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Over the last few weeks I took the time to outline the Process of Penciling for Comics. There were no lessons on how to draw or develop a sequential story line. It was just a quick look at the actual physical process of preparing to work and a description of the essential tools that make the job easier. It was a look at the traditional way of making comics that many people who have not converted to an all digital workflow enjoy and are comfortable with.

More specifically it was a description of how I like to work when creating comics while deferring to many other options that are available. How each individual artist works is a very personal ritual and I will be the first to say that there is no right or wrong way provided the final image is the intended expression of the idea that the artist was attempting to convey.

Coincidentally the very talented Raine Szramski, whose comic Heaven and the Dead City graces the web pages of CO2 Comics, was haggling with someone on Facebook over her own process of creating comics. Her reactionary post read like this:

Painting by hand obsolete and old-fashioned….?
I just had someone ask me why I’m bothering to paint my comic by hand since (as he says) my style will become obsolete and I’ll “learn to jump on the Photoshop bandwagon.” And he used the strange example of Borders Bookstore as being “old-fashioned” as opposed to digital and “that’s why they went out of business.” Umm, there are many OTHER reasons they went out of business and it has nothing to do with not using Photoshop.
GRRRRRR….. Anyway, to say the least I was a bit offended. Thoughts??

Well, it is nice to know that the creators who give us the opportunity to post their work here on CO2 Comics stick together and have each other’s back.

Joe Williams to the rescue!

Joe, who is responsible for the very clever Monkey and Bird comic that he co-creates with his lovely wife Tina Garceau launched into a witty defense of Raine on his own blog at Willceau illo. You can read his lambasting here:

Raine! Raine! Don’t Go Away! or Pigments Versus Pixels

Joe follows up the next week with another protective zinger:

Raining on Raine’s Parade

Joe even suggested that we follow up the Process of Penciling feature with a look at Raine’s Painting Process which she happily agreed to allow us to present as follows:

If anyone is curious, this is how I paint my pages. Up on the easel is an upcoming page in progress, with a photocopy of my unpainted pencils taped next to it for reference. (I could get in closer, but it would be a story spoiler…)

Necessary for ongoing work…Dog Under Computer Desk…
Note as well as my Waterhouse print that I haven’t hung up yet because I have to buy some nails. Um, I’ll get around to it…

Cat at Drawing Table…
There always needs to be a cat in the vicinity of the drawing table. Very important.
This is GoGo.

Box o’ gouache, sketches, paper towels, props…
That’s Yaira’s hat, by the way. I got it at a Rennaissance Festival years ago.

A shelf of brushes, Pigma pens, inks, templates, pencils, etc.,etc. The big daruma on the far right was given to me by my friend Satomi. For those who don’t know it’s a Japanese tradition to give one eye a pupil and make a wish. If your wish comes true, you fill in the other pupil. (You can see that the smaller daruma has 2 eyes filled in!)

Lots and lots of gray gouache. Very messy. But that’s why it’s more fun than Photoshop!

The next 50-plus pages of “Heaven & the Dead City” that need lettering and the pecilling finished before I even begin to paint them… Yup, I’m in this for the long haul. Mind you, this is just for Chapter Three.

And most importantly–FUEL. Coffee and keep it coming. The cup was designed by Mark Trepel (and is available at Cafe Press) and actually features 2 black Maneki Nekos.

This is a rough sketchbook drawing of Yaira that will be turned into a color painting. It will be a bit like the Swamp painting, with a decorative border and background architecture. The color scheme will probably be rose and gold (sunset colors.)

What did I tell you? The creative process is very personal and Raine just proved it. I can guarantee that I have never heard that a cat and a dog were a necessary element of a productive studio! Fortunately I have a few of each. I can’t wait to see how my work may improve once I get them into my studio space!

Speaking of studio space, Raine says, “I only wish I had a cooler, less sloppy studio space to show off rather than a corner of a studio apartment. Maybe it will let people know that yes, you too can be this messy and still be creative.”

Raine, my studio is in the garage, and I am so messy that on a good day you’d swear I was a refugee from the A&E’s Hoarder’s show. I think the creative chaos breeds entropy which results in progressive works.

The bottom line is in the final quality of the work. How you get to that point is ultimately your call and regardless of how you do it the important thing is that you actually do it. Most people just dream of doing things. By doing it, and doing it your way, you are already head and shoulders above the crowd.

Making Comics Because I Want to

Gerry Giovinco