Monday 29 October 2012

Brrrrrrrrrrrrrr.............

Well as I sat in the front room last night freezing my bit's off (our heatings down at the mo). I thought to pass the time I'd do a couple of sketches to keep my fingers from developing frost bite.

Here they are and as ever I hope you like them.

G

Thursday 25 October 2012

Another page of pencils

Before I go up to the studio to start the days work I thought I'd post one of the pages I did yesterday.

I hope you like it.

All the best

G

Tuesday 23 October 2012

One of the pages I pencilled today

Hi All,

Here's one of the pages I pencilled today...It's pretty loose but seeing as I'm inking it myself I've put in just enough detail so the client can see what's going on without it being so tight that it takes me too long to do.

Friday 12 October 2012

Thursday 4 October 2012

A new test page

Here is something I did today.
Basically it's a test page for a project that needed more of a 1950's style approach as oppossed to my usual "gritty style".
I found it really enjoyable doing something that is out of my comfort zone.
Whether the client will go for it I don't know. But it was good to do.

Anyway I hope you all like it.

Tuesday 18 September 2012

He is the Law

Well I thought I'd go with the trend at the moment and take some time out of my day to draw a Dredd.

And here he is.

Some old bits

Bit busy with new work at the moment, but thought I'd stick up a few older pages.
And if anyone wants a commission please contact me at graemehoward@hotmail.co.uk
All the best 

Graeme







Sunday 16 September 2012

The first Cancertown 2 Review

Hello all,

We just got our first review through for Cancertown 2, I think I can say that the whole team are very happy with it.

I won't bother saying anymore I'll just let the review speak for itself (whilst brimming with pride)

Back in 2009 Cy Dethan gave us his debut graphic novel, the breath-takingly original Cancertown. He’s continued to forge his own path ever since, with gems like The Indifference Engine and Slaughterman’s Creed. Last year he managed to wring both our hearts and our necks with the emotional tale  that was White Knuckle, and it became clear that a new master had arrived.

I’ve marveled at each of these works, but Cancertown is the only one that cried out for a sequel. I loved the noirish tone, the wild imagination, the bat-shit crazy monsters and the sheer bad-assery of Vince Morley – a man who doesn’t give a damn about the horrors he’s facing, ’cause he thinks he’s dying anyway. I found it pretty confusing the first time round but then I was reading single issues on a tiny screen over a number of weeks. Collected in trade, it flows a lot smoother, the artwork is more appreciable and it ties up beautifully by the end. Although the central plot was wrapped up in a satisfying conclusion it always felt to me like there was more to be explored in this twisted world. Thankfully Cy felt the same way, so let’s take a look now at Cancertown 2: Blasphemous Tumours.
The story is an absolute cracker with an ending that had me applauding. Trouble is I can’t discuss it without major spoilers. Puts me in a bit of a tough position. Look, do you have any idea how rare it is to find a comic that is genuinely gripping? Oh, we all have plenty of characters and story arcs that we love but to find a comic that keeps you on your toes throughout; that shocks or scares or delights you on every damned page; that keeps your mind whizzing right up to the very end? Hell, that’s something to treasure! All I can tell you is this: something new has come to Cancertown. It’s big, it’s powerful and it’ll rip the world apart until it finds what it’s looking for. The Players hate Morley, but he may well be all that stands between them and annihilation. Each chapter has a great cliff-hanger and the peril just keeps escalating. The walls between the worlds are getting thinner, and time is running out rapidly. Destiny awaits, but how will Morley face it?
(Not got a clue what I’m talking about? Go and read the first volume, you numpty. Better yet, skip to the link at the bottom and order the double pack. Bargain price. Seriously. Right… Onwards!)
The first thing that jumps out is the shift in style between books. I found it slightly jarring at first, having re-read An Inconvenient Tooth in preparation. Let me explain why. The first book was revelatory in creature design and hugely impactful in its layouts. It had a sensibility familiar to readers of Clive Barker: more darkly fantastic than raw horror. Graeme Howard shakes things up a bit in Blasphemous Tumours, but once you get your head around it you’ll see how well it works. Where Stephen Downey’s imagery was cleanly drawn and beautifully rendered, his successor gives us something supremely demented; a messed up nightmare of torment and jagged edges. What Howard loses in detail, though, he makes up for with sheer atmosphere. His ‘camera’ angles are inventive and his horror is visceral. (Monsters aside, even Morley looks like a mess, but then again he probably should after what he’s been through.)
Never a classic hero, Morley retains a core of decency and makes for a very engaging anti-hero. Visually we see this most clearly in a pencil-only flashback, where he first meets the homeless girl he has come to know as ‘Bugfuck.’ The shapes are more rounded, the linework gentler and the features more sympathetic. It’s a comforting scene in a comforting style, and it is here that Howard’s artistic choices become apparent, through contrast. Back in volume one, Morley was all about self-control. Whilst normal life collapsed around him he was practically OCD when it came to Cancertown: always watching himself; stopping the chaos from claiming him and those around him. Now though, he’s stopped medicating. He’s losing that part of himself that wants to live in the ‘real’ world, and the farther Morley spins out of control the wilder the art-style becomes. Even the layouts have become more fragmented and crazed, doubling up on the nightmarish quality. We begin to experience the world in just the way that Morley does, and it blew my frickin’ mind.
Driving this home is the combined efforts of the colourist (newcomer, Peter Mason) and the letterer (returning wonder, Nic Wilkinson.) Mason uses an intense, warm palette that lends an Oz-like richness to Cancertown when slapped up against the cold urban sprawl that Morley calls home. Somehow it feels more real, more attractive, more addictive a location to be in. The vividness and the way the colours are just out of whack, lends the piece an almost sick urgency. Throw in the mind-quakes where image and the written word are shaken so much as to be nearly unreadable and you have a true vision of a world falling apart. The size, thickness and fonts of text are used effectively throughout to depict the emotions and personality of the characters, though none so strikingly as The Players. Each of these god-like beings have a dedicated font which somehow manages to translate into a specific vocal style in the mind of the reader – thanks to the unique design work. I have never seen the art of the letterer used as intelligently before; adding so much to the overall piece without becoming intrusive or gimmicky.
So what have we got overall? Cancertown is not a nice place, I’ll grant you that. In fact, it’s a bloody nightmare – darker than night-soil and twice as nasty – but at the same time I find it utterly fascinating. It’s a grotesque creation where everything seems to be alive. We get the sense that a dream logic holds the place together, yet the individual rules escape us. Like any structure of the mind we are simply convinced of its reality. The creators have a story to tell and they don’t back away from it for a second. The horror is brutal and there is some pretty disturbing imagery along the way. The villain ‘Head Rush’ seriously ramps up the menace. The speed, the ferocity and the magnitude of his attacks are shocking. The full-page spread of him charging straight towards you is quite frankly terrifying! At the same time, Dethan and co construct meaningful and layered relationships between the human characters, painting them in shades of sorrow. It’s a strong team dynamic and they make great use of the comic medium, adding depth to their narrative in ways that simply could not be achieved in any other art-form.
I doff my hat to them all. Highly recommended.
Rating: 5/5
Reviewer: Dion Winton-Polak

