A pencil, a brush and...a blog?

New book out...

2011-11-11T05:05:00.000-08:00

Domino Lady vs. The Mummy

The Egyptian sorceress Nephthys has promised to build her mummified mistress the perfect mate. Together, they cut a bloody swath across 1930’s Hollywood in search of the last few perfect bodies to harvest to complete the process. The last thing Nepthys or the mummy expected to run across was The Domino Lady, a perfect body that fights back.

Story: Nancy Holder, Bobby Nash

Art: Rock Baker, Jeff Austin

Cover: Dan Brereton

40 pages, grayscale, $3.99

Link to website to order...
http://moonstonebooks.com/shop/item.aspx?itemid=917

Halloween pic....

2011-10-24T14:24:00.000-07:00

Here's a piece I was planning to work up as a watercolored version. But I'm so out of practice, that I don't know if I'll get it finished before Halloween. So here is my color guide using colored pencils.

Interview

2011-09-16T04:41:00.000-07:00

A brief interview with me on Allpulp.com in connection to a Domino Lady book I inked for Moonstone.

http://allpulp.blogspot.com/

Love that will cause you to melt...

2011-08-14T05:22:00.000-07:00

Here is a retro horror story with art by Rock Baker and myself, drawn for Blokes Terrible Tomb Of Terror, a magazine being produced by Mike Hoffman and Jason Crawley. Story written by Jason.

Copyrights assured. Don't mess with that Bloke guy.

Oh well, part 453,210,000......

2011-08-04T04:26:00.000-07:00

Here is a piece of art I recently did for a music CD cover. I thought it was a nice change of pace from standard comic format. Unfortunately, when it came time to pay up and recieve the finished copy, the client vanished...a regular Houdini.. So we'll file this in the "woulda-coulda-shoulda" drawer, and add it to my virtual museum of visual treats...otherwise known as...my blog.

V for Victory

2011-05-26T19:36:00.000-07:00

Here's a treat..for me AND you... Artist Wil Meugniot sent a penciled drawing of Ms. Victory to me as a birthday gift in April. Thanks, Wil! Here is that drawing...

And here is my inked version.... [I couldn't resist]...

Ripface pinups....

2011-03-30T06:55:00.000-07:00

Here is a string of pinups I've inked for the Ripface Invasion project. I've heard rumors that some of these will be included in a music video.

First up, we have one sporting pencils by Rock Baker

And the inked version

The next one is by Troy Boyle....

And the finished version...

This one is by Geoffrey Gwin

And the inked version

The last one from Joe Martino

And inked...

Ripface Invasion

2011-03-28T06:36:00.000-07:00

Here's something different for me. I recently worked on a music CD cover for a band named Ripface Invasion. I'm showing the steps of this assignment from start to finish.

First, the thumbnailed idea from artist Joe Martino.........

Next comes the tightened up layout, adding a few more elements.......

Then, the finished line drawing. I skipped the finished penciling phase and went straight to inks on the layout.

Then, colorist Thomas Mason was brought in to make the piece come alive.

And finally, here's the front cover with logo added.

And there it is. Look for this cover in stores, folks!

Copyright 2011 Anthony Paladino and Ripface Invasion. All rights reserved.

Ali Baster...One more time

2011-01-28T05:13:00.000-08:00

Here is the latest Ali Baster story art from FemForce #154. Pencils by Rock Baker, inks by me...

Basically, the story of a thief who's been magically transformed into a beautiful woman, and is hiding in a King's harem. Yeah, I know.......

Reproduced here in color, so you can see it just the way an original page would look.

Happy New Year!

2010-12-31T10:34:00.000-08:00

Happy new year folks. Art by Rock Baker and myself.

Stormy weather.....

2010-12-23T05:16:00.000-08:00

The time has finally come where I can post artwork from the current issue of FemForce on sale. Let's start off with a tasty tale of a futuristic crimefighter now living in our time called Stormy Tempest. The pencils were furnished by the talented Scott Larson.

Notice I'm posting color scans of the artwork. This is as close to the original as you can get, warts, whiteout, blue pencils[printed out on the board] and all. Feel free to comment on whether you prefer the cleaned up version or the raw original.
P.S. Page 3 is my favorite for obvious reasons.....

