Hope your 2018 has been going well so far!

I’ve spent the first few weeks of the new year doing some professional housekeeping, updating my online profiles and revamping this website.

The first major change I made was to create a new digital portfolio. If you go to my Gallery page, you will see an option to download a pdf showcase of my past projects; this file is now up-to-date and contains examples of my best works. It is free to download and keep, so long as the images it contains are not used or reproduced without my permission.

I should be ready to put together a print version soon, so if anyone wants a hard copy of my portfolio, please contact me and let me know.

The other major alteration you might notice around the place is a new Extras page, which contains some fun stuff that my professional portfolio can’t contain: fan art, personal projects, rough sketches, production art, gifts I’ve drawn for friends and family. Sure, drawing is my profession, but I also love to draw for enjoyment, and this area shows off the things I’ve drawn for pleasure, as well as my experimentations, how I go from concept to finished art. Think of it as a little behind-the-scenes look at what I do.

My next task will be creating an additional ‘Shop’ page, with links to things that are for sale at my Etsy store,. I regularly add new products to the store itself, so make sure you  check it out every so often.

Here’s something from last year that I haven’t gotten around to posting yet.

I always thought that I liked comics (I should, since I wrote a Masters thesis about them) but I wasn’t that keen on superhero comics. That started to change when I read Mark Waid’s Daredevil, and I always thought Batman was kinda cool. Recently, I added Captain America and Superman to the list.

I remember watching the original Superman movie, starring Christopher Reeve, with my dad back when I was a little kid. My main memory of it was the scene where Lex Luthor puts kryptonite around Superman’s neck and pushes him in a swimming pool, leaving him helpless. I’m pretty sure those few minutes of cinema fueled a lifetime’s worth of nightmares about drowning, and a persistant fear of water.

Towards the end of last year I re-watched the film, and I was absolutely blown away by Christopher Reeve’s performance. Everyone knows the sad tragedy behind the accident that paralyzed him and left him wheelchair-bound for the rest of his life. That aside, and as well as looking incredibly comfortable in the suit, his acting in the film was just superb. He humanized the character so much, portrayed the inner turmoil of Clark Kent keeping his identity a secret, in a way that no one else possibly could.

I was inspired by the film to draw this tribute to Reeve’s Superman.

I was inspired by the style of one of my favourite comics artists, Chris Samnee (Daredevil, Black Widow) but I don’t think I quite nailed it. It was nice to practice drawing in pen and ink, though; at least I could justify having bought an expensive new brush pen a while ago! The shape of the frame is supposed to mimic the Superman logo.

Some close-up details:

The artwork is available as a print at my Etsy store; funds raised from sales will go to the Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation. I’m also happy to sell the original artwork for charity, if you are interested get in touch. Please help continue the legacy of this real-life superhero.

You’ll find this piece in the ‘Fan Art’ section of the new Extras page, of course.