random art and real life problems

Sorry, but Death of a Friend will be later than I want. I pencilled up the next two pages, but then dealing with our very ill cat took precedence.

She's sort of okay. Her hyperthyroidism is acting up and she may be going blind. It's heartbreaking to watch her pace around as though she's looking for something. She hugs the walls and almost bumps into everything. Word to the wise: If your animal is on meds for a condition and the vet has you giving him/her a pill or med-infused treat, unless your vet tells you DO NOT crumble the treat into the animal's food. Unless that animal is going to scarf up the entire portion, it won't get the recommended dosage and my have a relapse. Like ours did. I feel pretty darn guilty.

Anyway.

Here's a sketch I found while cleaning the house today. It's from a few weeks ago and shows my rendition of a Martian from the Rocco Vargas universe created by my favorite artist Danial Torres. Now, the way that Torres portrays Martians may, at first glance, to seem a bit of a 'minstrel show' look at race. But, I don't think he intended it as racist. He only has a few non-whites in his works, but his universe was intentionally the lily-white 1930's Buck Rogers-style 'future' (the stories take place in 1983 and he wrote them in 1987, get it?). The hero is absurdly masculine with a gigantic chest and lantern jaw, women swoon except for the kick-butt Asian warlord-girl. The most prominent Martian is Samson, Rocco Vargas' servant/valet/sidekick/best friend and their relationship is tighter than worker/boss.

However, it's always easy for us whites to say, "oh, it's all in fun", but I think this is all in fun, or at least tongue in cheek and is neither racist nor misogynist. Have any of you read any Rocco Vargas graphic novels? What do you think.

Anyway, here's the sketches of a Martian girl. I changed the nose to look a bit more alien:




I also remembered that I did an Illustration Friday piece with a Torres Martian girl back in '07. It's here.

listening to while posting: my poor cat stumbling around the room.

Green

This was a pretty good topic. I did have a bit of trouble thinking of an idea (though my alternate i-spy would have worked, yes?), but as a Friday meeting turned to non-graphic design topics, I sketched out a very, very rough homage to my favorite sequential artist in the world: Daniel Torres. Daniel Torres is the creator of Rocco Vargas, a fabulous retro comic from the 90's that was a perfect homage to the future that never was. The action took place in the 'future' of 1983, though it was first drawn in '84. His clean line technique evolved over the years to a style that was both iconic and naturalistic. I truly don't think there is anyone who draws like him. So, I decided to try to copy his style and MAN it is hard to copy another artist's style (not that I have any more respect for style-plagiarists like that guy who draws Robocop in the same style as Geoff Darrow).

What bugs me the most is that since Heavy Metal magazine has jumped the shark, the chances of finding any more translated Torres (or Gess or Frezatto) is slim. No Americans are making true graphic novels anymore, just superhero stuff and depressing, banal graphic memoirs.

Anyhoo.

Here's my Green. It is one of Torres' Martians as the Countess of Mars. I dressed her as the anti-heroine who first appeared in The Whisperer Mystery. Maybe there'll be a crappy prize for anyone who can name that anti-heroine. In the spirit of demosthenes , it's a graphic novel cover (not a comic book cover, so there's no little company box in the upper right)