Thursday 13 September 2012

New things going on

Hi all,

The Cancertown2 team have just recieved our forward from David Hine. I can't put up the whole thing as it's far too early yet, but here's a little bit just to give you  flavour.
"A comic where the pages will draw blood if you don't handle them carefully."
Roll on November!
Needless to say we're all over the moon about this.

But in the meantime I've been busying myself with another project and here's a couple of pages.

Keep safe and take it easy.

Graeme

Wednesday 12 September 2012

Todays bits 'n' bobs

Well todays been productive. Loads of layouts done which I'll pencil proper tomorrow. And got this page done for a short story I'm working on.

Friday 7 September 2012

Things I've been doing

Seeing as now Cancertown 2 is all done and dusted and I've only got one other big project on the go I thought I'd have a go at doing the two pages Matt Smith of 2000AD asked if I could do by way of a test piece when I had a review with him at Kapow last May.

Also got a short story to do for the next Lightning Strike anthology.

So things are still all busy which is how I like it.

Anyway here's the pics and as ever I hope you like them.



Thursday 23 August 2012

Cancertown 2

Well with only three pages to go on Cancertown 2. I'm up for selling the original art.

Issue 1 has already been grabbed by Markosia publisher Harry Markos, but there's still loads of other pages up for grabs. They're going for £5 per page with £2.50 p&p (they will be posted in a cardboard tube).

I will of course be taking the pages with me to the launch of Cancertown 2 at Thoughtbubble in November.

But you will be able to contact me via email at graemehoward@hotmail.co.uk and order them that way.

Anyway that's about it really.

All the best

Graeme

Sunday 29 July 2012

Sunday 27 May 2012

And another thing. Due out in November is a book I've been working on for just over a year now.
Cancertown 2 for those who don't know is written by the very talented Cy Dethan, pencilled and inked by me, coloured by the ever lovely Mr Peter Mason Esq, and lettered by the wonderful Ms Nic Wilkinson.
It's being published by Markosia and there's a Facebook group called, surprising enough "Cancertown" which you can join and find out loads of exciting updates and stuff!
Anyway for those who haven't seen it here's the cover.
Well a nearly there WIP version anyway.
Haven't posted much of late, mainly due to crunching deadlines and that kind of thing.
Anyway here's a commission I did a week or so back. Basically the person wanted Alan Moore and Harvey Pekar feeding the birds. It was an interesting thing to do and here's the results.

Monday 2 April 2012

Sandman warm up ...turned into a WIP

Started this this morning as a warm up before starting the days real work, but I got into it and so I've decided to work it up a bit.

Hope you all like it.

Tuesday 27 March 2012

Another Cancertown 2 cover idea

Well here's another idea for a Cancertown 2 cover.

It's only rough layout pencils but thought I'd post it anyway.

Monday 26 March 2012

Inked cover

I had a bit of spare time yesterday, so I thought I'd ink in the Cancertown 2 cover variant.

I'm fairly pleased with the results as I'm not always confident in my inking.

Anyway here it is....as ever comments always welcome.

Graeme

Saturday 24 March 2012

Possible Cancertown 2 cover

This is possible cover variant for Cancertown 2 which I've been working on and is due out for the Thoughtbubble Comic Convention in  Leeds later this year.

Tuesday 20 March 2012

A lil' commission I did

Seeing as I'm busy working on various projects at the moment, I thought I'd post up one of the commissions I've recently done.

This one was for some cat crazy friends of my partner Jasmin.

I hope you like it.

Graeme

Thursday 15 March 2012

Another WWII page

This here is the last page of the WWII/horror proposal that's being put together by Martin Hayes (writer), Peter Mason (colours), Bram Meehan (letters) and me on the doodles.

I've seen the lettered pages and Brams done a great job it's got a real "Commando" feel about it and leaves the story on a real cliffhanger.

I can't wait to do more.

But now it's back to the mind**** that is the life of Vince Morley.

Tuesday 13 March 2012

Yeti

Here's a concept pic of a Yeti, there's gonna be several of them in the WWII thing I'm working on.
Hope you all like it.

G

Sunday 4 March 2012

A couple of new pics

Thought I'd post a couple of pics from a new project I'm working on. Currently they're in the process of being coloured.