Sunday, January 25, 2009

New Stuff: commissions



So there i was, sitting at a table at another convention in another hotel in Jersey- hoping someone might drop by for an autograph-a sketch-or even directions to the bathroom (don't ask how many times that has happened-lol) when a large, jolly fella named Glenn Tippett comes by to chat.

Well after a bit he asks if I'd be interested in doing a promo piece for one of his company's comics-it would be of a lovely Asian heroine and a evil dragon (see said heroine above).

After we worked out the particulars, he introduced me to the lovely young actress who would become the model for the character: Candace Kita...







...yeah-yeah-i know-the artist's life is a rough one...ahem...so i was to take their character and basically make her look more like Candace-then she could appear at cons, signing posters of the art in conjunction with the comic book.


So, here are the basic steps (minus a bunch of scribbles i tend to do.)





Originally she was to be the evil character with a dragon in BG-as my 1st sketches show-but that changed and she then became the heroine:




Getting the "attitude"-the "acting"- and composition comes first and then the details...



after lots of pencilling i made a thin inkline version for adding the wash and blacks to...



I kept the dragon in the background solely in wash -no blacks-to separate him better from her in the foreground-she's got to stand out from the piece due to the amount of detail-so after i added the blacks and grey tones i put a thin white line around her-an aura of sorts which brings her figure towards the viewer-a very basic 3D illusion if it works well.



and there we go- another one bites the dust...that's all...Vokes...;o)

Wednesday, January 21, 2009

999 Challenge: update-Films

A few changes and additions to my film lists-all based in the 1990 to 1999 time frame...;o)

Martial Arts:
1990-1999

Kickboxer 5
Full Contact
Once Upon a Time in China III
Above the Law
Fist of Legend
Police Story 2
Rapid Fire
Showdown in Little Tokyo
High Voltage

COMEDY:
1990-1999:

Dogma
My Cousin Vinny
Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead
Bowfinger
Spy Who Shagged Me
Addams Family
Bill and Ted's Bogus Journey
The Mask
The Big Lebowski

HORROR:
1990-1999:

Exorcist III
From Dusk Till Dawn
Full Eclipse
House on Haunted Hill
It
Shadowbuilder
Prophecy
Night of the Living Dead
Innocent Blood

SCI FI:
1990-1999:

Soldier
Virtuosity
Deep Blue Sea
Predator 2
Robocop 2
Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace
Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country
Alien 3
Lost World: Jurassic Park 2

westerns:
1990 -1999

Dances with Wolves
Quigley Down Under
Maverick
Unforgiven
Tombstone
The Quick and the Dead
Bad Girls
Last of the Mohicans
Geronimo: An American Legend

Vokes really a Canadian?

According to my birth certificate,I was born in Florida-that's been a fact my whole life- but there are apparently those who believe my "true" origins began in the Great White North!

Awhile ago i was searching the net for something about my old character Eagle and i happened on a Amsterdam based site - Lambiek.net -that lists comic creators, with a bio and some art.

Even tho I hate reading about myself-ahem-i read the short bio and was surprised to see this:

"Neil Vokes has been active in the comics field since the mid-1980s ... Born in Canada, Neil has been living in New Jersey for more than 50 years.

I wrote them to correct this misinformation-well,that has not been changed yet apparently but hey-i don't mind-that I'm mentioned at all pleases me...;o)

Then-today on Facebook a fellow artist, Ronn Sutton-who IS Canadian-told me about a book he got from the library: "INVADERS FROM THE NORTH: How Canada Conquered The Comic Book Universe" and he asked if i was Canadian because I'm LISTED IN THE BOOK!

Heck-maybe I am Canadian and never knew it, eh?

