So Super Duper #11 Is Now On Sale!!!!!
It's finally here! Issue #11 of Brian Andersen's So Super Duper is now on sale at Indy Planet.com!!! Not only does this issue contain a riveting story written by Brian Andersen and art by Celina Hernandez, but it also features a 10 page back-up story that I wrote and created the art work for, with lettering by Ray Caspio (who also has a pin-up illustration in this issue!). Still not convinced you need this issue? The link at Indy Planet.com gives you a 6 page preview of the main story, and here, I'm giving you a 2 page preview of my 10 page story. Just click on the thumbnail images below to enlarge them. Enjoy!
And don't forget that you can still buy a t-shirt with my take on Psyche & Comet from my illustration from So Super Duper #10 in various styles (hoodies too!), colors and sizes at RedBubble.com, where from now until December 25th, all white apparel is 20% off!
Psyche & Comet From So Super Duper T-Shirt by Kevenn T. Smith
So Super Duper 11 TM and © Brian Andersen. All rights reserved.
All artwork and images ©Kevenn T. Smith 2010
Psyche & Comet From So Super Duper T-Shirt by Kevenn T. Smith
Issue #11 of Brian Andersen's So Super Duper will be coming out very soon. I have an original 10 page So Super Duper back-up story in it that I wrote and drew with lettering by Ray Caspio. What better way to celebrate its publication, than with a t-shirt bearing an image, taken from my pin-up illustration in So Super Duper #10, of So Super Duper star, Psyche, and his teenage dream crush, Comet? You can purchase the t-shirt in various styles (hoodies too!), colors and sizes at RedBubble.com! And don't forget that from now until December 25th, all white apparel is 20% off!
Psyche & Comet From So Super Duper T-Shirt by Kevenn T. Smith
All artwork and images ©Kevenn T. Smith 2011
Superhero Artwork Merchandise by Kevenn T. Smith
Just in time for the Holiday Season, you can buy cards, prints and posters of some of my past superhero illustrations seen on this website!
Wonder Clubbing by Kevenn T. Smith. This illustration is available as prints. Please use the "Contact Me" form at the top-left of this page to request one and inquire further about pricing and sizes.
Here, Kitty, Kitty! by Kevenn T. Smith. This illustration is available as prints. Please use the "Contact Me" form at the top-left of this page to request one and inquire further about pricing and sizes.
A Boy and His Dog by Kevenn T. Smith. This illustration is available as prints. Please use the "Contact Me" form at the top-left of this page to request one and inquire further about pricing and sizes.
Double Transformation by Kevenn T. Smith. For sale as T-shirts, Skirts, Hoodies, Kids' & Babies' Clothes, Posters, Throw Pillows, Tote Bags, Studio Pouches, Mugs, Travel Mugs, Photographic Prints, Art Prints, Framed Prints, Canvas Prints, Metal Prints, Greeting Cards, Laptop Skins and more! Please use the "Contact Me" form at the top-left of this page to request and inquire about pricing and size options.
All artwork and images ©Kevenn T. Smith 2010
"The Lasso Is Mightier..." by Kevenn T. Smith
This is a new illustration of Wonder Woman that I've done that I call "The Lasso Is Mightier..." I'm one of those people that thinks Wonder Woman is so much cooler because the only things she really needs in order to get the job done is her lasso, bracelets, tiara, and powers. All the other stuff like swords, spears, axes, and armor - they're cool for someone like Xena or Red Sonya, but what makes Wonder Woman so wondrous is that she can take on armies, monsters, villains, and gods with just a few tools. Yes, she's THAT good!
This illustration is available as prints. Please use the "Contact Me" form at the top-left of this page to request one and inquire further about pricing and sizes.
Pencil, ink, Prismacolor color pencil, Photoshop.
Wonder Woman ©DC Comics 2010
Gay.com Interview With Author, Brian Andersen
So Super Duper writer, Brian Andersen, was interviewed at Gay.com, and he mentioned working with me on So Super Duper and the upcoming backup story for Issue #11 that I am doing. Check out the interview here!
