See ya Dad

We lost my Dad on Thanksgiving. It was unexpected and quite a shock to us all. He was only 56 and much too young.

He was a good man, and as a Thor lover from childhood he was very proud that I hang my hat at Marvel drawing comics. There wasn't a person he came in contact with he didn't mention it to. When I bought my car, he mentioned it to the dealer as if Spider-Man would inspire them to cut a couple thousand off the price. Ha ha. He was proud of me. He was a husband and father of four who worked at CAT for 34 years so I don't have say that I am proud of him, but... I am very proud of him. 

He was a music lover, and grew up in a family of musicians. He could play most instruments but he was a drummer at the heart of it. He gave all that up when I was young so I didn't see him play much thru his life. But about 4 years ago the music returned. He found that young man again and assembled a kit and shortly after that had a full blown, 6 piece band ready to play shows. My better half Casey McCauley was asked to sing for the band. I had the chance to see my dad rediscover his love of music with Casey by his side. The man who led me here and the woman to will walk with me the rest of the way. That's a pretty special thing to get to watch.

I'm glad my son had the chance to meet his Poppy and spend a few years with him. He'll hear stories for years to come and has his Grandma, aunts and uncles to fill in the gaps that will be there. I'm thankful for that. 

I'm also thankful for all of you who have reached out in the past few days to show your love and support. From my close friends to the fans out there, you all have warmed my heart and given me the brief getaway that has helped over the last few days. Your words are strong and they are appreciated. 

I'll be taking a small break from my blog, but rest assured that it will be small. After all, I am my father's son and we all knew that guy would never just sit the f down. ha ha. 

See ya later Dad. We'll miss you. 

Daily Sketch: Usagi Yojimbo

Stan Sakai is one of the nicest guys I've ever met and a true inspiration. He's been drawing his own character in volume after volume of his comic for years.

Today is his character USAGI YOJIMBO.

6x9 bristol
Brush, pen, ink

UPDATE: SOLD

Daily Sketch: Wormwood Gentlemen Corpse

My friend Ben Templesmith is one of those guys that knows who he is as a storyteller and artist and has built up a stack of books that hammer that home. WormWood: Gentlemen corpse is a fun mixture of grimy dead things and humor and the thing Ben loves most... tentacles.

Here's my 15 pen sketch of The Gentlemen Corpse. 6x9 bristol, pen and ink.

UPDATE: SOLD

Daily Sketch: Creed

When you ask creators about their influences you will find many of the same names on everyones lists. But there's one name that pops up on my list that played a big role in my early years of wanting to draw comics. Trent Kaniuga.

I discovered his book CREED around 1996, the year I graduated high school. Wizard Magazine was promoting the book a bit and I remember being blown away by how different it was. I read the standard superhero stuff but I never really drew like that. All of the sudden there was this guy around my age publishing his own comic and he drew in more graffiti like, fantasy style. I fell in love with it. I grabbed onto the idea that someone my age was doing comics books, his own comics books, and it gave me the thoughts that I might be able to do it to. 

Trent brought Creed back a few more times over the years and recently released a Omnibus of all his Creed adventures.

Most people have Watchmen. I have Creed. 

Today's sketch is Mark from CREED. 6x9 bristol, brush, pen and ink. About 25 minutes.

UPDATE: SOLD

Daily Sketch: Maxx

Sam Keith played a HUGE role in my young artistic development. I really look up to him for his freedom of expression in his shapes and lines. So fun.

Maxx is 6x9 bristol, pen and ink.
UPDATE: SOLD

Daily Sketch: Mouse Guard

After doing the Goon yesterday I thought it would be fun to do a few days featuring more of my friends creator owned books. People like Eric Powell and David Peterson are very inspiring for me. They've created their own worlds and great characters that live in them. One day I hope to be there with them.

Today is a MOUSE GUARD sketch from the David Peterson's great comics.

6x9 bristol
Pen, Brush and Ink

UPDATE: SOLD

Daily Sketch: THE GOON

Eric Powell is one of those guys that nailed a character so hard that he'll stick in our heads forever. Today's sketch is THE GOON.

9x12 bristol, pen and ink.
UPDATE: SOLD

Daily Sketch: Where the Wild Things Are

After a month of moving my family into a new house and setting up a new studio outside the house, I am getting back normal slowly but surely.

I'll be jumping back on my morning warm-up sketches but I'll be keeping them a black and white this time around. I'm really interested in playing with black and white pen sketching so I'll be using these to study and explore a few new styles.

Today is Max from WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE. 6x9 bristol board, pen and ink
UPDATE: SOLD