...and the legend grows...;o)

Thursday, January 15, 2009

999 Challenge: small update

An update to my book list-i just received Tim Lucas' new book about VIDEODROME ( I'd have loved to include his beautiful tome on director Mario Bava but it is massive- i shall probably be reading that for the next half of my life ;o)

7. 9 books:

A FORTUNATE LIFE (Robert Vaughn's autobiography)
MY WORD IS MY BOND (Roger Moore's autobiog)
UP TILL NOW (William Shatner's autobiog...you seeing a pattern here?)
NIGHT OF THE CRABS by Guy N.Smith
THE BODIES LEFT BEHIND by Jeffery Deaver
THE BATTLE FOR BOND by Robert Sellars
VIDEODROME: Studies in the Horror Film
DRACULA ASYLUM by Paul Witcover
HAMMER FILMS:A LIFE IN PICTURES by Wayne Kinsey (i know this is primarily a photo book,with little text,but i wanted a Hammer related item on the list since it was originally Hammer and Beyond's Holger Hasse's idea)

Tuesday, January 13, 2009

Total Film.Com Movie Blog Awards

Head on over to the TOTAL FILM site and vote,Vokes Folks!

and do me a favor and vote for my buddy Holger Hasse's blog: Hammer and Beyond (horror category, natch )

...no pressure...;o)

Saturday, January 10, 2009

Ten Rules to Live By

Ten rules for making the world a much better place
by Dave Barry:

1. If there's a line, you get at the end of the line and you wait your turn.

2. You own ONE place in the line. You do NOT have the right to invite friends to join you in the line. This is rude to the people behind you, who got there before your friends, and will now have to wait longer. If you want to be with your friends, you can join them at the back of the line. And, no, it's not enough to ask the person immediately behind you if it's okay for your friends to butt in. This person does not speak for the entire line.

Also this person pretty much has to say yes, but only because he or she, being less rude than you, wants to avoid confrontation.

EXCEPTION: You may invite an immediate family member such as your spouse or child to join you in the line. There are no other exceptions.

EXCEPTION: Halle Berry.

3. If you're one of those people who go directly to the front of the line and either pretend you don't see the line, or act as though you some-how KNOW that your situation is more urgent than that of anybody else waiting, and somebody in line objects, and you make some vague apology but remain at the front of the line, you will rot in hell.

4. If you're in a supermarket checkout line, and you realize that you forgot an item, you're allowed to go get it, provided that (1) you apologize to the people behind you, (2) you know exactly where the item is and (3) you hurry. If you forgot TWO items, take your cart out of line. You are NOT allowed to leave your cart blocking the line while you wander the aisles trying to recall the ingredients for Beef Tongue Flambeau.

NOTE: Before you serve beef tongue, you should think about the things that cows lick.

5. If you're in the express lane, and the sign says 10 ITEMS OR LESS, then you should have no more than ...

Okay, we'll allow 12 items. We're not Nazis here.

EXCEPTION: Halle Berry can have as many items as she wants.

6. At a movie theater, you may save seats for a few people if the theater is not crowded. If the theater is crowded, you may save seats only if the people you're saving them for are on the premises, defined as "in the building or the parking lot." If the previews of coming attractions have started, and the theater is filling up, and you're still defending seats for theoretical people who have not yet arrived, and an actual person attempts to sit down, and you hiss "That's saved," and the person "accidentally" trips and spills that stanky movie-theater nacho cheese all over your hair, and you press assault charges, and we get selected to serve on the jury, we're
voting for acquittal.

7. Do not talk during the movie unless you have something important to say. (Example: "My water just broke.")

You may talk quietly during the previews of coming attractions.

EXCEPTION: Halle Berry.

8. At class plays, music recitals, graduations, etc., you may save a few seats for your IMMEDIATE FAMILY.

You may not arrive an hour early and squat at the end of a row and save large blocs of seats for relatives so distant that some of them are not even vertebrates.

NOTE: This rule applies even if you have turned the seating area into an indoor yard sale by marking each "saved" seat with a personal item such as a sweater, purse, sock, brassiere, etc.

EXCEPTION: If we see a seat marked by dentures, we're sitting somewhere else.

9. If you're talking on your cell phone in public, and people keep glancing at you, it's not because they're impressed by the fact that you are a busy, productive person. It's because YOU'RE TALKING TOO LOUD.