So Super Duper Issue #11 should be out very soon and available at PrismComics.com. My backup story for it is 10 pages, and it focuses on Halo, but also shows an important event in the past of Psyche, the star of So Super Duper.
Lava-Roid Pin-Up by Kevenn T. Smith
This is the pin-up I did for the 2010 New York Comic Con edition of Kevin Conn's Lava-Roid comic book. One of my favorite things about the character is that he can shoot fire out of his butt, so it was of the utmost importance to me that I showcase that in this piece.
He is also depicted with all the enemies that he faced or mentioned in the first issue of the Lava-Roid comic book. The bottom-left characters are based on the actors who play them in the Lava-Roid live-action web series. Ruggar is based on Jon Hoche, and Ms Pantalera is based on the amazingly talented comedian and actor, Kelley Lynn.
This piece was also featured in the Beck Center for the Arts Student art Show in the summer of 2010. For those of you who are not able to go to New York Comic Con, have no fear. I am told the edition will be for sale online after the convention!
11.5 x 8 inches Bristol Board.
Pencil, ink, & Prismacolor pencil.
Image ©Kevenn T. Smith 2011
Lava-Roid and all characters ©Kevin Conn 2011
Wonder Woman Day V: Transformation At Horror Hall by Kevenn T. Smith
Once again, I am participating in the charity auction for Wonder Woman Day V, 2010. The auction will benefit Bradley Angle as well as other domestic violence programs. I continue to participate in this event because this cause is very important to me, and I hope you will consider bidding on my piece to help raise money for it.
As per my usual M.O., I want to continue to depict an empowered Wonder Woman who takes joy in her life and what she does. I also wanted to do a follow up to my piece last year, which had She-Ra in it. As I noted last year, Wonder Woman and She-Ra seem to contain some analogues in their Rogues Gallery, and I couldn't resist taking a crack at another pairing. I also love to put out more images of Wonder Woman and She-Ra working together, as opposed to fighting each other. Right now, the Wonder Woman comic book is being written by J. Michael Straczynski, who also wrote many episodes of the She-Ra: Princess of Power cartoon series by Filmation, which is celebrating its 25th anniversary in 2010. I definitely wanted to do another piece with She-Ra to help contribute to the passing of that occasion.
Wonder Woman's designed changed a little from last year's piece. I wanted to simplify her outfit just a tad to make her more similar to the level of She-Ra's design, so I opted to leave off the diagonal side seams on her boustier. I also went with a more Lynda Carter-esque design on the boots, as opposed to the early Terry Dodson "w" shaped top cut to the boots. In addition, I rounded the edges of her bracelets. She-Ra's bracelets were also smoothed a little on the cuffs, and I added the raised circlet on the center of her choker that the Masters of the Universe Classics She-Ra figure by Mattel had.
Circe's design was a combination of the way she appeared as Terry Dodson drew her in the Heinberg-written issues of Wonder Woman, as well as the DC Direct action figure based on Dodson's designs. Shadow Weaver remained largely true to her Filmation depiction, but I wanted to "fancy" her up just a bit to bring her closer to the level of detail and design that the other characters in the piece had. I gave her a corset , still in red, but in a deeper red than her dress she wears, and gave it a shinier texture. In some early artwork of Shadow Weaver, her belt was a gold or yellow, so I went with that interpretation of her belt and added a row of spikes to it as an homage to a custom Shadow Weaver figure that I own made by Scott Falappi. I also depicted her with the wand that she used in the second season She-Ra episode, "The Caregiver."
Because Circe and Shadow Weaver are both very formidable and dark opponents in each of their respective franchises, I wanted to set the piece in a more dangerous setting, and Shadow Weaver's Horror Hall base, set on top of a volcano, was just the ticket. In preparing for this piece, I did a lot of research on Horror Hall and looked at shots of all the incredibly beautiful backgrounds used in the cartoon series. I also looked at different elements and creatures who were associated with Shadow Weaver in the series, such as her vulture, Syrax, her servants, her bird-like spy, and vermin that lived in the tunnels of Horror Hall. Ultimately, I didn't feel like they would contribute to the composition of the piece, and I wanted to refrain from doing "too much." I opted to depict the main "hall" and what looks to be Shadow Weaver's library, which seemed to be used the most, while taking elements from the background paintings made for the series, as well as adding several "easter eggs" for fans of the Princess of Power show and original Mattel toyline.
