'Classic' Sam Kieth page... and Nola stuff.

Sent a this page to an old pal of mine - it's a piece I finished for a new comic project.  I decided to share his cool comments about it:  

Wow- that splash is some classic Sam Kieth - definite throwback to the old days when you used the Art Nouveau borders and odd panel shapes so much.  Were you intentionally making it like your early work, or just an accident?

Not posting this in a self aggrandizing way, it was more because it hadn't dawned on me until he asked this, that I sort of was sorta trying to get back to the  Nouveau-ish Ornate style I've used in the past. 

* * *

Okay, I'm an idiot. Seems I've already posted this page in a previous post.  So... now, to make up for my boo boo, here's something else I've added  to *this* post.

In the Nola mini series i'm drawing, as a little girl Nola wonders if Raven will play a part in her destiny. So here's a balloon telling her so, and a Ravel drawing which i dumped into the page.

Here she measures Ravens wing size that she's drawn on her bedroom wall, to tell them apart from Crows.

I call these 'patches' floating disconnected panels... meant to be pasted into another page.

Nola's artwork is done differently than any other comic i've drawn, most panels are drawn on random, sometimes different colored scraps of paper i've piled up over the years.

The whole process means the final pages don't exist. Instead they are only cobbled together only for the scanner, or assembled together digitally.

Not because it's easier, it's actually *more work* to stitch it all together, but i do it mostly because i wanted to stimulate different parts of my brain.  Trying to surprising myself.

It's my job to try and smooth the transitions between simple pencil art, b&w line work, fully painted art, or drawing on various textured papers.

Though i could add most of these things textures digitally, i get a tactile kick out of touching and manipulating fur, bristol, wood, fabric, glue, sand, anything i can lay my hands on.

Removing panels is easier too. Kinda shoots a hole in any original art sales, but since so few people will be interested in buying Nola art regardless, i may as well draw, scan, omit the weaker stuff, and just know it's drawn to please myself.... and few other hard core fans out there.

Not everything has to reach the amount of fans' that the Maxx stuff did.

There's room for both.

Rough 'I before e' Logo

Old doodle for a 'Worlds of Sam' logo..

Although it's a bit rough and sloppy, i do kinda like how unfinished it is, being a sketch.

A little graffiti towards the bottom, plus those 'colored swirly shapes' that i make by twisting Dr. Martin Inks Bottle Lids,  which squeeze the color across the page in unique shapes. Plus a little colored pencil to round it all out.

Sometimes it's fun to check out other artists half finished sketches...  even the ones that don't really work.

 

What's lurking..

Here's a series of rocks stacked over a branch.

I realize it's pretty unlikely this would happen in real life.

But just trying to do something a little different.. 

In this one, i wanted to try some different high lights in the bark textures.

It probably doesn't exactly work far as realism goes, but it was an interesting try.

You may recognize what's lurking behind both these tree drawings by now...

Here's their both covering it. I put them over it because i think the white pops nicely against the black background..

In case you don't remember, a while back i did some abstract versions of one of my old Marvel Presents covers just for the heck of it.

Comes in as a handy background too.

uh.... clearly I'm out of ideas for  new posts, aren't i?


- Sam

Maxx, yet another Tree... and thought on Worlds Vol. 3.

Obviously here's another Maxx cover.. this is one of the unpublished maxx covers i did, about 20 years ago.  Since no one saw it as a cover, I used as a trading card at one point. Today, i used it on the IDW reprints and just added the new logo for fun.

Kinda more of an homage to Heavy Metal logo... instead of the typical Maxx logo.

But then i've been slicing, dicing and generally screwing around with  comic book logos since my old Marvel Presents cover days. 

Yeah, another tree.

This is my favorite part of this one.. the white high lights I added . No clue what those white bits are. But they could be roots... or just a goof.

Luckily there's no wrong way to draw a tree if your someone like me.

Here's a close up of that 'Twout-a-verse' Poster. It's very large.. the is a photo of a Magic Box i built years ago... printed out the photo, then painted and drew over that.

A few Trout ads decorating the edges.. just for fun.

Finally scanning Worlds of Kieth Vol 2.

This period will have all the classic 'fan-fave' stuff, MCP wolvie covers, first Aliens series, Epicurus, Zero-Girl, Four Women, Lobo, Hollows, Scratch, various unpublished crap sprinkled through out.  If you grew up in the 90's & 2000's - this one's probably for you.

Vol 3 will just be a mish-mesh of weirdness,  might just scrap a third vol... and instead do a series of smaller art books, by subject? a book of ....

Trees.
Fashion.
Sam Kieth Girls.
Abstracts.
Weird creatures.
Asian themes.

Of maybe it's easier if these are all grouped together in Worlds Vol 3?

What do you guys think?