10. (This rule was suggested by our Research Department, Judi Smith, who one day will open fire with a machine gun in a public rest room.) If you're a woman using a toilet, and, because you are dainty and fastidious, you elect not to sit on the seat, but instead hover over it like a UFO from the Planet Weewee, and as a result you spatter the seat, do NOT just leave your mess, as if no human will ever use this toilet again.

CLEAN UP AFTER YOURSELF.

EXCEPTION: Sorry, Halle. Judi says you, too.

-------------------

So endeth the lesson...;o)

Thursday, January 8, 2009

New Stuff: Tinnell/Vokes project



Another "model sheet" for our Hammeresque book-basically I'm just trying to warm up by drawing various characters that may or may not be in the storyline-it gets me in the mood of the piece.

Here we have 3 steps of the process-from loose pencils to inkline to finished wash...







I'm trying for a looser style to keep some of the energy of the layouts-we'll see if it works or not...;o)

Wednesday, January 7, 2009

New Stuff: sketch cards '09



Last year i did a few sketch cards for Blue Line Art's 1st annual auction to benefit the American Cancer Society (along with a bunch of other artists.)

I was asked again to contribute this year-here are the 4 i did-with their layouts (each card is actually only about 2 1/2 x 3 1/2.

The 1st is Red Sonja...




Then we have the Punisher...







...Batgirl...






and last but not least, Will Eisner's (not Frank Miller's) the Spirit...







that's all, Vokes...;o)

Tuesday, January 6, 2009

New Stuff: model sheets



...more stuff for the Tinnell/Vokes Hammeresque project-final title still up in the air...;o)

Monday, January 5, 2009

New Stuff: LSOH (again)



Here's the last piece for the next LSOH.

Step one-above-is the concept: Drac and the ladies of DRACULA AD 1972.





Then the clean up-in pencil-get the likenesses closer to the actors-i used to go for more exact likenesses but of late,I've loosened up a bit-the fans of the films will know who I'm drawing...;o)





Then the inkline and erasing of pencils...





And lastly the wash is added-i also add some white highlights and then do a little clean up in Photoshop.

Another one bites the neck...er...dust...;o)
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Sunday, January 4, 2009

999 Challenge-update 1.5.09

I've been trying to pick which films,music,books, etc that I'm gonna add to the list-here's a small update:

1. 9 western films (between 1990 to 1999) :

Dances with Wolves
Quigley Down Under
Unforgiven
Tombstone
Wyatt Earp
The Quick and the Dead
Last Stand at Saber River
Last of the Mohicans
Geronimo: An American Legend

2. 9 horror films (1990 - 1999) :

Dracula
Cemetery Man
Exorcist III
From Dusk Till Dawn
Full Eclipse
House on Haunted Hill
It
Silence of the Lambs
Prophecy

3. 9 comedies (same)

4. 9 Sci Fi films (same) :

(several of these choices are sequels to major hits of the Sci-Fi genre-and as such they rarely get the respect the 1st film gets -i thought it would be fun to concentrate on some of them)

Lost World: Jurassic Park, The
Dark City
Gamera 3: Awakening of Iris
Soldier
Virtuosity
Predator 2
Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace
Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country
Alien 3

5. 9 foreign films (same)

6. 9 TV series on dvd (I'll keep it to one episode per show to be realistic -
i have at least nine box sets of various shows sitting amongst my dvd collection)

7. 9 books:

A FORTUNATE LIFE (Robert Vaughn's autobiography)
MY WORD IS MY BOND (Roger Moore's autobiog)
UP TILL NOW (William Shatner's autobiog...you seeing a pattern here?)
NIGHT OF THE CRABS by Guy N.Smith
THE BODIES LEFT BEHIND by same
THE BATTLE FOR BOND by Robert Sellars
MY BORING-ASS LIFE by Kevin Smith
DRACULA ASYLUM by Paul Witcover
HAMMER FILMS:A LIFE IN PICTURES by Wayne Kinsey (i know this is primarily a photo book,with little text,but i wanted a Hammer related item on the list since it was originally Hammer and Beyond's Holger Hasse's idea)

8. 9 albums/cds (again i want to try to listen to bands i haven't before-or at least paid little attention to-also between 1990 to 1999)

9. 9 chapters of a comic strip (i borrowed this idea from fellow blogger Davy Z) I'm not sure about what yet-something i haven't done before, i think-still working out a theme

Friday, January 2, 2009

New Stuff: LSOH



Hello again, Hammer Film fans!