For sale as T-shirts, Skirts, Hoodies, Kids' & Babies' Clothes, Posters, Throw Pillows, Tote Bags, Studio Pouches, Mugs, Travel Mugs, Photographic Prints, Art Prints, Framed Prints, Canvas Prints, Metal Prints, Greeting Cards, Laptop Skins and more! Please use the "Contact Me" form at the top-left of this page to request and inquire about pricing and size options.
Click on the picture to see a full-sized image:
Transformation At Horror Hall
11.5 x 8 inches Bristol Board.
Pencil, ink, & Prismacolor pencil.
Wonder Woman and Circe ©DC Comics 2010
She-Ra ©Mattel 2010
Shadow Weaver ©Classic Media 2010
Wonder Spin: Bronze Age Artcard by Kevenn T. Smith
My Wonder Woman work seems to be the most popular with people who know of my art, and since I haven't had a Wonder Woman artcard available for a while, I thought it was time to put a new one out there. Usually, when I draw Wonder Woman, I depict the Modern Age version. I'm a big fan of the costume the way Terry Dodson re-designed it, so that's why that look is usually my go-to version of the costume. However, for this artcard, I felt it was time to do something different, and that's why I ended up going with the Bronze Age Wonder Woman when she still had the eagle instead of the later double "w" symbol.
And what could be a more fun way of depicting Bronze Age Wonder Woman than in a Lynda Carter inspired Wonder Spin? Another way that I like to depict Wonder Woman, is smiling. I like the idea of a Wonder Woman who loves life and enjoys what she does. My ideal Wonder Woman is happy.
This artcard and all the other artcards I’ve done are all original hand-made works and can be purchased or $15 plus shipping ($4.95 USPS Priority Shipping – international shipping will be calculated upon an individual order).
4.25 x 5.5 inches cardstock.
Pencil, ink, Prismacolor pencil, Prismacolor marker.
Wonder Woman ©DC Comics 2011
Cold Hands, Warm Heart: An Ice Valentine by Kevenn T. Smith
This is a Valentine artcard featuring Justice League international character, Ice, whose real name is Tora Olafsdotter. Ice is a princess of a tribe of magic people hidden in Norway. Her powers allow her to create and manipulate ice. And while her powers are very cold, Ice is known for her warm and sweet personality.
Because February is such a cold month where I live, and because Ice is such a caring person, I thought she'd be perfect for a Valentine's Day card. Ice was stupidly killed off at one point, but has been thankfully resurrected by Gail Simone during her first run of the Birds of Prey title. I am very glad Tora was brought back, because there aren't enough loving characters like her in the comics. Not every character needs be be tough and hard or sarcastic and bitter. She even charmed the heart of a hardened character like Green Lantern, Guy Gardner. Ice brings personality diversity to the characters in comic books, and I like to give her features a more diverse look as well. While I was doing this card, I really liked the idea of making her eyelashes white as well. I think they give her a very fantastical quality.
This artcard and all the other artcards I’ve done are all original hand-made works and can be purchased or $15 plus shipping ($4.95 USPS Priority Shipping – international shipping will be calculated upon an individual order).
4.25 x 5.5 inches cardstock.
Pencil, ink, Prismacolor pencil.
Ice, Tora Olafsdotter ©DC Comics 2010
Now also available as cards and postcards at RedBubble.com!
A Boy And His Dog: Superboy & Krypto the Superdog
This is a commission piece that I did of Superboy, Conner (Kon-El) Kent, and Krypto the Superdog. Superboy is a clone using DNA of both Superman and Lex Luthor. The current DC Comics stories have Conner living with Martha Kent on the Kent Farm and going to school in Smallville, much like Clark Kent did when he was growing up.
For me, this piece was also an opportunity to go back to the rural small towns and farm areas that were nearby where I went to college. I had the opportunity to go back there earlier this year for a wedding, and I think it really helped me in depicting the small town/rural setting.