Merry Christmas

2010-12-21T07:57:00.000-08:00

Here's a piece from the late 90's that fits the occassion.

There's a little something special under the tree this year...

2010-12-12T17:58:00.000-08:00

"Should I wrap it"? Pencils by Rock Baker. Inks by me.

Image copyright Rock Baker

Live Live LIVE

2010-12-10T04:13:00.000-08:00

Here is a flyer I worked up for my nephew Alex.

Rock-N-a roll

2010-11-29T04:42:00.000-08:00

Penciler Rock Baker and I are collaborating on a series of pin ups covering several subjects. Here are a few of the recently finished ones. The first one is from a fairy tale series.

This next one is Animala, from The Lost Skeleton of Cadavra, a movie I've never seen, but hear only good things about.

The last piece is from a holiday line of images. You guess which one.

Rock is a prolific penciler, and has handed me roughly 60 pin ups so far. I'll be posting more as I can work them in. Stay tuned for more Rock-N-Jeff eye candy.

Happy Halloween

2010-10-25T19:04:00.000-07:00

Happy Halloween, folks!

Grave Reality

2010-10-18T17:53:00.000-07:00

Roughly three years ago, I was asked by Oliver Tosh, a film maker, to work up a comic book cover to be used as a prop in his movie Grave Reality. Recently, Oliver again contacted me to work up one more piece of artwork to be used in the movie [which is nearing completion]. The cover I provided has taken on double duty as movie poster. Below is the original piece I handed Oliver. For those interested in learning more about the movie Grave Reality, I'll add the official site in my links list.

Preymate

2010-10-18T16:44:00.000-07:00

Here is the first in a series of pin ups by Rock Baker and myself. We like to call them Preymates.

Stormy Weather....

2010-06-18T06:00:00.000-07:00

Here's a slice of a FemForce story penciled by Rock Baker and inked by myself. The guest in this tale is AC's futuristic heroine Stormy Tempest. A little Western action, a little futuristic action. What's not to like?

All characters shown in this posting are copyrighted 2010 [and beyond] AC Comics. All rights, lefts, ups and downs reserved.

Back from Slacker's Hell....

2010-05-28T05:40:00.000-07:00

Hi there. Remember me? You must, or you wouldn't be here...right? I'm back from my procrasti-vacation with a serving of potluck stew for you, and you, and you........even you.

First off, we have a blast from my past...a rhyming story from the late 80's. Another phase I went through, like swimming through Jello. Much plans for these things, but no follow through on the swing. FORE!!

.....The next image shows that when I go trolling for art to post, I really go TROLLing.....

...an impromptu Halloween card.....

A tight rough for a poster-print that I started working on several times, but never could bring to a satisfying outcome...at least...not yet.....

...My first attempt at creating a 3-D image......

....Another print idea. It's finished, but unused as yet....

A Christmas card drawn for a sister & family several years back. Yes, if you knew them, you WOULD recognize them from this card.

Well, ladies and... whatever else lurks out there in Cyberland...I've run out of pics for the present. Check back in sometime for more from the ever changing menu....

What...ANOTHER swamp creature?

2010-03-23T07:35:00.000-07:00

Here's a quick post to remind everybody I'm still breathing. The cover to FemForce 122. Pencil rough by Bill Black, finishes by..you know who.

Ali Baster

2010-03-05T10:10:00.000-08:00

Today's helping is strange and exotic. Let's see if I can sum this up properly. This is the story about a man who has been changed into a beautiful woman by a genie, and is living the good life in a king's harem. He-She divides his-her time between eating like a horse and avoiding the prince's sexual advances. Hmmm...

Anyway, the art is by Rock Baker and you know who. Enjoy....

splash

2010-03-03T06:58:00.000-08:00

Here, for your viewing pleasure, is a splash page from a FemForce story, featuring a montage of superbabes. Pencils are by Mark Heike...inks by.....guess who?

BY THE POWER OF GR...um...Nightveil?

2010-02-09T05:52:00.000-08:00

Here's a little something to look at 'til I can get a more substantial offering uploaded. A spot illustration of Nightveil. Abra-ka-BABE-ra!

The Wraith goes to Rio.

