User blog:Hatebunny/FanExpo Canada 2014 - "DC Master Class: Art History" Panel

FanExpo Canada 2014 - "DC Master Class: Art History" Panel
The last day of any convention is typically much calmer than other days.

Those who dressed up in the most elaborate costumes on Friday and Saturday often come back in plain clothes for just one more day of fun. Those who show up just for Sunday have get to explore the floor and halls with ease as they weave between the zombie-like fans who have been trudging around for the last three days.

 "Many artists hate to draw backgrounds, and only want to draw the hero in their pose. Backgrounds and background characters, though, are the most important parts of telling a story visually." The same is true for the guests, who are often quite worn out by Sunday. That is why Sunday was a good day to be there for DC's Master Class: Art History panel. While it might sound like a bore, it is a very casual and light-hearted atmosphere where three of the company's top artists share stories of breaking in to the industry, developing their own style, and meeting deadlines. And they do this all while drawing something live on an overhead projector so that attendees can all see their method.

I attended the same panel at NYCC last year, though I think it was with a different name, then, and I secretly hoped that this panel at FanExpo Canada 2014 would be the same thing, because it was such a treat. This time the panel included artists Yanick Paquette, Jill Thompson, and Francis Manapul. As this year is Batman's 75th Anniversary, they were all encouraged to draw something Batman related.

Yanick took his seat at the projector first, lightly pencilling the outline of Batman himself as he explained how he had originally intended to be a biologist - but it wasn't for him. Left with the two other avenues of writing classical music or drawing, he continued both, but pursued a career in the latter.

Later, Jill would explain how she had fallen in love with comics and began shopping her portfolio around at conventions at a time when women wanting to break into the industry seemed a rarity. That made her stand out, she thought, and she received some helpful feedback and the warning that she should study art at school before really pursuing comics. She began drawing Batgirl in her new costume, as designed by Cam Stewart and Babs Tarr.

Francis Manapul was late to the panel because, despite the decrease in crowding from the previous day, he'd still had trouble getting from Artist Alley to the panel room on account of just how popular Fan Expo has become of late. As we listened to the others talk, he began and completed an ink-wash drawing of Batman without any prompting. He explained that he also shopped his portfolio around, but used a unique method of using only three one-page images to show off his ability to tell dynamic stories, and of course, it impressed.

When asked about how he approaches his work, Yanick stated that he treats it as he would music, by making layers upon layers. He explained that he felt there is a similarity between the two mediums of art and music, in that music is creating something that exists in time, and a drawing exists in space. He began adding little details to his light pencils with ink, and then thick washes to capture Batman's dark cape and cowl. He joked that while he had been involved in an art duel at a previous convention, he would be happy to challenge.

Jill explained that her process is a laboured one, as her water-colouring process involves outlining coloured areas with a slightly darker shade, and in a varied piece, that requires rinsing the brush constantly - often totalling fourteen hours of work per page. For our sakes, she used a coloured pencil to outline her drawing first, before beginning to use coloured washes to give us the copper orange of Barbara Gordon's hair and the dark blues and bright yellows of her new suit.

Francis suggested that he approaches his images in terms of their elements. Having only just begun to colour his own covers for Detective Comics, he has begun to envision how the colour will interplay with his style of using inkwashes and dynamic lines. Yanick agreed that colourists do a lot to enhance what he does in terms of bringing a new dimension to the layers he has already built up.

As to their style, both Yanick and Jill agreed that while they had both been influenced by comics in the beginning, they could not develop as artists by simply looking at more of the same. So, Jill took the advice of her portfolio reviewers and went to art school. She reminded that fresh art comes from people who have well-rounded backgrounds in all art, as those outside influences will definitely be absorbed into one's own art style when applied to comics.

A fan wondered about the things the artists most hate to draw, and how they overcome artist's block. Yanick offered that he hates to draw robots, and joked about how his editor at Marvel assigned him to several books that involved the giant robots called the Sentinels. He reminded that a comic book artist has to be prepared to draw anything a writer can imagine. Many artists hate to draw backgrounds, and only want to draw the hero in their pose. Backgrounds and background characters, though, are the most important parts of telling a story visually. Jill pointed out that as she hates drawing cars, it is still important to know how to draw them, because a city without cars is hardly believable. Francis recalled how he had actually begun his early work by drawing cars for an advertisement, but only ever learned to draw three cars. He noted that despite working on Detective Comics for some time, he had not yet drawn the Batmobile, and suggested that it would surely look like one of those three cars - probably a Volkswagen Golf.

To keep motivated both to meet deadlines and to develop their talents, the artists all recommended that having a group of like-minded peers and an audience of friends or family to keep sharing work with, is a good way to keep motivated to stay in the habit of producing work on a regular basis. Jill admitted that the vaunted page-a-day lifestyle is difficult for her, and her compatriots agreed, though both Yanick and Francis commented that their speed varies depending on their style and what they've been asked to draw. Francis, who completed three ink-wash pieces over the course of the panel, grinned that he often stays at work in the studio even when he finishes his work early. Yanick recalled his own brief time working in monthly comics and advised that having to work under a deadline creates the pressure some artists need to find useful shortcuts - shortcuts that they can use even when working on projects with less rigid deadlines, such as his work on Grant Morrison's upcoming "Wonder Woman: Earth One".

The panel drew to a close, and each artist showed their finished pieces to the audience. Yanick produces a moody Batman against a yellow Gotham sky. Jill painted a vibrant Batgirl in motion. Francis' three drawings included a simple Batman in dark wash, a creepy Joker, and an amusing visual of Bruce Wayne catching his son Damian trying on the Batsuit.

With the exhaustion of the previous days' work behind them, the artists seemed in good spirits, and when I stopped by their tables later that afternoon, I saw them each involved in spirited conversations with fans. It was a fun and informative panel, full of humour and insight into the creative process for an artist in the comic book industry, and it helped a little, I think, to bridge that unfortunate gap between the books we love to read, and the people who make them.

Story and photos by Rab Townsend Published Sunday, August 31, 2014 11:45PM EST