This illustration is available as prints. Please use the "Contact Me" form at the top-left of this page to request one and inquire further about pricing and sizes.
8" x 10.5" on Bristol Board
Prismacolor Color Pencils
Superboy & Krypto © DC Comics 2011
Built Like An Amazon: Artemis of Bana Mighdall Artcard by Kevenn T. Smith
This artcard showcases Artemis of Bana Mighdall in her Requiem costume that seems to have made a comeback in DC Comics' recent publications. Artemis is from the Middle Eastern tribe of Amazons from the hidden city of Bana Mighdall. At one point, Artemis ended up beating Princess Diana of Themiscyra for the title of Wonder Woman. Artemis served as Wonder Woman for a short time. The Amazon sorceress, Magala, had put a spell on Diana on the behest of Queen Hippolyta that would transfer half of Diana's strength and speed when they were near each other. Artemis' stint as Wonder Woman was short-lived, and she was killed by the villain, The White Magician. However, death cant keep a tough Amazon down, and Artemis ended up clawing her way out of hell and her own grave.
Artemis has proven to be a popular character in the Wonder Woman franchise. She's more headstrong and less compassionate than Diana, but her heart is in the right place. She ended up becoming the leader of the Bana Mighdall Amazons on Themiscyra. Aretmis has just returned to Themiscyra in the Wonder Woman title, and her future roll remains to be seen.
For this piece, I went back to Ed Benes' original drawings of Artemis in the Requiem miniseries, as well as Nicola Scott's take on the costume in the recent Secret Six storyline. In some of Benes' early drawings, he had the green lining at the decolletage make a "w" shape. I like that element to help visually tie Artemis into the Wonder Woman family, and as a former Wonder Woman, I believe she's entitled to wear a "w" symbol - even a simplified one. I left of the skull on her headband because I thought that element was excessively 90's. Instead, I opted to repeat the tripple-arrow "A" symbol that the Requiem costume has on the sternum area. I really liked the seams and the side-lacing that Nicola Scott added to the costume in the Secret Six issues, as well as the kneecap armor she gave the boots. The sword is the special demon killer sword that Artemis ended up having in the Byrne run of Wonder Woman that was also included as an accessory to the Artemis action figure that DC Direct made.
This artcard is available as cards, postcards, and a small matted print at RedBubble.com!
4.25 x 5.5 inches cardstock.
Pencil, ink, and Prismacolor pencil.
Artemis ©DC Comics 2011
Ready...Aim...Equality!: Green Arrow Artcard
This artcard was done in support of Marriage Equality issues, especially at the time of this posting when voters this Tuesday in Maine will hopefully be voting No on Issue #1 to protect Marriage Equality. At the same time, I hope voters in Washington state will be voting against Referendum #71 to preserve the rights of all couples in registered Domestic Partnerships.
I don't often put political pieces and views on this website, but Green Arrow has been established throughout his years of comic book publication as a hero who takes up liberal political causes, and has even performed same-sex weddings in his comic book title. Because the character has already come out in support of this issue, I didn't feel like it was inappropriate or trying to make the character into something that he wasn't. My visual inspirations for my depiction of the character come from his costume from the 1970's-80's era with coloring influences from his appearances in the Justice League Unlimited cartoon. I really like the Robin Hood inspired lace up vest that the character had in the 70's and 80's, but I also like the "G" belt buckle that the character has been sporting in the past few years.
This artcard is available as cards, postcards, and a small matted print at RedBubble.com!
4.25 x 5.5 inches cardstock.
Pencil, ink, Prismacolor pencil, Prismacolor marker.
Green Arrow ©DC Comics 2011
Emerald Satellite: Green Lantern, Hal Jordan, Artcard
With DC's Blackest Night event going on right now, Green Lantern is one of DC Comics' hottest properties at the moment. So of course, there couldn't be a better time to showcase my Green Lantern artcard here on this site. Hal Jordan is DC's premiere Green Lantern at the moment, so he won out when it came to choosing which Green Lantern to depict.
