"There is a difference between imitating a good man and counterfeiting him" - Ben Franklin.

I good friend of mine, Coryn Cope, suggested that I do a little writing about which artists inspire me or teach me. Naturally, since it came from Coryn's mouth, I thought it was a brilliant idea. If there is one thing I LOVE talking about it's my favorite artists.

To kick it off I want to start with possibly my favorite comic book illustrator:  
Mike Mignola.

Mike Mignola self portrait.

Mike Mignola is, to put it bluntly, a genius. His most popular work would have to be the Hellboy comics. 

To be honest, I had never heard of Mike Mignola until the movie Atlantis: The Lost Empire came out, which he did the production design for. 

The movie itself wasn't much to write home about, but after I saw it I was absolutely floored by the character design (and animation) that I had to look up who was behind this wonderful piece of artwork.

My searches lead me to Mr. Mignola. What I found was that he was so much better than what I saw in Atlantis.

His artwork is so dark, funny, quirky, mysterious, fun, and unapologetic about being imperfect... Everything I love. His artwork, no matter what, is always shrouded in shadows. The hard edges, the unconventional shapes have undoubtedly become his trademarks. As well as his unforgettable characters.

In 2007 Mike Mignola's other comic book The Amazing Screw-On Head caught the attention of writer and producer Bryan Fuller. They pulled together a 22 minute pilot about the amazing screw on head all in the style of Mignola.

It was such a treat to see these characters moving in rough Mignola style. Covered in odd texture and shadow.

He remains a big influence on my artwork today. And he will forever have an impact on me.