From the Archives: Ego

Here's a recent bit of disturbing Photoshop painting play.

{8x5.33,  created in Adobe Photoshop}

Skin Crawling Comics November Update

The Skin Crawling Comics website regularly posts pages to the individual stories of the anthology every Tuesday and Thursday.  I'll be doing an update at least once a month with links to the newest pages.  Drop by and check out the latest updates!

Hunger Pg. 5
Hunger Pg. 6
Hunger Pg. 7
Hunger Pg. 8
Hunger Pg. 9
Hunger Pg. 10
The Mother Road Pg. 1
The Mother Road Pg. 2

If you haven't already, check out last month's pages.  Also check out Skin Crawling Comics on Twitter and Facebook!

Saturday Sketch: Nicholai Apocaloff

Wrapping up my November werewolves is the serial killer mercenary, Nicholai Apocaloff from from Malibu Comics' Nightman.

{2.5x3.5,  created in Adobe Photoshop}

I claim no copyright for the properties represented in the Saturday Sketches.  All copyrights and trademarks are retained by their respective owners.  I make no money from what I am presenting here.  It is presented for portfolio and appreciation purposes only.

Psyche Delectus: Invisibles Day 2014

The light and warmth of summer has passed.  Chill winds blow outside.  The world is caked in ice, but a fire still burns within.  Though the dark half of the year is full upon us, there comes a day for rekindling the fire.  Each year on November 23rd I celebrate the re-ignition of failing light with a new piece of art dedicated to one of my favorite comic books series, The Invisibles.

On November 23rd, 1995 Grant Morrison involved the readers of his comic book series The Invisibles in a group act of sigil magick.  Check out the original letters page to see how the idea was initially presented.  Join me today in my annual celebration of The Invisibles Hypersigil!

Recommended Listening:

Eomac

Moon Obelisk

from MONAD XVII [SAM017]

Previous Years:

{8x5.33,  created in Adobe Photoshop}

Saturday Sketch: Bronze Age Man-Wolf

The Man-Wolf first appeared as a villain / supporting character in Amazing Spider-man, but went on to appear on his on in Creatures on the Loose and Marvel Premiere.  I haven't read many stories with Man-Wolf in them, but I love Marvel creatures and werewolves in general, so here we are.  I had a really difficult time bringing this piece to completion.  I'm not sure what made Man-Wolf so difficult to draw but I'm glad he's all done.

{2.5x3.5,  created in Adobe Photoshop}

I claim no copyright for the properties represented in the Saturday Sketches.  All copyrights and trademarks are retained by their respective owners.  I make no money from what I am presenting here.  It is presented for portfolio and appreciation purposes only.

From the Archives: Hooded Figure

This piece was painted in Photoshop.  The image was later expanded to become a tshirt design at my Neatoshop.

{8x5.33 created in Adobe Photoshop}

Saturday Sketch: Bronze Age Warren Griffith

Continuing with the theme of werewolves for this November, here is Warren Griffith from the Creature Commandos.

{2.5x3.5,  created in Adobe Photoshop}

I claim no copyright for the properties represented in the Saturday Sketches.  All copyrights and trademarks are retained by their respective owners.  I make no money from what I am presenting here.  It is presented for portfolio and appreciation purposes only.

From the Archives: Happy Mother's Day!

This is the header from May 2014.  In this piece I again faced the challenge of the pastel / bright color palette, but luckily the mother zombie takes up a good bit of real estate in the image.  With the only light source being the window, that help neutralize things a bit.  I did enjoy leaving the happy sunshine and clouds picture mostly bright as a counter point to the horror of the implied action in this scene.

The Parade: Part VI, Trixie's Walk

Continued from The Parade: Part V, Mystery on Maryland Avenue

The Parade
Part VI

Trixie's Walk
 

Doris Hutchens opened the refrigerator and looked plaintively at its contents.  She wasn't really hungry but there was still some time until the news and she was bored.  She would go to bed after, but she needed a quick update.  Tomorrow was going to be a day long event and she'd have no time to catch up until Sunday afternoon.  She had multiple clients to see before noon and then parade preparations all afternoon.  There was still a piece of cheesecake left in the fridge from their dinner out in Hamptonville.  She scooped it up and placed it on a saucer.

