Muerto Holiday themed Board icons

On my Message Board at El Muerto.com, I usually try to change the icon in the header everytime a holiday comes up. We just posted the 4th of July icon, the Yankee Doodle Zombie, as I like to call it!



Here you can see the 6 different icons I've used since launching the Board last July. I've missed a couple of holidays, but they'll always come back the following year, so no big loss!



Unless I really screwed up, you should recognize the icons for the 4th of July, Cinco de Mayo, St. Patrick's Day, Valentine's Day and Christmas. The one on the bottom right is the standard image I use when there's no holiday around. This Muerto icon image was created in Adobe Illustrator. Basically I did a quick sketch of El Muerto in the style of the Aztec Codices. Then I recreated it using the pencil tool and dropped in a little color. I had wanted to capture the iconographic simplicity of the Codices, but also I was looking to create a design in the mold of PowerPuff Girls or Mucha Lucha.

It's easy to alter the base image, and I think they look pretty cool. The Valentine image proved so popular I slapped it on a button, and sell 'em for one $1...

SELF HELP GRAPHICS Print Sale this weekend!

Here's a last-minute warning! Self Help Graphics will be holding their annual Print Sale on Sunday, June 25 from noon-5 pm. Lotsa great art to see and buy, including my very first El Muerto Serigraph, "El Otro Lado".



I may stop by there for an hour or so, but if you want to buy limited prints and such from local Los Angeles artists, this is the place to do it!

More info here!

Happy 6-6-06, Son of Satan!

In commemoration of this demonic day, 6-6-6, let me share with you this little gem of 70s satanic chic. In my early comic book reading and collecting days, there was a title from Marvel Comics called THE SON OF SATAN! Believe it or not...!


Yes, the House of Ideas that brought us such All-American fare like Spider-Man, Captain America and The Fantastic Four decided it was time to up their game with such horror-filled superheroes like Morbius the Living Vampire, Ghost Rider and Daimon Hellstorm, the Son of Satan! Initially launched in Marvel Sptotlight, a title created to feature new characters without having to create their own seperate title, Daimon Hellstorm had a 13 (Hmm..) issue run there from October 1973 thru October 1975, before graduating to his own title. After only 8 issues though, SON OF SATAN was cancelled in February 1977...

This cover above is pencilled by the late Gil Kane and inked by Tom Palmer. And I have to say that is one fine looking illustration! Kane was such a dynamic cover artist throughout the 70s. He really knew how to deliver power and horror!



Story goes that Satan decided he wanted kids, so he courted a young lady and fathered tow children with her (Yes, there is also a Devil's Daughter, SATANNA!!). Daimon, of course, as an adult learns of his true nature and rebels against his father , complete in red and yellow spandex! Wouldn't be a 1970s superhero without an outrageously flamboyant costume! The whole world was in Pop Culture Hell at the time, with Satanism all over the movies, music and comics. I didn't actually buy any of those books as a kid, though. Are you kidding me? A 10 yr. old. Mexican Catholic reading a comic book about the Devil's son?! I would buy Ghost Rider (another Satanically influenced character), but Son of Satan was just asking for trouble! It wasn't only till my mid-20s that I started picking up some of the back issues. I think I may have all the issues now. And I hear that Marvel has a new mini-series coming up.

So here's a quick sketch in homage to the Mark of the Beast-Boy. The Son of Satan, the world's most unbelievable superhero!

Artist Residency: Final Day

Friday, June 2, was the final day of production. We actually finished one day ahead of schedule. So, I had saturday off (caught X-Men 3 for a second time with the nephews!)

Friday's goal was to print the black, the final color in the sequence, and sign and number all the prints! The first time we printed the black, there were numerous gaps. Meaning the black wasn't lining up in certain spots. So I had to get the black film and thicken the lines in spots. But, in the end it worked out.


Ta-dah!


As part of the printing process, Jose printed up 6 copies of a black-only edition. Kinda like those b&w variants the comic publishers put out!

And here's a comparission shot of the one print we made where I felt the skin-color was too dark for what I wanted (on the left) and the flesh tone I ended up approving (on the right).


So, by about 2 O'clock, we were done printing. All that remained was for me to sign and number. The edition has 88 pieces total, but there were several other sets created as well. There were 5 pieces in an Artist's Proof set, 5 of a Printer's Prood, 6 in a Test Proof, and 6 in the Black & White set. so in total there was about 110 pieces printed. I was, to say the least, very happy with the final print and proud to have been able to have had the oppurtunity. The gallery will sell a large part of the 88 edition to raise funds, and I'll get stack from those 88 to sell on my own. I also get the 5 Artist Proof, as well as one Test Proof and one B&W print. Jose, the Master Printer, was a sheer delight to work with. A true artist, he told me that for him to have the chance to work with so many artists over the years brings him great satisfaction. He's often been told that his name is known all over the world, as his work is hung in galleries and private collections. I was suprised to hear that he's worked with Salvador Dali! But also, for him, a real huge comic fan, it was a big thrill to have been able to convince the Self Help Graphics Board of Directors to create this latest series of prints based on comic books. My friends Carlos Saldana and Rafael Navarro are among the artists contributing to the series as well.

One other note, Jose told me that to have hired his services for this project, it would have cost me $3,200! So not only did I save a bundle of cash (I don't have!), but I had the priveledge of creating a serigraph of my comic book character for a very important and world famous gallery like Self-Help Graphics.

Artist Residency: Day 3

Okay, I know this should have been posted last night, but I got home too late! So, here's the report for Day 3.....

This is the outside of the building, just so ya know. The gallery is located on the very far left of the building. The print shop is inside the open door on the far right. the top floor is wehre the offices are held and the rooms used for classes and performances. It's in this parking lot that they hold their various print sales and events such as Dia de Los Muertos.



Thursday was a day where we had little bumps in the road. The fourth color, the tan flesh tone, first came out a little darker than I wanted. So, we had to stop the press and Jose added some white to the paint and also an agent that made the color a little more transparent, allowing a little more red tone to show through. I forgot to take a pic of the first attempt, but the one shown here is the final print of the flesh tone. I really liked how that came out.



Here's a lightening quick flash of Jose printing a pass of color. Too quick for me!



Now it was time for the black ink, the final stage in the process. And the one that proved to be a setback! Now, I have to apoligize again for not taking any pics, but I'll post some in the next blog to show what I'm talking about. It's just that sometimes in the middle of things the last thing I think about is taking a pic! The black would essentially be the outline to all the other colors. So, if the black doesn't hit just right, you'll get a lot of areas where the white paper will show through, or one of the other colors will be misaligned. That's the problem we had, so Jose stopped the printing for the day. It was decided that I would get the black film and increase the thickness on some of the lines to compensate. Then they would have to create a new screen for the black. This took several hours to accomplish, so today, friday, will be our last day to print. We're actually on schedule, as friday was orginally going to be the last day to print anyways. Saturday I'll come in and go through the prints and do any touch ups by hand if needed, as well as sign and number all the prints.