I've always enjoyed the few times I've drawn "spacescapes" in illustrations, and this piece was no exception. I wanted to use photographs of some of the planets and moons in our solar system for inspiration when coloring the ones depicted in this artcard, but I wanted to make it clear that this was not our solar system. As photographs from the Hubble Telescope has shown us, space can be quite colorful, and I definitely wanted to incorporate that into this piece.
For Green Lantern, I used Ray Caspio as a model for the pose. I also took visual cues from the updated costume in the comics. For example, I had the Green Lantern symbol on his chest actually project itself as a lazer light projection hovering over his chest. I always liked Hal Jordan visually because green has always been one of my favorite colors, and also because he was one of the few superheroes who had brown hair. Most superheroes when I was growing up had blond or black hair, and I liked that he was different in that respect.
This artcard is available as cards, posters, and prints at RedBubble.com!
4.25 x 5.5 inches cardstock.
Pencil, ink, Prismacolor pencil.
Green Lantern ©DC Comics 2011
A Not-Too-Dark Knight - Batman Artcard
This next artcard that I'm spotlighting is of the Caped Crusader, Batman. Everyone knows Batman. For this artcard, I wanted to do an homage to the logo for Bruce Timm's Batman: The Animated Series, yet rendered in my own style. Batman is pretty hardcore, so I wanted to give him stubble to show that sometimes he spends a lot of hours on the job. At the same time, he's also Bruce Wayne underneath that cowl, so there needs to be an element of "handsomeness" to the face. Bruce Wayne is supposed to be a charming millionaire playboy. When I started reading Batman comics in the early 90's, one of my favorites things about many of them, was how they depicted the night sky using colors other than black. My favorite was this teal green sort of color. That was where I pulled the inspiration from when it came to coloring the night sky for this piece.
This artcard is available as prints. Please use the "Contact Me" form at the top-left of this page to request one and inquire further about pricing and sizes.
4.25 x 5.5 inches cardstock.
Pencil, ink, Prismacolor pencil, Prismacolor marker.
Batman ©DC Comics 2011
Hello, Bluebird - Supergirl Artcard
This artcard is an all original work and can be purchased for $15 plus shipping ($4.95 USPS Priority Shipping - international shipping will be calculated upon an individual order). This artcard of Supergirl, Kara Zor-El, was one that I made for the Mid-Ohio Con for 2008. It has since received a coloring job by hand. My goal with it was to depict the feeling of the aerial ballet in the Supergirl movie starring Helen Slater.
4.25 x 5.5 inches cardstock.
Pencil, ink, Prismacolor pencil, Prismacolor marker.
Supergirl ©DC Comics 2011
"Here, Kitty, Kitty!" for Wonder Woman Day #4
I'm participating in the Wonder Woman Day IV Charity Auction this year. The auction benefits these Domestic Violence Shelters and hot-lines: Raphael House of Portland, Bradley-Angle House, and Portland Women's Crisis Line. I am very proud to participate in this auction because these are very important causes to me. Please bid, and bid high!
I wanted to do a picture of Wonder Woman being happy and having fun - something that I don't think happens nearly enough in the comic books. I also really wanted to draw She-Ra and Catra, as well as Wonder Woman's enemy, Cheetah. Most pictures I've seen that have Wonder Woman and She-Ra together have them fighting each other. I really don't care for that, because I believe that Wonder Woman and She-Ra would get along really well and enjoy a tremendous sense of camaraderie, and I wanted to show them being friendly and having fun together. I also wanted to play on the fact that they both have well-known enemies with a cat theme.
While I take a lot of my cues for Wonder Woman and Cheetah from the way that Terry Dodson depicted them when he drew the Wonder Woman comic book, I also take a couple of Lynda Carter elements that I sneak in here and there with Wonder Woman. Cheetah also has a few George Perez elements in her design, especially when it comes to her facial markings, which Dodson mostly abandoned.