At least everyone's costumes were finished.  She had finished all the sewing Wednesday.  She and Renee and Margaret, the two other stylists from the Style Shop, were all going to be dressed as 1950's housewives but with a witchy twist.  The float they would be riding had been constructed with three swings created to look like brooms.  When they sat in the swings, it would appear as though they were flying on broomsticks.  The rest of the float was constructed to look like glitter covered clouds.

She sat at the kitchen table and dug her fork into the cheesecake.  She savored the first creamy bites as they dissolved against her tongue.  Trixie, her chihuahua, came into the room and whined at her feet.  Doris dropped a small bite of the cheesecake onto the floor and Trixie quickly devoured it.  Doris leaned down and nuzzled the dogs' ears.

The Parade: Part V, Mystery on Maryland Avenue

Continued from The Parade: Part IV, Under the Mackey Building

The Parade
Part V

Mystery on Maryland Avenue

Maureen pulled her car onto Baker, the street leading to her neighborhood.  A thin fog had settled in amongst the trees and had given everything a faint glowing aura.  She slowed to enjoy the view.  Despite its inherent danger to drivers, Maureen had always enjoyed the magic of fog.  Fog could make any landscape mysterious and otherworldly, even the plain streets of Rivercross.

She reached over into the passenger seat and flipped open the styrofoam take out box from the Star diner.  She extracted a single french fry and shoved it into her mouth.  She hadn't had anything to eat since she'd begun her shift at four.  She ate several more fries before closing the box.  Once she got home, she and her husband Daryl would have a late dinner.  He always waited so that he could eat with her.  Although he usually had four or five beers before she got home.

Daryl had tried cooking dinner once long ago and had nearly burnt the house down.  Maureen had forbidden him in the kitchen since.  Her compromise was to bring dinner back after her part time shift at the Star.  She worked mornings at Norris grocery and a few hours in the evening at the Star.  After two shifts, Maureen just didn't have the energy to cook as well. 

Saturday Sketch: Bronze Age Werewolf By Night

During this November I'm going to focus on comic book werewolves.  November has always been a kind of werewolf-y month to me.  The extremes of hot and cold as we all try to find balance within winter's approaching chill have always reminded me of the traditional werewolf transformation.

Here we have Werewolf By Night from Marvel Comics.  I never read much of WWBN's book but I always enjoyed his appearances elsewhere.  I've also always had a soft spot for Marvel's supernatural characters.

{2.5x3.5,  created in Adobe Photoshop}

I claim no copyright for the properties represented in the Saturday Sketches.  All copyrights and trademarks are retained by their respective owners.  I make no money from what I am presenting here.  It is presented for portfolio and appreciation purposes only.

From the Archives: November

A very recent piece from some of my painting play in Photoshop and a general litmus for how I felt after this years election cycle.

{8x5.33,  created in Adobe Photoshop}

The Parade: Part IV, Under the Mackey Building

Continued from The Parade: Part III, Behind The Star

The Parade
Part IV

Under the Mackey Building

Richmond Norris turned the open sign over to closed and locked the front door of his store.  The jack o' lantern decoration on the interior of the door smiled gleefully at him.  He stuck his tongue out in retaliation.  It had been a long and busy day and he was ready to be home.  There was at least an hours worth of work left before he was finished with the store, but all he wanted was a pillow beneath his head. 

Daylight Savings time was this weekend.  The clocks would be "falling back" and he'd be getting back the hour of sleep he had lost in the spring.  He loved Autumn for that reason more than any other.  Despite the darkness in the morning when he rose, the ease of a perceived extra hour of sleep made his days much more palatable, at least until next March when the whole cycle began again.  He flipped the switch for the exterior sign to off.  His last customer of the evening, Ethel Blackwell, had left about fifteen minutes ago.

Ethel was usually his last customer every night during the week.  She always came in fifteen to twenty minutes until nine to pick up a chocolate bar.  Sometimes she would buy a bottle of Tums or a tube of Aspercreme for her arthritis but she always purchased a single chocolate bar. On Saturday night she would buy two bars as Norris was closed on Sundays.  He always smiled to see Ethel.  It meant his work day would soon be over.

