The Art of Charles Vess

My first exposure to Charles Vess was through his collaboration with Neil Gaiman for "Stardust." Vess' work there particularly reminded me of the old fairytale books I read as a child*. Maybe because Stardust is a fairytale for adults, or maybe the period the story is set in. Aesthetically, his character's features are not my type, but I love the attention he gives to details, the color he uses and how each artwork evokes emotion.

Charles Vess at the 2004 Comic Con (Source)

Dark Horse Books has released "Drawing Down the Moon: The Art of Charles Vess," an compliation of Vess' works over the years. The beautiful illustrations are accompanied by comment from Charles Vess himself, describing his adventures as a painter, sculptor and publisher.

Aside from Neil Gaiman, Charles Vess has worked with writers like Susanna Clarke (Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell) and George R.R. Martin. He is the recepient of such awards like The Will Eisner Comics Industry Award, World Fantasy Award, and Spectrum Annual Award.

*In the foreword, author Susanna Clarke mentions that there is something "unsettingly familiar" with Vess' works, and goes on to mention names of Edwardinian story-book illustrators like Authur Rackham, Charles Robinson and Kay Nielsen. I didn't recognize the names at first, but when I saw their work, I knew what Clarke was talking about. Those were the artists whose works I saw many years ago.

Artist feature: Michaël Zancan

I first came across Michaël Zancan through DeviantArt. One of his works was awarded a Daily Deviation and curious, I checked out his profile. Needless to say, I absolutely fell in love with his paintings.

I am sure of one thing anyway: painting is saving my soul.

Born in a town called Agen in the southwest of France in 1976, Michaël Zancan wasn't originally a painter. During his teen years he was very much into programming. At the age of eighteen he dabbled in street art, experimenting on various painting techniques like airbrushing. He gradually moved from painting on walls to paper, and it wasn't until he was twenty two did he start to get into drawing, thanks to various projects for his engineering school's gazette, party posters and t-shirts.



Later on, he discovered oils and that was when he felt that he was really painting. In one of his comments to his site's visitor, Michaël says that in hindsight, he thinks that he didn't have the maturity to paint well back in his early twenties. Initially, he struggled with his painting, playing around with a cheap box of primary colors until it all started to come naturally. He tried every possible technique until he found a style that he was comfortable with. However, he considers that there is still a lot to be learned, and that painting is a lifetime, long learning experience.



The Book

...it takes time to study, observe and assimilate the theory that will help you guide your creative energy towards the idea you're aiming at. It's even a daily, never-ending learning task. In the meantime it requires you to free up yourself and let the gestures go, even imperfect; that takes time to, and is more related to the knowledge of yourself...

Home and the Fairies


Below the rust

For Michaël, computers definitely allows artists to create faster and brings out many possibilities, especially for illustrators who have tight deadlines. Though he uses technology (he has a small web design company in Bordeaux), he finds that traditional medium is more fulfilling, as it involves the entirety of the artist. "To tame it, you have to stay humble and true."

One of his digital works, "Tears for Joy in the Garden of Giants" created for CGTalk's 'spectacular' challenge in December 2005 is currently in the process of being painted into canvas.


Tears for Joy in the Garden of Giants

More than one site visitor has claimed (myself included) that his paintings have stories and serve as an inspiration. "Even though they are usually built upon a story of my own, when I spread an image to the world I try to make it as free for interpretation as possible, giving only clues, or surreal words that encourage the imagination.

"Inspiring might be the most rewarding adjective to welcome my work."

I continue to be in awe of Michaël's works. He creates worlds that are fantastic and majestic, yet retaining a touch of reality that viewers recognize and appreciate. The worlds and its people touch a whimsical side to those who see it, inviting them for a closer inspection.

Visit his gallery at his website or over at his DeviantArt page.

Credits: All images © Michaël Zancan
Source: Michaël Zancan
Many thanks to Michaël for allowing me to use his photos & site content, as well as for the corrections :)

Spotlight: Drawn!

I don't think anyone is a stranger to Drawn! (exclamation point does not denote the end of my sentence hehe), as it is possibly one of the best sources of news, tidbits, tips and whatnot about illustration and cartooning. In fact, as their tagline suggests, it is The illustration and cartooning blog.

Clicking on the "about" link on the site give us this information:

Drawn! is a multi-author blog devoted to illustration, art, cartooning and drawing. Its purpose is to inspire creativity by sharing links and resources.

Further clicking would give us a list of contributors.

What else can I say about Drawn!? It's a simple enough site, where you can read up about various artists who will definitely inspire you. Sometimes, I get so overwhelmed by the sheer talent that this site showcases, it's hard not to be intimidated. It's also a great place to get lost in if you want to be inspired to do some bit of creation and art yourself. With Drawn! you can also see trends in illustration, or see new things that you haven't come across before. Subscribe to Drawn! so you won't miss an update.

P.S. This is not a paid ad, ok? I get nothing from this (except the satisfaction that perhaps you get inspired to draw something too).

In the beginning... we create

Just recently, I decided to get back to doing "traditional" art: sketching, painting, drawing without using any digital tools. It dawned upon me that I had a lot of subscriptions from sites that deal with graphic design, web graphics or anything pertaining to digital art, but not so much from the "offline" medium.

A random Plurk message from a friend sparked the idea of putting up an art blog. Now, I'm not a very experienced artist, and it has been a long time since I truly did anything I'd consider art related, but I figured that I could use this blog to share things that I find meaningful and useful for this love of mine. Maybe as time passes I could add my own tutorials and tips about art. Goodness knows I have alot of stock knowledge but little practical experience (which I hope to remedy).


I can't understand why I stopped drawing, really. Growing up I was always encouraged by my family to pursue art. My mom enrolled me in classes when I was seven, and never reprimanded when I'd rather draw than study. I have more than my share of influences from various family members who could draw and paint, not to mention sing or play various musical instruments.


This blog aims not only to share with you things I found inspiring, but also I hope would serve as a motivation for me to get up and start creating. Cheers!


P.S. Blogspot domain for now :)