I've been drawing yet another series of pieces for the next ish of my buddy Dick Klemensen's magazine, Little Shoppe of Horrors.

These four are from the two modern day-the early 70s-Dracula films that Hammer produced: DRACULA AD 1972 and SATANIC RITES OF DRACULA.













I'm going to try and do a couple more if i have time-I hope you enjoy them...;o)

Thursday, January 1, 2009

Tuesday, December 30, 2008

New Stuff...



My buddy Davey Z had a thread going on his Facebook about Christina Lindberg from a film called THRILLER-A CRUEL PICTURE or THEY CALL HER ONE EYE.

Adrian Salmon -Brit artist supreme- did a great little sketch of her and this prompted me to follow suit-thus the above montage from said flick...;o)

Wednesday, December 24, 2008

Another piece of the Shrine



I got back from the store appearance at 2:30am-nice people at ALL THINGS FUN-I also contributed my third piece for the Aquaman Shrine: Black Manta (the art was actually in my usual "shades of gray" style but it's kinda hard to scan the tones)
-a tradition now after having done Aquaman and Mera for his sketchbook-check out their blog...


...and all of you Vokes Folks have a very Merry Ho-Ho!

Tuesday, December 23, 2008

Santo vs the Brainiac!


a couple of Mexican horror icons in their 1st face off-done as a Xmas gift...;o)

New (almost) Stuff...




...What I mean is that these are not new drawings-i have a stash of files of old con sketches and stuff that I'm slowly unloading on my blog.

The 1st is a villain called the Phantom-the older fans out there will recall him from the Fantastic Four comic years ago...

Below is also a con sketch - Two-Face,of course...





Then we have the Creeper-a fave Ditko character i hope to draw someday in a book...





this is an old pin up from the LIFE, UNIVERSE AND EVERYTHING series i did but i just added a grey tone to it today-just because...;o)




Tuesday, December 16, 2008

Hammer & Beyond: 999 Challenge

What the heck am I talkin' about, you may ask?

Head on over to my good buddy (and fellow Hammer Films fanboy) Holger Haase's blog and read his newest entry...

could be fun...;o)

Let's see...

here's a VERY basic breakdown of 1st thoughts-this will need some expanding in the next few weeks before '09:

1- 9 western films (but only ones from the 90s-1990 to 1999- to keep a theme going here-westerns were virtually non existent by then-should be a challenge-lol )

2- 9 horror films (the same goes for these and the next couple film genres-this helps keep me more focused i think-besides, i haven't bothered with a whole lot of "new" films in the horror/comedy/sci fi/foreign genre-should be enlightening)

3- 9 comedies (same)

4- 9 Sci Fi films (same)

5- 9 foreign films (same)

6- 9 TV series on dvd (I'll keep it to one episode per show to be realistic -
i have at least nine box sets of various shows sitting amongst my dvd collection)

7- 9 books (i have more than nine on my "to read" shelf already-and just added more this Xmas!)

8- 9 albums/cds (again i want to try to listen to bands i haven't before-or at least paid little attention to-also between 1990 to 1999)

9- 9 chapters of a comic strip (i borrowed this idea from fellow blogger Davy Z) I'm not sure about what yet-something i haven't done before, i think-maybe semi autobiographical in nature?
as soon as i've picked the exact films,etc that will be on the list I'll update the entry...;o)

...wow-only 365 days to do all that...what shall i do with my free time-lol

Also keep an eye on my Blog list sidebar-it shows several blogs I'm following,including some that are in on the challenge!

That's All,Vokes!

Tuesday, December 2, 2008

The Super Mega Comic Fest - plus bonus art...


Hey strangers!

I've been remiss in adding any new content to the blog but stuff happens (or this last weekend,stuffing!) so here's a slight update...