Psyche Delectus: Master of the Temple

At the Nexus, he is Gatekeeper and King.

Recommended Listening:

Arcana

Medea

from As Bright as a Thousand Suns

{8x5.33,  Digital Images manipulated in Adobe Photoshop}

Saturday Sketch: Bronze Age Samhain

Sorry for the delay on this one.  Things kind of got backed up this Halloweekend.

Here we have the druid form of Samhain from the first Vision and the Scarlet Witch limited series.  His spirit has been trapped in the Druid Tome and was released on All Hallow's Eve.  The Scarlet Witch destroyed the tome and banished his spirit.

{2.5x3.5,  created in Adobe Photoshop}

I claim no copyright for the properties represented in the Saturday Sketches.  All copyrights and trademarks are retained by their respective owners.  I make no money from what I am presenting here.  It is presented for portfolio and appreciation purposes only.

The Parade: Part III, Behind The Star

Continued from The Parade: Part II, Under the Mason Bridge

The Parade
Part III

Behind the Star
 

As Jackie entered the Star diner, she was pummeled by a wall of sound.  The dinner rush had come early and the restaurant was full.  A coffee maker at the far end of the bar gurgled and hissed as it finished making a pot of its dark elixir.  In the kitchen, Abe was busy filling orders.  She could see his arms rising and falling behind a wall of steam as he flipped burgers, pulled plates, and dropped baskets into the deep frier.  He placed several full plates in the window behind the bar and yelled, "Order up!"  The television over the bar blared and all around her different conversations merged with the clatter of plates and silverware. Ruby smiled at her as she rushed by with a cup and a pot of coffee.  Jackie waved and moved closer to the bar.

"...and coming up on channel five news - Are you looking for a good scare this Hallo-weekend? We'll give you a listing of the best haunted houses and trails in the tri-state area...and if you haven't carved your Jack O Lantern yet, we'll tell you the best places to shop for that last minute pumpkin.  Later we'll be speaking with federal authorities about the nationwide manhunt that continues for convicted serial killer Doctor Theodore Mars.  Dr. Mars escaped from federal custody in February of this year and has eluded federal authorities si-"

From the Archives: What Balloons Feel

Here's a quick older sketch of a darksome thought about balloons.

{8x4.56,  Graphite}

Skin Crawling Comics October Update

The Skin Crawling Comics website regularly posts pages to the individual stories of the anthology every Tuesday and Thursday.  I'll be doing an update at least once a month with links to the newest pages.  Drop by and check out the latest updates!

The Borley Reports Pg. 4
The Borley Reports Pg. 5
The Borley Reports Pg. 6
The Borley Reports Pg. 7
Hunger Pg. 1
Hunger Pg. 2
Hunger Pg. 3
Hunger Pg. 4

If you haven't already, check out last month's pages.  Also check out Skin Crawling Comics on Twitter and Facebook!

The Parade: Part II, Under the Mason Bridge

Continued from The Parade: Part I, Skipping School

The Parade
Part II

Under the Mason Bridge

Jackie sat on a bench at the edge of the park and watched the cars move through downtown Rivercross.  They zigzagged like confused ants, disappearing behind trees and buildings then reappearing moments later in a new direction.  A breeze knocked bright orange leaves loose from nearby trees.  They danced across her field of vision like bits of flame and floated away down the hillside.

Her tears had finally passed.  She held the brown bag tightly in her grip.  She had shoved the test stick in with the packaging.  She almost threw it all in the trashcan nearby but found that as she approached she couldn't release the bag.  She still had not decided if she was going to tell Sam.  She didn't know what she was going to do at all.  Jackie watched the clouds stretch themselves across the sky like cotton candy.

The Parade: Part I, Skipping School

The Parade 
Part I

October 30th, Skipping School

Jackie pedaled her bike out of the parking lot and away from school.  She glanced over her shoulder to make sure no one had seen her leave.  Her last class was a free period and she wouldn't be missed, but she didn't want to take any chances.  Rivercross High disappeared behind a bank of trees as she rounded the curve and sped towards downtown. She turned at the next intersection to avoid Main street.  She didn't want to be seen by anyone who might tell her dad.  Doris over at the Style Shop had ratted her out when she had skipped class before and she just couldn't deal with that extra stress today.

