To Hold You Over

Until Issue #1 comes out at the end of the month, here are some quick snapshots to keep the faith.




Some cool events are coming up soon in Chicago. More info to come.

Dave

I'm Famous!

Panels On Pages interviewed yours truly along with Aaron Pittman and Andy Vanderbilt at Chicago Comic-Con back in August and they recently posted the video for it. There are a lot of great interviews with great creators but if you wanna skip to the beautiful faces, we're at the 5:25 mark in the video.



Riveting! We also took their Pop Rocks challenge and destroyed it (of course)!



Thanks again to the PoP crew for a fun time at Chicago Comic-Con!

Dave

Happy National Sandwich Day!

I apologize for the delay in updates. I've been very busy with work and life that I haven't found time to get on here and keep things up to date. I hope you all had an awesome Halloween and more importantly a great National Sandwich Day. I know some of you celebrated by going out and picking up an copy of GSD #0. I know Issue #1 had been very delayed and I apologize for that as well. I am trying to find time this week to wrap up the last few pages. Once that's done, I just need to arrange and letter and it's ready to go to print. I am planning some cool things for the release. I also plan to have this be one big release as opposed to Issue #0 where different shops got stock at different times. I'm going to make it a point to get it out to the stores prior to the release date so that they can all put it out at the same time.

I recently did an art demo for Montana spraypaint at the Dick Blick in Wheaton, IL. I had a blast demonstrating and painting in front of everyone. The crowd was so awesome. The finished painting is actually hanging at the store so you can go check it out there. You can even make a bid on it (I think). Here's a shot of the finished piece:


And this is what happens when spraypaint explodes all over your hand:

Skull hand!

As some of you may know, my good friends David Gruba and Rene Castellano just released a brand new book, Bride Of Wolfman. I had the honor of seeing pages and character designs for the book a while back and it's such a cool story. I definitely urge you to hit up your local shop for it. If they don't carry it, demand it!

Unfortunately I won't be a part of the new C2E2 show this year. But a lot of great artists are going to be on hand so you should definitely go out and show your support for local Chicago artists. I think my next show will be Tablecon which I believe is sometime in January. I will keep you all posted. As for now, I need to get some sleep!

High five,
Dave

P.S.
Oh yeah!

Chicago Comic-Con '09 Recap (For Real)

Okay, so there was a bit of a delay in my Comic-Con recap. I've been really busy with work and preparing GSD #1 (I got a lot of awesome things planned for the release). But finally here it is, my official CCC '09 recap. (This is gonna be a pretty long post because I have some other cool stuff to talk about after the recap).

Of all the years I've gone to Wizard World Chicago (now dubbed Chicago Comic-Con), I've never been part of the show. I've gone and bought tons and tons of crap and hung out in the Artist Alley, either talking to artists I knew locally or drooling over original artwork some other pros. But I never had a table until this year. Best way to put it was I was extremely excited and very unprepared. The con always seems to sneak up on me and pair that with my recent move, I totally didn't have time to do everything I wanted to do for the show. But I had a wonderful time nonetheless. This year the big three didn't show up so fortunately for us artists, that meant the alley was flooded with con-goers all weekend. It was really awesome to see the convention being about the artists again. We met a lot of great people over the weekend. I'd like to thank everyone who came by and gave us hugs and high fives and bought our stuff. If you happen to come across my blog and you bought a sketch or painting from me, I'd really really appreciate it if you could send me a scan of it as I didn't get a chance to snap a picture of everything I did that weekend. I'd love to put it up here! I do have some pictures to share though. So check em out below. This weekend was a blur of drawing, people in costumes, us dancing to mariachi music, convention pretzels, underpants and insanity. To sum it up, greatness. I'd also like to thank all the artists and creators we met this weekend who gave kind words and hung out. The comic community is really awesome, especially the one here in Chicago. I guess I thought I had more to write but I guess not, haha. So check the pics out and then I'll have some more to say after that.

One of the happiest moments of my life.



I don't think I'll ever get sick of painting Spidey.



Galactus neither. This was the point in the convention when I ran out of sketchbook paper and started painting on paper towel from the bathroom. I think it looks nice.



This was an old practice sketch from my portfolio. I do a lot of exercises where I'll make a vague shape and then attempt to turn it into something. I really really liked this piece.



We found Sandman in the garbage can by our table and decided to class him up and make him our mascot! He's in my closet at my apartment as I type this. Expect to see him more often folks.

That was exciting wasn't it? Shake your head yes. There you go.

