FEEDING GROUND #4 _ Archaia Pin-Ups

Issue 4 of FEEDING GROUND hits stores this week. Outside of a cool Busqueda Family/ Border Patrol/ Werewolf battle I was able to illustrate, I'm really proud that the issue contains pin-up art of our characters by a number of our fellow Archaia artists.

As a Publisher, Archaia Entertainment could not promote more diverse talents and subject matter. They consistently challenge the medium of comics and do so in some of the most attractive packages on the stands.

Here's a link to a 7-page preview of FEEDING GROUND #4 and here's a convenient link for locating it and other Archaia books.

And, here are some preview peeks at the pin-up art. Taken together, the full images actually happen to tell the first half of our FEEDING GROUND tale.

JANET LEE

Illustrator, THE RETURN OF THE DAPPER MEN

Janet's a fine artist whose mixed media style brings a whole new voice to the world of comics. More than just the appealing and engaging design and surface, her art feels layered with meaning, a spell cast in every piece. For FEEDING GROUND she conjures a domestic moment that is tainted with the arcane.

www.j-k-lee.com

KATE GLASHEEN

Illustrator, HYBRID BASTARDS

Kate's line is a live wire. In HYBRID BASTARDS every image feels animated and brimming with chaotic energy. I was hoping that someone would do a portrait of our guacho, Uncle Hector, and she nailed it by externalizing the violence under his gruff bravado.

www.katiecrimespree.com

CHANDRA FREE

Illustrator, THE GOD MACHINE

Chan's contribution gave me the chills. I'm already a fan of her work for blending of gothic charm and dreamy horror. But her illustration of Flaca in the shopping cart is so raw and desperate and reinforces that iconic moment we wanted it to be.

http://spookychan.com/

ALEX ECKMAN--LAWN

Illustrator, AWAKENING

Whether it's his comic, collage, or illustration work Alex's compositions are monumental and essential. Here, he's struck on the truth of our tale - the wolves are only a pinpoint of violence in a vast and punishing terrain. I also happened to score an illustration of Marvel Comics' IRON FIST off of him that is forever cool.

http://www.alexeckmanlawn.com/

FEEDING GROUND _ Echoes

The concept of duality is a recurring theme in our werewolf tale, FEEDING GROUND. As such, there are parallel characters in this world and several scenarios that play out in alternate variations across the six issues.

As one example, here you have the moment where the curse overtakes the crosser Emilio in Issue 1 paired with that same experience for our character Flaca in Issue 3.

For Emilio, the result was a horrific mutation that left him alive but twisted. In Flaca, the outcome divides her family and forces her to choose between her own warring halves.

COMICS YOU SHOULD READ #1

As a novice comic creator and lifelong comic reader, it's odd to me that there are so many people that don't read any comics at all. Over a few Facebook posts, I've started to do my little part to introduce an entire medium to those in my network who watch television, go to the movies, and read books. The limited character count of a wall post forced me to be brief in my review but I think that benefits a more impassioned pitch.

There's also been a recent push, including Eric Powell's video manifesto and Steve Niles' new spotlight column, to raise awareness of the diversity of material comics offer as well as the efforts and art by creators who generate the new ideas of today apart from the legacy of the Big 2 publishers. The following five examples could not be more different but they all top the list in terms of the sort of comics that engage me and inspire me to strive for this level of quality.

COMICS YOU SHOULD READ #1: SCALPED

If you like complex crime dramas like HBOs THE WIRE, you should read Vertigo's SCALPED by Jason Aaron and RM Guera. A new casino on an Indian reservation "third world nation in the heart of America" is where crime and family collide. Fed by the shared history Aaron crafts for these characters and Guera's art is an endless fount of distress and grace. THE greatest influence on my work today.

COMICS YOU SHOULD READ #2: BONE

If you like all-ages adventures like classic Disney (Mickey,Donald,Goofy) and THE LORD OF THE RINGS, you (and your kid) should read Jeff Smith's BONE. The story mixes both, casting three wayward cousins in an epic tale of exiled princesses, cynical dragons, and stupid quiche-loving Rat Creatures. Smith's cartooning is alive and forever charming. Essential comics that should be in every home, unless, you hate life.

COMICS YOU SHOULD READ #3: I KILL GIANTS

If you like coming-of-age fantasies like THE WIZARD OF OZ, you )and your kid) should read I KILL GIANTS by Joe Kelly and Ken Niumara. Barbara is smart, angry, friendless, and sees things no one else does. With art that evokes both the reality of her pain and the wonder of her apparent visions, the tale made me cry on a bus. Among the best of what comics can do in a way no other medium can.

COMICS YOU SHOULD READ #4: REID FLEMING: WORLD'S TOUGHEST MILKMAN

If you like Will Ferrell comedies then you should read REID FLEMING: WORLD'S TOUGHEST MILKMAN by Dave Boswell. A demented Canadian combo of slapstick and melodrama, follow Reid as he surmounts "grouchy managers, angry customers, hot-rodding hoodlums, and mad dogs - without once missing his favourite TV show!" I've formed lifelong friendships based on shared love of the chaos in this book.

COMICS YOU SHOULD READ #5: PREACHER

If you like the fractured Westerns of the Coen Bros. you should read PREACHER by Garth Ennis and Steve Dillon. Jesse Custer is an ex-preacher with a John Wayne complex setting out to kill God Himself for abandoning His responsibilities. No cardboard cowboy, he's a tough moral nut that made me want to be more of a man. The book is graphic, iconoclastic, and asks the Big Questions great novels should.

SONS OF BA'AL_ It is Finished.

My 11-page comic adaptation of the Americans UK song "Sons of Ba'al" is done and delivered for their ROCKTRONIC MIX-TAPE VOL.2 anthology dropping this Spring.

I was also recently treated to the cover by one of my favorite new cartoonists Blake Sims. Blake's got a fully-formed style that could make him the next Matt Groening in terms of the way it transforms and interprets other characters as his own. It was so cool to see his version of my design for Demon Jef UK (below).

With this strip, I got the chance to experiment with layouts and blow things up. Really proud to be a part of it and I'll offer more thoughts and details as they come.