Mal Jones' Blog

Literacy Widgets launched

Wed, 15 Jul 2009 14:30:26 -0500

The widgets I did illustration work for a few months ago have launched over at Reading Rockets. They came out pretty sharp and were fun to do.

Hyper the Phenomenal!

Tue, 14 Jul 2009 07:20:06 -0500

Hyper the Phenomenal! "Don-Vin, also known as Hyper the Phenomenal, is ray gun wielding spaceman. He has a girlfriend named Winifred and is enemies with a woman named Dolores. He does not posses any known superpowers."

Warren Ellis posts these character descriptions of old old characters (I'm guessing Hyper came out in the 40s or so) on his Message Board and artists go in and redesign/re-imagine them. It's a good exercise to have as a warm up. There's usually a week 'deadline' on the thread.

I was going to work this design in to a larger print, but it just wasn't quite working, and I already missed the thread deadline so I'm just letting it go. I'm definitely going to do a full blown illustration of him at some point though.

Pelham on Covers

Sat, 11 Jul 2009 23:51:25 -0500

This is a quote from David Pelham in Penguin by Design, a great history of Penguin Cover design and development history. He's talking what we wanted a cover to do.

There must be two triggers — an initial trigger which will attract the buyer towards the book from the other side of the shop; and then, when he gets to the book, a second trigger which is in some visual and/or literal way intriguing. Then, he actually reaches out and picks the book up.

Friday Design Face: Done.

Fri, 10 Jul 2009 15:20:39 -0500

Man am I done with this week. It was a productive one though, but tough. Tonight brings about a bit of grilling for Diana and I, and then tomorrow is a full day of relaxation before drawing again tomorrow night.

Sometimes you have to redraw things

Wed, 08 Jul 2009 13:11:43 -0500

I'm working on inking pages for The Card Cheat pitch. Marc and I have had a lot of conversations about tone, attitude, and where The Card Cheat fits in the 'genre' world.

Because of those conversations things shift a bit in the storytelling. Spot a few more blacks, mean up some dialogue, change a few words. Nothing big really, but sometimes I've gotta suck it up and redraw a panel that really isn't working.

I don't do it too often because it's not good process or very fair to the writer (who has reviewed all the pencils at this point). But now and again, I do it because I feel like the story is better served.

Luckily enough, in this case I was right and Marc agreed.

Notes on Modernism

Tue, 07 Jul 2009 09:50:52 -0500

From American Modernism: Graphic Design, 1920-1960 by R. Roger Remington pages 30 and 31:

In the new language of graphic design, these radical characteristics defined Modernism:

Process Values
- to reject traditional forms and decorative elements
- to seek a solution that is simple and direct
- to be concerned with the process by which the designer worked
- to use systematic methods rather than intuitive ones
- to use rational, objective approaches to the solving of a graphic problem
- to think about relationships in form and content

Formal visual values
- to use geometric shapes: the circle, the triangle, the square
- to use primary colors

Kevin O'Neill tells it how it is.

Mon, 06 Jul 2009 12:03:33 -0500

From a Times Online profile of one my favorite artists, Kevin O'Neill:

“Never ask the readers what they want in this business because they always ask for the same things — superheroes and future war: they want what they’ve had,” he says. “But what they really want is what they’ve not been given.”

Kevin O'Neill is the artist of (amongst other things) the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen. Written by Alan Moore, it's one of the best comics to come out pretty much ever. Just ignore the god-awful movie that was made out of it.

(article found via Robot 6)

Polly

Sun, 05 Jul 2009 21:48:23 -0500

Rainy Day for Gid

Mon, 29 Jun 2009 14:35:00 -0500

Using that same 124 (plus a few) color palette that I used on the re-colored steamboat page, here's Page 7 of Card Cheat. I needed to do a daytime/outdoors scene to make sure I can make this plan work.

The answer is yes: This plan will definitely work.

Re-coloring Card Cheat

Thu, 25 Jun 2009 15:52:19 -0500

So, like everything with the Card Cheat, Marc and I are working to make it the best that it can be. I was becoming more and more unhappy with my coloring on the first couple of pages, so I decided to start again from the ground up.

The entire book is going to be based on the original 124 colors that colorists used pre computer coloring. A nice 'limited' palette that helps us focus on mood and create really great effects. Limited only in that I don't stare blindly at the entire Photoshop palette anymore. I have a nice set starting point to create a rhythm from.

I've become a bit obsessed with the coloring in 70s and 80s European comics, so that's probably going to leak through a bit.... ok a lot.

Sam Koi: Episode Three is up

Mon, 15 Jun 2009 16:30:34 -0500

I've finally finished up Sam Koi Episode Three this weekend (Emphasis on the finally. I'm surprised Rhiannon didn't kill me for taking so long).

We plan to have one more done this summer and then a collection of the four stories (plus extras!) at SPX this fall.

Page 7, pencils

Wed, 03 Jun 2009 15:55:16 -0500

Pencils from issue one of Card Cheat. It's the introduction of one of my favorite side characters 'Jake'. He's just really fun to draw, all hungover and what not.

I letter at the pencil stage to make sure the dialogue fits nicely with the scene and to give Marc a chance to see his words on the page. From there he can make some tweaks to dialogue and ask for tweaks to the pencils if he thinks they need it.

Print to Web Tips: Final

Fri, 22 May 2009 13:15:59 -0500

Print to Web: Final version

The article went up on Fullbleed, so here's the final version of Kung Fu Designers!

The Horrors of War is available now

Tue, 19 May 2009 11:37:26 -0500

Horrors of War: Cover, art done by Scott White

Horrors of War: Pages

Dr. Dremo's Taphouse of Tall Tales and Short Stories: The Horrors of War is the second in a series of genre themed anthologies from the DC Conspiracy. The 8 page story Mom wrote and I broke down in to a comic is in the issue.

It will be on sale this weekend at the DC Counter Culture Festival and you can also pick it up online at ComiXPress.

Print to Web Tips: In progress

Fri, 15 May 2009 16:01:50 -0500

I'm working on an illustration for Fullbleed to go with an article on that has some general tips on going from Print to Web and easing frustrations in the transistion.

Print to Web Tips: Concepts

Print to Web Tips: Pencils

Print to Web Tips: Color in progress

Kung Fu Designers!