As I said before, I am still finishing up The Great Sandwich Detective #1. It's almost finished and I'm setting it up for a mid-September release. It's turning out really awesome. I'm sorry it's taking so long but there's a lot that goes into it and like I've said a million times before, I don't always have the time with work and everything. But I do have some awesome promo stuff in the works for the release of the issue that's gonna be a lot of fine. I also plan to release this on a fuller scale as opposed to the staggered releasing I've unfortunately had to do with Issue #0. I've gotten some copies into some stores in the city. You can pick a copy up at Challengers as well as Brainstorm (which is sadly closing in October, so please go there and buy a million things!). I still have to stop by Chicago Comics and Quimby's. And I also still need to mail some copies out to the suburban stores as well as the out-of-state stores. If you know of a store that would carry GSD, please please let me know. I don't care what state it's in, I'll send some to them. But for Issue #1, all the stores that carry GSD will all get copies at the same time. I promise. Keep checking back for an official release date.

The Size Matters show at The Nerve Gallery in Oak Park has recently wrapped up. I was very honored to have my work hanging there. I still have the paintings so if you are interested in purchasing one (or all) of them, feel free to shoot me an e-mail. They are $40 each (plus shipping if you're out of state or far from me). I'll probably throw some free copies of GSD in there for you as well. So hit me up. The next show at The Nerve Gallery is tentatively September 5th. They'll have more info up soon I believe. This show is a tiki theme complete with a tiki bar and bands playing. I will be debuting three new pieces at the show. I will post the info when I get it. I'd love to see you all out there!

A big plus of Comic-Con weekend was I got to see my good friend and Alex Ghost partner Aaron Pittman. Aaron's work has gotten so much tighter and even more astounding. He has some awesome projects and prospects coming up so you should keep an eye on him. We're also going to be getting back to work on Alex Ghost soon. The new pages are amazing. And we're also working on a super secret pitch for a new book for one of the big three. We'll talk about it more another time but it's really really cool and we're hoping it can work out.

I guess that's it for now, thanks for checking back with me.

Dave

P.S. There will be some sneak peek shots of Great Sandwich Detective #1 up this week. Please hold back your excitement.
P.P.S. I've added a direct feed of The GSD's Twitter page. Now you can see up to the minute updates of events as well as what stores have GSD in stock!

Chicago Comic-Con 2009 (Briefly)

Hey all, sorry it's been so long since I've updated. Chicago Comic-Con was a lot of fun (and went by wayyyy too fast). Anyways, I'm just stopping in real quick to update and let you all know I'm still around and so that if any new people to the blog come by, they don't think I never update this thing. I will have a more detailed recap of the convention with pictures either tonight or tomorrow!

Dave

Comics/Collectibles/Toys Show This Weekend @ The Oak Lawn Pavilion!

Sorry I haven't been updating lately folks. I've been working on issue #1 as well being tied up at my day job (the glamorous life of a not-so-pro comic artist) with my new hours. I should have Issue #1 out by the end of this month or at least in time for Chicago Comic-Con in August.

I will be appearing at the Collectible Nation Comics & Toy Show this weekend at the Oak Lawn Pavilion in Oak Lawn, IL. There will tons of vendors selling great stuff as well as other awesome artists/writers hanging out including David Gruba, Rene Castellano and Juan Arevalo. Here is the information:

Collectible Nation Toys/Comics/Diecast Show
Oak Lawn Pavilion
9401 S Oak Park Ave
Oak Lawn, IL 60453
Time: 9 AM - 3 PM
Admission: $5 at the door
Children under 11 get in for free!

I unfortunately do not have any copies of Issue #0 available at the moment (I will have plenty of #0 and #1 at Chicago Comic-Con). I will have new cardstock mustaches like I was giving out at Motor City Con. I will also be doing sketches and paintings and will have original artwork for sale as well.

I hope to see you all this weekend! High five!

Dave

The Steps To A Goofy Painting

Hello all. I've been hard at work on Issue #1. I'm nearing completion and plan to have it out at the end of this month. I've also been working on some paintings for the "Size Matters" show that will take place this Saturday at the Nerve Gallery in Oak Park (more info towards the bottom of this post). So I thought it'd be cool if I showed a step-by-step of how I do my paintings. For this post, I used a Guardian Of The Universe.

I normally start out with a non-photo blue pencil. In this picture, I'm just using what I normally use for GSD pages, 11x14 Strathmore Bristol board. You can get a pad of it from the local art store for like $12. Once I'm done doing the pencils, it's time to paint.