I'll be appearing at the Super Mega Comic Fest Show in East Hanover,NJ this weekend ( Dec. 6-7) along with comic book folk Tommy Castillo,Murphy Anderson,Herb Trimpe and Joe Staton among others-there will also be many movie and tv celebs and a slew of wrestler types!

So if you're in the area come on over and see us...;o)

In addition here's a couple pieces i did for good buddy Davey Z...




...this Hulk/Spidey piece has a fun bit of trivia behind it- after finishing the linework i thought it might be fun to color it so i asked my daughter-i think she did a great job (all i added was a touch of wash/shading to it...;o)





...til next time...
That's All,Vokes...;o)

Friday, November 14, 2008

New Stuff: Marvelman


Another commission-the Brit version of Captain Marvel,who also had his named changed thanks to Marvel Comics.

Here's a few of the steps:
















...Leading to the finished piece:


Tuesday, November 4, 2008

CONGRATS TO PRESIDENT ELECT OBAMA!

you've all just witnessed history being made,my friends...;o)


"Rosa Parks sat so that Martin Luther King could walk. Martin Luther King walked so that Obama could run. Obama's running so that we all can fly."

--Rapper Jay Z.

Monday, November 3, 2008

25 hour horror movie marathon!

My ETP bros (7 of us plus a film buddy from Philly) and i went to a 25 hour (DST added another hour to the event!) horror film marathon in Philly from 12 noon Saturday to 12 noon (technically 1pm) Sunday-wotta blast!

i am rather sore-back and knees-but then I'm also 54 years old-lol-but I'll say with pride i was in my seat the longest of my friends-drank no coffee (i don't anyway-i kept to water and a couple sips of Dr Pepper-so a little caffeine got into me about midnight-lol)-took no drugs (ok- a couple advil ;o) -and ate very little (a few "breakfast bars") - afterward i was ready for more!

today I'm gonna zone out and relax...and watch more movies!

here's the list of flix we saw-and no one knew what was on the list until we actually saw it onscreen (as my buds pointed out, very "mainstream", but lottsa fun when seen on the big screen-so rare nowadays-and with friends) :

The Fog- great "old school horror" from John Carpenter

Destroy All Monsters-ya hadda have an old Godzilla classic-even if it wasn't one of the best

Phantasm 2-not as good as the 1st but fun

Wicked Wicked-the first time ANY of us saw this "duovision" flik from the early 70s- but it became our top fave of the marathon because it was an unintentionally hilarious film-not a good movie by any stretch,but VERY entertaining ;o)

Nightmare on Elm Street-another classic-always a pleasure to see the "original" Freddy

The Incredible Shrinking Man-a great flik but a surprise because of it's vintage

The Boogey man-HORRID film but NOT entertaining-maybe my least fave

Fright Night- i ADORE this vampire classic-great choice

Dead and Buried-great,rarely seen horror by ALIEN writer Dan O'Bannon

Island of the Damned (Who Can Kill a Child)-the only "Euro horror" (which disappointed my ETP pals-after all,the group IS called the EUROTRASH PARADISE-lol) but a very good film-not an entertaining film on the level of a FOG or a PHANTASM but more thought provoking and uncomfortable due to it's subject matter

Equinox-not a good movie but fun in it's way-the one film that had the most technical difficulties-and few did-the fella running the projector did a great job!

Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2-no match for the original but pure,mindless,LOUD (very loud),gory "fun" -assuming that sorta thing entertains you-lol

Food of the Gods-AWFUL-a toss up for my least fave with Boogey Man

Return of Living Dead-a great finish to the show (the 2nd flik written by O'Bannon) -i would call this a classic as well

...so-when's the next one?!

Thursday, October 30, 2008

New Project

Remember that entry on the new book Bob Tinnell and i are working on-i tried to be ambiguous about it-but Bob has let the bat outta the bag on Fearnet.com...

And i thought i was a big blabbermouth-lol



New Stuff: CURSE OF THE WEREWOLF

I've been working on this-on and off-for about 3 months-not consistently- as I've slipped several other commissions in between then and now-i was able to do that because the fella that asked for this is an understanding guy-and a friend-but i made him wait too long.

The reasons are not just the delaying of it-sometimes these things hit me from the mention of the idea-and sometimes...not so much.