2010-01-28T05:52:00.000-08:00

Here is a cover featuring the Dread Avenger from Down Under...the Wraith! Trinity Comic's crimefighter gets the star treatment with pencils by Al Rio...and inks by....some guy....

Glub...glub....

2010-01-24T13:24:00.000-08:00

Pssst! Word to the wise...avoid the seafood buffet....

A touch of Italy...

2010-01-13T06:21:00.000-08:00

This time my visual diner is on the road, traveling all the way to sunny Italy. This post features pages I've inked for stories by Italian Writer Enrico Teodorani. The first two are from a tasty little Calavera story complete with aliens AND zombies. How do we fit it all on one plate, you ask? Not easily....

The next few pages are from a Djustine story, with a layer of zombie melted to perfection on top. How can you not like a story with a big crowd of the undead, big guns and big ti...um...wits?

Swords, Shamans, and Squishy aliens.....

2009-12-23T07:13:00.000-08:00

On this week's menu we're back to pencil-burgers. The un-named characters sprinkled throughout were created for the express purpose of cobbling together five pages of continuity pie, to be served up as samples. The main ingredient is science fiction/fantasy, to give this dish an exotic flavor. The ailing Queen Whats-her-name sends the hulking warrior Who'sis on an interdimensional trip, via Shaman[Abraca-pokus] to battle an alien threat [we'll call them Grem-loids from the planet with the golden arches]. Along the way, Who'sis picks up a traveling companion[Debbie] with a sob story* [*flashback included. No assembly required]. Can Who'sis survive the battle and catch the next flight home on the Shaman Express [without getting airsick]? I dunno..I wrote it, and I don't know....Who'sis, you're on your own.......CHECK PLEASE!!

RADical TERROR....

2009-12-13T07:49:00.000-08:00

This week's art buffet is a tasty morsel sporting pencils by AC Comics editor-artist Mark Heike, with inks by yours truly. It's a tale of AC's bad boy and girl, the Black Terror and Rad. The pair is on the trail of a mad scientist with a penchant for genetics and cloning in particular. In case you're wondering, the child on page one is the doctor himself, in a cloned duplicate of Rad's late son. Rad is not the most stable of persons, so this revelation leads to some emotional displays in the course of the story. But emotion is the sweet and sour sauce of literature. Spicy, tangy,...OOPS!! Here comes the health inspector......gotta run....catch ya next time........

Stardusting

2009-12-03T06:49:00.000-08:00

I'm starting December off with a story featuring the most sparkling, decorative member of the FemForce..Stardust. Why her in December? Because all that sparkle reminds me of a Christmas tree [Ba-dum-bum-Tsssshhhh..]. Aaaanyway, all FemForce characters are copyright 2009 AC Comics, all rights reserved. You go ahead and enjoy the story, I gotta get my egg-noggin examined.....

November Buffet, part 2

2009-11-25T16:45:00.000-08:00

Welcome back to the buffet. Grab a tray and dig in. Today's specialty is comprised of work I've done for Joe Martino from JGM Comics. First off is a trio of pages cooked up lightly in olive oil to pad out the big fight scene at the end of a Shadowflame trade paperback. That villain sure is crunchy, isn't he? Before eleven A.M., he'd be toast!

Next is a trio of penciled and peppered pages from the tasty Ripperman book I'm currently brewing up in my artistic kitchen. They haven't had their final coating of ink sauce, but they're smelling good already...

The characters served up in today's post are courtesy of Chef Joe Martino. Not only are they copyright 2009, but he doesn't want to have to tell you twice that all rights are reserved. Y'got that? Now wipe your chin..you got something on it...no, to your left....

November buffet...belly up to the bar!

2009-11-25T15:34:00.000-08:00

Today we're serving dishes cooked up by yours truly and writer Bobby Nash. The first course is a horror tale called Silent Scream: the haunting of Sara Grey, and it's topped with a generous helping of grey tone effects. Only two pages to a customer [sorry, but that's as far as I got on it. Hey, some people need deadlines]. Served with a blood red wine.....

Our next course consists of the last two pages from a science fiction tale we call "the Garden". These are my two favorite pages from the story, and I think a little salad from "the Garden" is a good way to round out this meal, don't you?