I'll be honest, and some of you may know from seeing me at conventions, I don't use the crazy professional watercolor kits. Nope. I use a 24-color Crayola kit that I get from Target for $3.99. It seems to do the trick. So same method as I do with GSD. The only difference is, with GSD, I ink the pencils before I paint. I'm trying something differently with this painting (and the paintings I did for the upcoming show). So I just brush over each part. I use a Dynasty #5 brush because I like the way the tip keeps a point when wet and can curve around while brushing. I'll normally apply 2 or 3 coats, depending on how dark I want the color to be. Once the paint dries (which is what rocks about the Crayola paints, they dry extremely fast which is why I use em especially at conventions cause I can bust out a painting in rapid time), I'll finish it all up.

So I said above how I'd normally ink my pencils then paint but I wanted to go with a rough sketchy style with this painting. So after the paint dried, I used a thick #9 tip sketching pencil and darkened all the lines and did the shading and whatnot. I was a little sloppy with this one because I was just using it as an example. In total, this whole painting took me about 10 minutes to do.

So that's my painting style in a nutshell. When I do GSD, it's a little more complicated because after painting, I do ink washes and whatnot. But that's for another time.

I was very pleased to see my Galactus painting went to a good home for the Josh Medors benefit. The auction was a success and I believe they said it will pay for about a year and a half's worth of treatment for Josh. Thank you to all the artists that contributed and to all the great art collectors and fans who went and bought all of the items listed. You helped a great cause.

So this weekend, I'll be taking part in a show at The Nerve Gallery in Oak Park, IL. The show is called Size Matters and will feature artwork that is all at a finished size of only 12x12. There are a bunch of great artists that will be on display such as Ed Nowiszewski, Walter Piper, Art Baltazar and more. Definitely come out and give me a high five or something. I will have three original watercolor pieces on display (and they will be for sale for those bringing $$$). Here is a flier for the show:



I snapped some pictures of my three paintings. Not the best quality pictures, but it'll give you an idea of what I got cookin' for this show.


Grodd Want Nana!
Watercolor on Bristol board
Matted in 12x12 frame
$40


Apocalypstick
Watercolor on Bristol board
Matted in 12x12 frame
$40


A Brilliant Revelation
Watercolor on Bristol board
Matted in 12x12 frame
$40

That's all for now folks. See you Saturday!

Dave

GSD #1 & Citizen Toxie Says Hi!

Hello hello! I have been hard at work on Great Sandwich Detective #1. It's looking awesome and also hilarious. I plan to have it out mid/late June. I am awaiting more copies of GSD #0. As soon as I get them, I will be bringing/sending them to the other stores that have agreed to carry it. As of now, the only store in the Chicagoland area that has it in stock is Tenth Planet on 95th & Cicero in Oak Lawn. This batch of copies are missing a price on them but they are $2. If Paul's not there and one of the employees says they don't know how much they are, tell em to look here!

Yo Tenth Planet Employee! What's happenin'? Your store rocks. Great Sandwich Detective #0 is going for $2. I love you. Bye.

Awkward? Maybe. Anywho. As soon as I get the new copies, it will be easier to find in the Chicago area as well as some other areas like Homewood and Belleville. I'm also in contact with a store from Ann Arbor, MI that is interested. So I will keep you all posted.

Thanks to everyone who came out to the Instant Press open studio. Though I'm not an official member of the IP team, those guys are great and I wish them great success. So yeah, you rock if you went there and are now looking at my blog. Dave Gruba has asked me to draw the next issue of Son Of Gondor and I am definitely down for that. So be on the lookout for that as well.

I'm still awaiting word on that little con in Oak Lawn on July 12th. I'll hopefully be there drawing and selling copies of GSD #0 and #1. Awesome. Wizard World Chic- er- Chicago Comic-Con is coming up in a couple of months. I will be there along with Aaron Pittman ("Alex Ghost", "Reaper Heights"), Drew Rose ("Alex Ghost"), Andy Vanderbilt "GSD" cover artist, "Grim Force") and Eric Berndt ("Grim Force"). It's gonna be a rocking good time.

