commission WIP

to be inked.

11 mouseguard...ish

in case i haven't mentioned it (hint -- i have), i'm doing a mouseguard short. finishing it this weekend, so mouses on the brain and all that.

8x11" pencils, SOLD

10 bikini cowboy

i've know luke weber and bikini cowboy forever... but for some reason, while i knew he was working on the book, i didn't know it was already out. foolish ben! now i have to get it, looks awesome and pulpy and, if anyone can carry hundreds of pages of bikini cowboys and make it work, it's luke. and maybe rodolphe. but only one of them has a book with bikinis and cowboys, so i guess that's that.

pictured: that's that.

you can get the book here, and luke's also got a sketchbook that i must have. so please get them both, but wait until i've got them first, you selfish bastards.

as always, 8x11", pencil, $40.

commissions

recent commissions:

WW and big barda

conan and belit, the pirate queen

batman and poison ivy

9 kula kola caper

more dare art, playing with the style. i love it all, except sarah. i think she's also a little big (scale-wise) compared to maria. anyway, 8x11, $40.

i changed it halfway through, sometimes you need to be ruthless. i'd change it again, but then it's not a warmup sketch, it's just a sketch. maybe another day!

it also reminds me that for the final art in the book, i need to really streamline the bkgs!

8 st michel

oops! this pic was also today's warmup sketch. SOLD.

hold on to your hats!

i swear on my mother's grave (sorry mom!) that i'm doing these 3 projects this year, come hell or high water. or BOTH -- i can swim and i'm from texas, so bring it on.

dare 2 - the kula kola caper

the secret of st michel

and something... else

d7 sirius trouble

had a blast drawing jetbikes for sirius black years ago. gave it another shot with a different design (both for the bike and for him). the little skulls on the wheel are deatheater "kills", some on broomstick. i know i know, i just like thinking about weird things...

SOLD

commission: john carter of mars

from a few years ago:

story/design notes2

EDIT EDIT: SERIOUSLY PEOPLE, PLEASE GIVE CREDIT WHERE CREDIT IS DUE, THESE NOTES WERE MADE BY DREAMWORKS'S ROB KOO!!!

EDIT: i am sharing these notes, but they were originally created by ROB KOO at dreamworks' redwood studios...

more DW notes, focused on design in storytelling. at some point i'm also going to put up notes on some of my own story pages and the thinking and concerns involved in creating them.

story/design notes

EDIT EDIT: SERIOUSLY PEOPLE, PLEASE GIVE CREDIT WHERE CREDIT IS DUE, THESE NOTES WERE MADE BY DREAMWORKS'S ROB KOO!!!

EDIT: i am sharing these notes, but they were originally created by ROB KOO at dreamworks' redwood studios...

a few years ago i tested for DW and they sent me these EXTREMELY helpful notes. some probably apply more specifically to animation storyboarding than comic panels, but a lot of it is good, commonsense advice for graphic storytelling in general.

although i am certainly not an expert on the subject, i strongly advise anyone interested in storytelling through comics or animation or live film to check out these blogs, and check them out hard:

toby shelton

mark kennedy

rad sechrist

there are of course many others, but i love these and think of them first. also, they have links to tons of other great blogs.

6 batman & catwoman

daily sketch...

wanted to experiment with thin pens. it was fun, esp catwoman, but i think the underlying drawing could've been weirder. next time!

pencil/pen on digital paper, 8.5"x11" $40

5 sarah kincaid

really happy with this one , although i had to stop sans background because lots of family stuffs to do. i'll probably ditch the bkg altogether. oooor... maybe i'll just do it and whatever, and if (haha, i mean when) i make it into a print or something, i'll fix up the bkg characters.

a fun warmup, and a pretty perfect expression of what it's like to live in sarah kincaid's world.

this one is still for sale, $40.

4 willy wonka, vampire hunter (sigh)

i'm a little concerned.

on the one hand, come on, this picture is hilarious.

but still, i feel that it is exactly how you might've guessed i'd draw wonka etc.

the whole point of these warmups is to do something different from what i'm already doing that day for work. trying something different.

or... maybe not? maybe it's just the drawing equivalent of a morning stretch, and i should just shut up and draw?

time will tell!