It wasn't the subject-no sir-COTW is one of my favorite Hammer Films flix-and my fave werewolf flick-i have a plethora of reference as well-nope-this was just one of those pieces that makes me work a little harder-not a bad thing...;o)


Anywho...here's a couple prelims and the final piece-i hope you enjoy it (and i hope the guy feels it was worth the wait...;o)










Friday, October 24, 2008

Wonder Woman Day 3-reminder...


Remember: I'll be appearing at the COMIC FUSION store in Flemington, NJ on Wonder Woman Day-October 26th-if you're in the area, drop by!

Thursday, October 23, 2008

WATCHMEN watching...

It's been a rather Watchmen-ish couple of days for me here.

I just received the new book by artist Dave Gibbons, WATCHING THE WATCHMEN (awesome prelim artwork and details on how they created this landmark comic) and just saw the new trailer for the film adaptation.

Wow- I thought DARK KNIGHT was a film I geeked out for in the extreme (and worth every geekish exclamation) but WATCHMEN is shaping up quite nicely.

If you decide to check out the trailer don't read the short article on the site -if you are familiar with the book's ending you may be getting a shock (tho not a deal breaker kinda shock) so keep a few secrets to help enjoy the film itself...;o)

Monday, October 20, 2008

Facebook Fever!

Yup-it's true-I've finally succumbed to starting a Facebook page also- geez-what's next-my own BLOG?!

...uhm...wait a mo...

...er...anyway...

Well, if you feel like hopping on the lemmings Webwagon as we all ride blissfully over the cliff edge together,then you can become a 'Book friend...

...I'm such an internet whore...;o)

Tuesday, October 7, 2008

New Stuff...

A recently finished commission of the Archie Goodwin/Walt Simonson version of DC's MANHUNTER:




...;o)

WONDER WOMEN DAY 3: update!

As mentioned previously I've done several pieces for the annual Wonder Woman Day charity (see archives for info-I'll also be appearing at the COMIC FUSION store in Flemington, NJ on WWD-October 26th-if you're in the area, drop by!) and i just wanted to show you fine folk the 2nd piece i did this year:




Hope you like it...;o)

Tuesday, September 30, 2008

Busy in Balty...


Well it was another great show in Baltimore thanks to Marc Nathan and his very friendly,helpful staff (always ready with a howdoyoudo,info,snacks,lunch,etc...) and all the wonderful fans (several EAGLE fans showed up to thank me for the old series-one even said i was a strong influence on him-poor boy- and they also berated me about not putting out new stories!) and my many friends in the biz (I managed to get a few minutes with old pal and legend, Nick Cardy-you couldn't ask for a more kind,generous,talented fella to call friend-he signed my copy of his new book NICK CARDY:BEHIND THE ART-which just so happened to include the pin up of Cotton he did for THE WICKED WEST! ...WOW...i was so frikkin honored-i got all verklempt.) and many more whose names would just make me a name dropper-but i luvs these guys-no bull...;o)

Can't wait till next year!

CRABS' FURY!

CRABS' FURY ...?

An unusual subject line for this blog, i admit, but it got your attention, didn't it?

My good buddy,David Zuzelo has asked me to help promote the rerelease of this highly sought after graphic novel- through Ghostwriter Publications- by infamous-and prolific- writer Guy N. Smith (i readily admit to owning several of his novels myself-oh the shame-the joyous pulpy reading shame ;o)

As this was asked by a friend and collegue (i've mentioned the project Z and i are working on in this blog before) and it is drawn by another old friend and fellow comics artist, Charlie Adlard, i had to mention it here in my humble blog.

Please take a peek at it if only out of curiousity...thanks...;o)

Thursday, September 25, 2008

Time for a Quickie...

Much as i wish this referred to something else...ahem...i just wanted to let you know i'll be traveling to the annual Baltimore Comic Con tomorrow.

It's one of my favorite shows and i look forward to meeting up with old friends and new fans-if you're there please drop by my table and say hi!

I'll leave you with a little quick sketch (thus the subject line ;o) done for a fan: