Characters

Got questions? He's got answers!
Post Reply
Nimbus
Posts: 5
Joined: Mon Aug 08, 2005 5:31 pm
Location: Manchester, UK
Contact:

Characters

Post by Nimbus »

Alan,

A few questions wrapped up into the same topic.

Which characters do you enjoy, or have you enjoyed, drawing the most? Is it just what you're working on at the moment or do you have any particular past favourites?

And, for those characters that you've drawn (not written) in the past - and I'm thinking mainly of the Excalibur characters here although it's open to any - do you take an interest in what happens to those characters in the stories? Or is it all just a job to you?

Thanks!
Alan Davis
Creator
Posts: 472
Joined: Sat Aug 06, 2005 9:13 pm

Post by Alan Davis »

Nimbus

I'm afraid I have a fairly standard answer to the first question BUT that doesn't make it any less true. To make any character work a creator needs to find something in the character that they like-- or else they shouldn't be writing or drawing the character. That doesn't mean I don't have preferences but they are usually in regard to superficial considerations. The top priority should always be to have a good story. Without that any character is just a name, visual design and a few catchphrases.

It can be really painful to see what other creators do (or don't do as in the case of Cerise, Kylun, Micromax and Feron) with the characters I have had some hand in evolving or creating, so it is sometimes best to avoid other interpretations-- Although I'm sure there are plenty of other creators who are offended by my version of their creations. Accepting that is part of the job-- But it is more that just a job or else creators wouldn't care what happened to their creations.

Alan
Entropy
Posts: 36
Joined: Wed Aug 03, 2005 6:59 pm

Post by Entropy »

Alan,

I was curious if there where any characters that you've had difficulty drawing? Whether it's because their uniform is gets tedious repeating over and over again or because it's hard to capture what makes that character unique.

keep up the awesome work!
RIP Kurt Vonnegut and Lloyd Alexander.

Insanity is all in the mind.
Alan Davis
Creator
Posts: 472
Joined: Sat Aug 06, 2005 9:13 pm

Post by Alan Davis »

Entropy,

It can take time to find the best way to make any character design work with my style of drawing. I prefer simplicity and elegance to the needlessly complicated designs which are often very limiting, time consuming and clunky (that is they work against creating movement in the art).

The one costume, which I think is a great design but feel I have never been able to crack, is the classice Wolverine. I could never figure a way to make his cowl work. The helmet 'fins' appear to stand out from his head no matter which angle Wolverine is viewed from. Some artists make it work very well but I could never find a comfortable rational.

Alan
Entropy
Posts: 36
Joined: Wed Aug 03, 2005 6:59 pm

Post by Entropy »

"I prefer simplicity and elegance to the needlessly complicated designs which are often very limiting, time consuming and clunky (that is they work against creating movement in the art)."

It's this elegance in your art that really appeals to me. You really capture a sense of movement and flow.
Thanks for the response, it's always interesting to me to hear what artists think about regarding characters, costumes, etc.

Jason L.
RIP Kurt Vonnegut and Lloyd Alexander.

Insanity is all in the mind.
Post Reply