SOLD.

3 zatanna

i have to be honest, as a drawing this is nice, and i tried to work in some new ideas, but not so happy with it as a warmup sketch. maybe because i had to keep stopping, didn't finish it until tonight!

that's bernard chang. all weekend he was messing with our heads, magic-style. i'm also pretty sure he's a ninja assassin, but proving it is something else entirely.

SOLD.

nu maria

while i like the "standard" dare detectives style, and it's (relatively) quick and easy for me, i never like the feeling that i'm locked in. so sometimes i try different styles, while keeping the characters still recognizable. maria:

this was obviously influenced by nico marlet, if you don't know who that is, then google him and shame on you. shame on us all.

2 bleu

SOLD

i might go back and ink this at some point

ps - as you can tell, sometimes i can't update the blog as quickly as twitter (although i'm more likely to write something "meaningful" here) so if you're in a buying mind, twitter in the morning will probably be the best bet.

AND NOW FOR SOMETHING COMPLETELY DIFFERENT!

i just wanted to thank everyone at SCAD, from the faculty to the handlers to the students, for making this past trip so great. it was really inspiring seeing all the work, most of which was certainly better than when i was in school -- i even brought some of my old (terrible) art to prove it! the people, especially the people who grabbed me in the halls or came to the extra workshops and drawing jams, really showed a dedication that is impressive at any age.

anyone who didn't get to see me, or wants to follow up, or chat, feel free to email me ben(at)daredetectives(dot)com. just put "SCAD" or something in the subject, i get tons of spam. also, if you don't hear back, feel free to write again -- i love to talk to people but i'm busy, and i'm also a terrible human being. so don't worry about pestering me or anything.

i'm looking for some samples i got from DW for character composition and backgrounds/camerawork that i think could be helpful... one thing i noticed is that a lot of students (and probably a lot of other people out there, including younger-me, were light on the environments and how to use them. even in the most basic, making-it-easy-on-yourself way.

thanks again all! and cheers!

ben c

daily arts

hi all!

as some of you might remember from the drawing board, i used to post daily drawings. well, i still do semi-daily drawings, i just don't post them.

BUT NOW I DO. every day i'll post new art on twitter @bencaldwellart. if you're interested in any of them, you can email or tweet me... first come, first served.

first up is catwoman, inked on my favorite laser paper, $40 (includes any shipping or paypal fees). been trying to losen up, especially with inking... i get too prissy and worried about pretty lines. no more. so this was a fun test.

anyway, i may or may not also be posting the daily art here (haha, of course i am) so keep an eye out and cheers!

ben c

SOLD.

SCAD baby II: more scad

hi all! in case you didn't see the post right below this one (and who am i to judge?), i'll be at SCAD this weekend for the comics art forum.

what the post below didn't mention is that i volunteered to do extra workshops and port reviews during the forum!

extra. as in more.

so if my first workshop is filled up (and for my own vanity, i'm just going to assume that it is), keep a look out for another one! if you can't get the port review, check again! just remember; there are only 2 things in life that i love: drawing and talking about drawing*. so take advantage of it before i slip away into the swampy savannah night, like a bald-but-reasonably-talented-will-o-wisp!

more art for yer eyes!

*also, coffee rolls

SCAD baby!

hi all!

sometimes, i wish to impart my great wisdom to others.

sometimes, they are foolish enough to let me.

from feb 23-26 i will be at the savannah college of art and design, doing workshops, panels, and portfolio reviews. there will be other, realer artists there, including skottie young, mark schultz, and bernard chang (the full info is here). i did this a few years ago and it was great fun, really looking forward to doing it again!

i'll also be bringing tons of art, and maybe i can talk them into letting me do extra classes or something. last time, we set up an impromptu sketch party at the hotel one night...

so if you go to SCAD, sign up early! sign up twice! (what else are you doing with that second fake ID card, anyway?)

do it!

sign up now!

now.

even if your name is lisa and you would scream too much.

also: art!