Nightveil does the Limbo

2009-11-15T18:39:00.000-08:00

In this post, I'm sharing the very first thing I did for AC Comics. Written by publisher Bill Black, penciled-inked-and even lettered by yours truly. My first crack at the ladies of the FemForce, although there were only two members in this tale. This story set in Limbo was tailor made for the great Steve Ditko [nobody ever drew limbo better], but as he was unavailable, I did the job myself. I still can't help chuckling at the way Synn exits the giant stone cat. Like I've said many times, AC knows how to write a fun script.

If you enjoyed this story, hop on over to the AC web site and check out the many products they have to offer. To find it, Think Link...to your right on my blog.

Titanic thumbnails....

2009-11-06T12:32:00.000-08:00

A few years back a friend of mine and I decided to work up a portfolio showcasing the Titanic. The difference in our version would be to throw in the ghostly images of some unlucky passengers. Unfortunately, our projected time frame was a bit too tight, and the project was never finished. Most of the work never got past the thumbnail stage. Only one had reached completion before the end. I'll start with that one, showing progression from initial roughs to finished piece.
Below is a sheet of quick thumbnails trying to get the layout to a satisfactory stage before going on to a tighter version.

Once the initial layout was established, I went on to a tighter thumbnail to flesh out my thoughts.
Finally, I proceeded to the finished drawing.

Here is another thumbnail.....

And the final.

Welcome to November

2009-11-02T14:04:00.000-08:00

New stuff will show up soon. Stay tuned

Last blast for October

2009-10-30T18:56:00.001-07:00

...To round out October, I'm posting a random assortment of images. Consider it an art buffet...Mmmmm, now I'm getting hungry...where is that industrial macaroni I love so much....

Below is a layout from a type of portfolio I was planning out some time ago. Each type of art sample had it's own title page. This was the contact page with address, phone number, etc. I liked this layout with the Easter Island heads, but I never could get it to look right in the final version. And I didn't want to use a rough layout. Sigh.....

Here is another Grendel illustration. I posted several from this collection early on here. This is Grendel showing off his recent dental work. Lovely, isn't it?

Calling Doctor Quackenstein. Your unwilling patient is waiting in surgery. She's already been sedated. Dig right in. "Igor, get the zip-lock bags".

I was too lazy to draw a Halloween pic this year, so I'll offer up this piece instead.

Building the perfect...mouse....Hmmm.

The pencil writes...and regrets.

Old readers never die...they just smell funny.

This is the first cover to a mini-series I've been working on called Ripperman. Yes, that IS Satan back there, so I guess this qualifies as a Halloween pic, too.

This is the penciled version of a promotional shot of Ripperman. You know what they say, big feet, big....sword.

And to all the little ghouls out there.....Happy Halloween.

Lance Star; Space Ranger

2009-10-28T20:44:00.000-07:00

This time I'm previewing a story that a writer friend [Bobby Nash] and I are working up. Lance Star is traditionally a pre-World War 2 adventure pilot. But for this story, we're taking him out into deep space for some retro sci-fi fun. This is a throwback to the good ol' days filled with laser guns, conquering aliens, and a dashing hero with his faithful sidekicks. No cynical, pissy anti-heroes here, bub. Issue to issue continuity is for sissies. Scientific fact? Who needs it? Put on your crappiest T-shirt, grab some Doritos and enjoy.....

Ahem....Lance Star and all supporting characters are copyright 2009, the right honorable Bobby Nash. Artwork is copyright 2009, me.

Umm....can I have some of those Doritos?

FemForce versus Moon Mind Montague...No, really...

2009-10-27T20:14:00.000-07:00

Here we have a chapter I penciled for another issue of FemForce. Each chapter in this issue was drawn by a different artist. In this one, the FemForce are captured by a fellow named Moon Mind Montague. Yes, that's right. Because everything's good with cheese in it, even super villains. And that's why I like working for AC. They never forget that the purpose of reading comics is to have FUN. It's escapism, pure and simple. Let other genres wax philosophical about life, I'll go for the cheese flavored eye candy every time.

So anyway, Ol' Moon Mind manages to capture the FemForce.....

....And proceeds to ramble for over two full pages about his brilliant plan. This guy is right out of the Silver Age, isn't he?
He's not one to allow a lack of height to get in the way of his success...