I'm also working on organizing a chapter of Drink And Draw for the South Side of Chicago. If you're not familiar with the Drink And Draw Social Club, click here for their website. Basically artists get together weekly/monthly/whatever at a bar and have adult drinks and draw pretty pictures. There's a group that meets on the North Side every Wednesday but I figure we have a lot of South Side artists over by us and we're surrounded by bars so why not have a chapter here? So if you're an artist and you're interested in joining us, feel free to e-mail me. Non-drinking artists AND writers (that means you, David Gruba!) are also welcome. Please only 21+ artists! We don't want it to turn into Underage Drink And Draw Then The Bar Loses Its Liquor License!

Also, it's not too late to go bid on a piece of art for the Josh Medors benefit auction! Click here for a list of all the pieces up for auction, including my Galactus painting (cough-which I'm sure you all can beat a $5.50 bid-cough cough). Go help a great cause and get some great artwork!

I now leave you with the Toxic Avenger!


Later!
Dave

My Piece For Josh Medor's Benefit Damaged

Unfortunately, I just received an e-mail from Dave Kopecki, who is running the art auction for Josh Medors. Dave told me my piece came to him in the mail heavily damaged (thanks a lot USPS) and is afraid that it will not sell due to the condition. I told Dave to list the piece with the condition that I will do a new painting for the winner, whatever they request. I don't know if Dave is going to post that or not but be on the look out. If my piece is listed tomorrow for the auction, my offer stands that I will paint whatever the winner wants and mail it to them, this time in a cushioned lockbox with lasers and an airbag system if I have to.

I apologize to anyone who was looking forward to bidding on the Galactus painting. To be honest, I am extremely embarrassed. I should have sent it in better packaging. The employees at the post office are so rude and ignorant every time I'm in there so I was reluctant to listen to them when they were rifling off the nine million shipping options. That's my fault and I'm sorry.

I urge you to bid on whatever you can tomorrow. This is an extremely noble cause and one that is worth both your money and attention.

Dave

Instant Press Comics Open Studio This Saturday!

This Saturday, the gentlemen over at Instant Press Comics will be hosting an open studio (like an open house but for awesome comic book art). A bunch of artists, writers and creators will be hanging out, drawing, displaying artwork and eating finger sandwiches (NOTE TO INSTANT PRESS: there better be finger sandwiches there!) I'll be there and I believe Andy will as well. I don't know who else will be attending artist/writer-wise but knowing the fine clientele of Instant Press, it should be a great time! If you're interested in attending, check out this info below:


Instant Press Comics Open Studio
Date: Saturday May 23rd
Time: 6 PM - 10 PM
Location: Instant Press Comics studio
5128 N Elston Ave
Chicago, IL 60630

Please RSVP to David Gruba (grubbmaster@ameritech.net)

Due to some scheduling clearing up, I should be able to have a table in the artist's alley at the Collector's Convention at the Oak Lawn Pavilion on July 12th. I'm awaiting word from the guy running it. I will post it in my con schedule when I get more info.

Just a reminder, the benefit for Josh Medors begins Saturday. To check out all 120+ pieces of art up for auction, click here. There are some truly awesome pieces in there from commissions to sketches to paintings and original comic pages from tons of great artists!

That's all for now, folks!
Dave

Motor City Con 2009: Day Two & Three

So another convention comes to a close! I had a blast this weekend. Thank you to all the great people who stopped by our table and gave us high fives and hugs and bought our cool stuff. Here's a buttload of pictures from Day 2 and 3. Check it out. Until next time, peace!

Dave






















Taimak rockin' the stache!

Motor City Con 2009: Day 1

I had a blast yesterday at the first day of Motor City Con. It's such a great convention. The artists are great, the guests are great (except for charging $15-$20 or more for autographs) and most importantly the convention-goers are great! Oh yeah, and soft pretzels and cheese are really cheap in Michigan! So we sold some books, did some sketches, some paintings, got some work done. We had a lot of people join our league of mustachioed people. It was really really awesome to see people walking around the convention wearing our mustaches. I better see them on today! So I got a buttload of pictures to put up yesterday so check it out.


Our first $2 of the day! Boom.

This is the Galactus piece I did for the Josh Medors benefit. This will be going up for auction on May 23rd. For more info, click here.

Magneto needs a shave.

Space Ghost!

The pencils to a Boba Fett painting I did

And the inks! I don't know why I didn't take a pic of the finished painting yet. I will today and I'll post it later!



And now we present the initial members of our league of extraordinary mustaches!

Aw yeah mustaches! (Art & Jimmy The Muscle)



















That's it for now. I will have pics of Day 2 up tomorrow! But I gotta go now because The Honky Tonk Man is in our hotel lobby and I think he's crabby! Yikes!

Peas.
Dave
Motor City Con 2009!