelves holding all my graphic novels, prose fiction books, and art glass, and maybe some upper end action figures.  When I’ve got it done, I’ll post pictures.  My grandfather’s easy chair is going in there, as well as my Alan Lee framed print.  Soon, we’ll paint the room (this room has never been painted, and still has primer colored walls) and tear out the nasty old carpet.

Today, at the Indianapolis Art Center, I enjoyed a three hour pose with a model dressed head-to-toe as a Roman Centurion.  The costume is impressive.  I kind of blew it, because I got in a hurry and didn’t take the time the picture deserves.  But, that’s OK!  I’ve got pictures, and I will pain this to my satisfaction.

Last night, I watched the video of Dr. Steven Greer’s speech to the exopolitical crowd in Barcelona, Spain.  The show was about an hour long, and it had some very intriguing moments.  I’m not sure what to think of Dr. Greer, to be honest; he is vain, self-impressed, and a name and innuendo dropper, yet he also seems to believe what he’s fighting for.  Much of the disclosure that has happened is a result of Greer’s pressure in the higher levels of government.  He is a showman and a committed believer at the same time, so I find him perplexing.

Are traced photos the future of comic book penciling?  I’m starting to wonder.  I understand that the minimum threshold is much higher now than it was, say, in the 1980’s.  I really became aware of this trend when Greg Land went public on his technique—the controversy has raged on to this day!  Well, as you can imagine from my work, I prefer hand drawn and inked comics, but traced comics, if done well, can be quite beautiful too.  Here’s the crux of it: If the traced photos are stolen from other media and photographers, that’s bad; if the penciler took his own photos and traces from those, that’s good.  I don’t really care for comics traced from Poser figures, either, but I reserve judgment on whether the artist can make it look fluid and good or not.  So far, my experience has been “not.”

I haven’t read any of this Blackest Night event at DC.  When the trades come out, I will probably read the main series, but skip most of the supporting series and crossovers.  I’m looking forward to it, though, because the concept is cool and Doug Mankes’ art is really impressive.  I’ve been a fan of his since the Seven Soldiers’ “Frankenstein” mini-series.  To be honest, I also hope they use Blackest Night to return some of their cooler dead characters to life.  While I was still buying the monthlies, it seems DC comics were all about death, death, and death, and it was getting me down.

What change will Disney’s acquisition of Marvel have on the content of their books?  I’d like to think “none,” because many of their titles (Captain America, Daredevil, Avengers (whichever title) are outstanding.  In fact, with this current group of writers, including Brian Michael Bendis, Mark Millar, Ed Brubaker, Greg Pak, and Matt Fraction, this has been the richest time in Marvel comics since the 60’s.  Needless to say, I’ve been bowled over by their books in the last few years.  Let’s hope Disney doesn’t mess this up.

Have I rambled enough?  Let’s say yes.

Scott.