Suddenly, his gloat festival is cut short by an infiltrator of his secret base...that pistol packin' Momma, Colt!

Colt is subdued...just in time to return rant [via flashback], telling all how brilliantly she managed to sneak in...

But although she was captured, Colt had earlier managed to sabotage the gas-filled tubes that held the FemForce. Let the games begin....

BATTER UP!!

FEMFORCE -1

Moon Mind -0

Th-th-th-that's all, FemFolks!

FemForce Versus Arajnu the Indestructible

2009-10-24T10:41:00.000-07:00

This time I'm posting a large chunk of the first FemForce story I penciled. The FemForce was the first group book I ever drew, and I was surprised to find that I enjoyed working with multiple characters. Of course, it's not hard to see why I liked working with these particular characters.

This was the longest story I had ever penciled at the time. Full length, it was 24 pages. It was originally written to be 15 pages, but after I had penciled the first four it became obvious that the level of type was making the panels a bit crowded, so we expanded the page count. They say you never forget your first....full length story.....cough.

My apologies for the murky nature of the scans. I was penciling with non-photo blue lead to make it easier on the inker, but as you might imagine it's devilishly hard to get a decent scan of this elusive substance. I ended up turning the light setting wayyy down low to get something worth saving. It wasn't long before I gave up the non-photo and grabbed a standard pencil.

FYI, the artwork and characters in this post are copyright 2009 AC Comics. All rights reserved. So there.

More and various items...

2009-10-11T11:43:00.000-07:00

Well the first round went well, so let's just keep going. A one, and a two....

Here's a sketch of the Sphinx that was done as part of a cover layout. I don't know if it's just me or if this happens to all artists. Sometimes I capture exactly what I want in the layout, but I'm not satisfied with the finished version. Premature articulation? Hmmm.....

This shot of a werewolf and it's intended dinner was drawn several years ago while I was feeling the Halloween spirit. Halloween was always my choice for the coolest holiday. Surely I don't have to explain why....
PEEKABOO! I always loved the old Plop magazine covers by Basil Wolverton. Weird people is fun to draw. Huhuhuhuhuh!

Unused T-shirt design. Some people get too wrapped up in sports.

I can't waste a good zombie sketch. In living...make that UN-living color, no less.

And finally, Buzz Bee. In 1989 I decided to draw nothing but cartoons and funny animals for a month. It may not be all that original, but these things can be created faster than hot air in a politician. This model sports a new inkjob.

First blog post

2009-10-11T09:36:00.000-07:00

Here I go with my first art post. As you'll see I tend to lean towards late 60's-early 70's retro in my style. I grew up on that stuff and I'd still like to see that look being sold on the stands.

I'm still in the learning curve of posting on a blog, so this group will be simple and straightforward. Later, I'll begin posting sequential story pages, layouts, etc. Until then, please enjoy some simple pin up shots. Here we go.....

FYI.....click on a pic for the enlarged version.

Hats, anyone? These were drawn to cut and paste on character heads a few years back. The project died, but the hats remain.

Wizard conjuring a she-demon. Penciled several years back, but not inked up until yesterday.

The dragon. Part of a series of pencil sketches I did several years ago for a friend. She was taking a class in web design and decided to take on Beowulf, the website. Again, inked yesterday.

Grendel. Also from the Beowulf drawings, and also finished yesterday. The original pencils were never intended to be inked, but sometimes I can't resist the urge to slap some inks on any pencils within reach.

Vampire couple. These young lovers give a whole new meaning to the phrase "fast food". They were originally in the page layouts I did for a vampire story. I liked them enough to invite them over to my blog. They wouldn't dress formal, but I insisted on a new inkjob.

Testing, one-two-three....

2009-10-10T21:31:00.000-07:00

I know, I know....

Yes, they will. And it's lucky for me that they will.

Anyway....Hello, I'm Jeff Austin, illustrator and comic book artist. The purpose of this blog is to shamelessly plug my artwork, hopefully bringing me to the attention of publishers, editors, and other interested parties who are not currently aware of my existence. As time marches on I'll be sharing various works from the past, and showing current assignments whenever possible.

In the next day or so, I'll post some art samples to get things started. Just getting things set up right now. If you stumble across this blog before that happens, please come back to check things out soon.