She bought the test from Maureen at Norris grocery on her way to school.  She knew that Maureen would keep her secret.  She sold Jackie cigarettes sometimes.  The test was wrapped in a brown paper bag deep in her backpack.  She would go to the park for some privacy and then she would know.  If she got to the park before three she could get home before four-thirty and her mom and dad wouldn't be suspicious.  She angled her bike onto Myers boulevard and towards the Mason bridge.

Saturday Sketch: Lord Pumpkin

Lord Pumpkin was a villain from the now defunct Malibu comics Ultraverse.  I've never read any stories with him in them, but how could I resist the devilish figure of mayhem he presents!

{2.5x3.5,  created in Adobe Photoshop}

I claim no copyright for the properties represented in the Saturday Sketches.  All copyrights and trademarks are retained by their respective owners.  I make no money from what I am presenting here.  It is presented for portfolio and appreciation purposes only.

From The Archives: Devil May Care

Here's an older quick sketch of a devilish character.  My original intent for the character was as a rogue hero or a villain.  That may still happen.  I have several stories that he would fit nicely into.

{8x5.75,  Graphite}

Featured Creature: Chornehbanku

Excerpted from Marge Hollander's Digest of Demons and Devils: 

"Chornehbanku are spirits of emptiness that seek out and attach themselves to judgmental and bitter humans.  They seek a rarest essence: the tears of the judgmental.  While their victims sleep, the Chornehbanku collect these lonely tears in their night jars.  The Chornehbanku will influence the moods of the victim and attempt to isolate them further from the world around them.  These wraiths will feed off a chosen victim until the person eventually dies.

Once a Chornehbanku has attached itself to a person and has begun to collect their tears there is only one method to exorcise these vampiric ghosts.  The night jar of the Chornehbanku represents its connection to the physical realm.  If the night jar can be procured and destroyed, the Chornehbanku's hold on the person can be broken and the spirit banished.  Such a task is not to be considered lightly for many have lost their lives in attempts to separate a Chornehbanku from its jar.  These dire phantoms will enact any heresy to protect their jars." 

{8x5.33,  created in Adobe Photoshop}

Saturday Sketch: Mervyn Pumpkinhead

Second amongst this month's Halloween themed Saturday Sketches, we have Mervyn Pumpkinhead from the pages of Sandman.  I've always like Mervyn.  There's just something about a smart mouthed cigarette smoking pumpkinheaded scarecrow!

{2.5x3.5,  created in Adobe Photoshop}

I claim no copyright for the properties represented in the Saturday Sketches.  All copyrights and trademarks are retained by their respective owners.  I make no money from what I am presenting here.  It is presented for portfolio and appreciation purposes only.

From the Archives: Black Tongue

This is a development sketch for a character called Black Tongue.  Black Tongue is a goblin of negative thinking.  It is the voice that tells you everything that is "wrong" with yourself.

{8x5.77,  Graphite}

Featured Creature: Udushae N'yasnu

Excerpted from Marge Hollander's Digest of Demons and Devils:

"Little is known about the origins of the Udushae N'yasnu.  There is a rumored Gnostic legend that on the seventh day of creation, after God had finished his work, the Udushae were the left over flotsam.  Before God could return the unformed creatures to the void, they skittered into the darkest corners of creation and hid.  Regardless of their origins, a recorded characteristic of the Udushae is their thirst for human bodily fluids.

Over a period of days or weeks, chosen victims of the Udushae are slowly drained of vital fluids during sleep.  Often the symptoms of an Udushae assault are confused with that of a Vampyr attack.  However the Udushae feed exclusively on human fluids whereas a Vampyr will feed on any available source of blood including livestock, family pets, and local wildlife.  Also absent in an Udushae attack are the telltale puncture wounds left by a Vampyr.  It is generally assumed that the Udushae drain fluids from the body of the victim directly through existing orifices.

And the Winner is...

Drum roll please...The winner of my Neatoshop Giveaway is Chris Thorne and his selection is Caffiend!  Thanks to everyone who particitpated!

Don't forget that the Neatoshop Sale has been extended until Sunday at Midnight!   If there is a shirt that you just cannot live without, all tshirts are 15% off until Sunday!