Ever since I was a little kid I've wanted to draw superheroes. And I did, populating my notebooks with colored pencil designs of costumed heroes. I used "Venus Paradise" brand colored pencils, which later evolved into the Prismacolors I still use today. I gave them powers and designed costumes for them. But I never did any sequential graphic continuity (comic book pages) with them. I have never stopped drawing superheroes, even though there is neither status, profit, or profundity to be had from them. When I got into working with acrylic, I used this medium to paint superheroes, of course. I wanted the slick look of Vincent diFate and Alex Ross, and rarely if ever achieved it. But I kept trying, painting heroes on little fragments of illustration board left over from other projects.
Even now, when I think of putting two colors together, I wonder how they would look in a superhero costume. The standard heroes are in primary colors, blue/red/yellow. But lesser characters could dress in more unusual combinations. Villains often wore green or purple. I would search for Marvel or DC characters who were not main players, and attempt to portray them "realistically" with acrylic. This is one of them: "Moonstone," a glamorous female character who started out as a super-villain and ended up on the good side. She was garbed in gold (or yellow) and silver, with dazzling metallic elements of helmet, bracelets, and silver boots. This is my rendition of Moonstone in this costume which was not used for very long. The artists replaced it with (of course) a much more revealing version without the threatening helmet and metal gear.
"Moonstone" is acrylic on illustration board, 3 1/2" x 7", April 1987.
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