drawing: dracula cycling

Happy Halloween all !

drawing: frankenstein

illustration: zombie dog

In the spirit of halloween coming, here is a drawing of a dog of the dead. He is very, very hungry… for brains.

A couple of years ago, I did art of a zombie guy and a zombie girl. Looks like it’s becoming a series of spookiness.

On a side note, New York Comic Con begins now. So, stay tuned for a posting of some of my photography at the convention that I will share with you.

new york comic con 2011

I didn’t get to do my artwork this week because of a monster. And that monstrosity was called New York Comic Con. I attended 3 full days of absolute geeky madness. Though, like a kid in a candy store, I enjoyed every minute of it. Besides, it was good exercise with all the walking.

The highlights of Comic Con for me was about the art and creativity that comes in the form of comics, costumes, videogames and movies.

I got the chance to preview the Halo Anniversary game for the Xbox 360.  Updated graphics and new armor give this classic a recharge.  Playing capture-the-flag on linked up Xboxes felt sort of laggy.  Hopefully, the official release, next month, will have that issue smoothed out.

To me, Rockstar Games had the best freebie – a black t-shirt with the Grand Theft Auto III logo on front.  They were celebrating the 10 year anniversary of GTA.  They just asked you to mention them on a social network of your choice – Facebook, Foursquare or Twitter. Good publicity for Rockstar.

Nintendo was also giving out t-shirts for those who would demo the new Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword game for the Wii.  But that waiting line was insanely long.

Talking about merchandising, The Walking Dead had a big table full of hats, mugs, t-shirts, etc.  Unfortunately, the shirts were made with American Apparel brand, a rather cheap material.  But the graphics were too cool for me to pass up.

This year, Chevrolet let people test-drive their new car, the Sonic, which comes in sedan and hatchback styles.  They claim it will get 40 MPG.  It seems Chevy thought the convention was a car show, because their cars were being displayed all around the floor.  Most of them sported graphic art for a paint job.

In addition to being a haven for comic book lovers, toys are a big item for collecting as well.  Plenty of toys can be found including those from DC Comics, Hasbro, Lego, Star Wars and various anime series.  The collectible toys that caught my attention were the mascot from the Google Android commercial.  Each android figure is designed by different artists. Very simple vinyl toys, but graphically pleasing. (See them in my pics).

What was the best costume by the cosplay-ers you ask? I think it was a toss-up between the guy in the Transformers Bumblebee contraption, who had a difficult time moving around much, and the lady as Poison Ivy, who was posing everyday. I guess she was really proud of her costume.  (These two cosplayers are also included in my pics.)

Anyway, enough of my blabbering.  Here are some of photos I took of the Comic Con event.  More can be seen at my flickr page.

zombie girl

The zombies are coming! Zombies do not discriminate. Some are guys, some are gals. They are an equal opportunity destroyer! (ha. i just thought that up now.)

So here’s a female zombie to compliment my zombie guy. I draw them in honor of All Hallows Eve. So beware! More zombies are coming!

zombie guy

I sketched a zombie, today, because I’m groggy this morning. Plus, I’m in a zombie mood.

Who doesn’t love zombies? They are literally taking over.

Look at the mashup story of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice and Zombies. Young ladies seek eligible well-to-do suitors, and all the while, fight off the undead. The thought of that makes me giggle.

A new AMC channel series, called the Walking Dead, based on the popular comic book, begins on Halloween. Nice to see a continuous saga on surviving the zombie plague. Lets face it, its a story without an end, and provides a bountiful adventure.

In videogames, zombies make for a great enemy to kill off without consequence. There are no human rights groups for zombies, right? Left 4 Dead, by Valve, is a cooperative first-person shooter that is pure fun to play with friends against the oncoming horde. Other game franchises are adding zombies, even though they are not relevant to the main campaign story. For instance, Rockstar Games is providing an expansion pack for multiplayer action to their cowboy western Red Dead Redemption. Plus, a zombie mode is confirmed for Call of Duty: Black Ops, turning a war title into a horror of a different sort.

By the way, for a movie recommendation, I’d like to point out Zombieland. I won’t spoil the story, but it’s humorous take on survival with a little romance.

Yes, they are taking over. So let’s give them a hand! Have you hugged a zombie today?

flaming skull

As the autumn air brings a chill and the daylight grows shorter, all that we fear, emerges from the dark corners. Demons, ghosts and the undead lurk among us.

This is a larger skull than my King of the Dead skull. Almost human-sized. I decorated it with flames as if to show it rising from the ashes. Because the Day of the Dead is about celebrating our passed loved ones. They live on in our memories. And they watch over us in spirit.

For Halloween, enter my store to see ghoulish items for sale!

new york comic con 2010

I didn’t have time to do my artwork, unfortunately, because I attended the three days of New York Comic Con, this past week.  As expected, the show was even bigger than last year. And that’s a good thing for us fans of sci-fi, fantasy, horror, etc.

As an artist, it is inspiring to be surrounded by so much creativity from comic artists of all different styles. One of my fave comic book artists is Cliff Chiang with his simple, yet realistically proportioned graphic characters. And there he was, sitting there and drawing at his table. I got a chance to meet him, and purchase some autographed work. I hope, one day I can be as popular as he is.

But take note, Comic Con has grown into a much greater monster than comics. There are now movie panels, how-to sessions, book sales and displays of amazingly detailed toys, just to name a few. There is a large presence of videogames, and, of course, the cosplay costume extravaganza. As I toured the floor, I took some photos and I wanted to share them with you.

For more pics, please visit my flickr. Comments are welcomed!

the last house

On Halloween eve, three friends, cautiously, approach the last house of the night in hopes to receive the best “Treat” of their lives.

I drew this in pen and ink, and color painted digitally.

the last house

Happy Halloween.