She-Ra and Catra were really fun to draw. I'm a big fan of Mattel's Masters of the Universe Classics action figure line. It's a melding of various canons of their franchises into one cohesive line. My approach to She-Ra and Catra was along that lines. I wanted to depict them with the familiarity of the Filmation designs of the cartoon that everyone knows and loves these characters from, but also bring in some of the details that the action figures had, whose designs were very different from the cartoon designs. The result give detailed and interesting looks that easily stand up well alongside Wonder Woman and Cheetah.
The background is inspired by the Whispering Woods background paintings that were featured in the She-Ra: Princess of Power cartoon. They are lush, flamboyant and magical looking. As I was planning out the background, I thought it would be fun to have Lookie in it. Lookie was always hiding in the background of the cartoons, and at the end of the episodes, he would reveal his hiding place and explain the episode's moral. Once I decided that Lookie was going to be in it, I wanted to balance the picture, and tried to think of a character in Wonder Woman's lore that could serve as an analogue to Lookie. The two franchises are pretty rife with analogues: Ares/Hordak, Circe/Shadow Weaver, Giganta/Scorpia, Steve Trevor/Bow, Nemesis/Sea Hawk. When it came down to it, I settled on the whimsical and fun Wonder Tot, who is Wonder Woman as a small child in the Silver Age comic book stories. Wonder Tot often had "impossible adventures" right alongside Wonder Woman as an adult and Wonder Woman as a teenager (Wonder Girl), and I thought that the magical nature of the Whispering Woods, and the fact that She-Ra's planet of Etheria was likely in another dimension, would provide a narrative that would allow Wonder Tot.
This illustration is available as prints. Please use the "Contact Me" form at the top-left of this page to request one and inquire further about pricing and sizes.
Here, Kitty, Kitty!
8.5″ x 11″ on Bristol Board
Pencils, Inks and Prismacolor Color Pencils
Wonder Woman, Cheetah and Wonder Tot ©DC Comics 2010
She-Ra, Catra and Lookie ©Mattel 2010
Earth-2 Huntress: Helena Wayne
This is a commission that I did for my friend and writer, J.H. Moffat who runs the online urban fiction magazine, Drops of Crimson. This piece is of the Earth-2 Huntress, Helena Wayne. Earth-2 was a parallel earth where Batman and Catwoman had their career in the 1940's and ended up marrying and having a daughter, Helena. Catwoman was eventually killed, and Batman died, and Helena carried on their legacy as the Huntress.
The newer version of this illustration is available as prints. Please use the "Contact Me" form at the top-left of this page to request one and inquire further about pricing and sizes.
Pencils, Ink, Prismacolor Color Pencils, Photoshop, and Adobe Illustrator.
©Kevenn T. Smith 2011
Earth-2 Huntress ©DC Comics 2011
Spider-Man: The Boys Next Door
I'm currently involved in a local production of the play, The Boys Next Door. The play is set in the early 1980's, and one of the characters has a scene where he wears a Spider-Man tie. No one could find a Spider-Man tie in the stores in our area, so I volunteered to make one. I wanted to make it rather simplistic. It couldn't have all the dramatic coloring that comic book characters have nowadays, though I did add some shades and tones to keep it from looking completely flat. The tie that the design went on is red, and has a pattern on it that is suggestive of a spider web.
Adobe Illustrator, Photoshop
©Kevenn T. Smith 2011
Spider-Man ©Marvel Comics 2011
24 Hour Comic Book Day Success
I am happy to report here that my participation in the 24 Hour Comic Book Day event, an international event, locally hosted by Carol and John's Comic Book Shop was a success. I was one of five people who actually completed a 24 page comic book in 24 hours, and that was out of about 17 people who participated at that location. I was the only person who remained for the entire 24 hours, so I feel like I get to wear an extra badge of honor with that one.
I am very proud of the work I did on the comic, and am very happy with the story. The comic will be submitted for consideration for publication in the 24 Hour Comic Book Day anthology published by Scott McCloud, and the comic will also be submitted to be included in the archives of the Ohio State University's Comic Book Library. Should the comic go to actual publication, I will be sure to post more updates on this website about it.
I want to say a very big thank you to the staff and team at Carol and John's Comic Book shop who were wonderfully supportive and encouraging. They brought in pizza for dinner and bagels for breakfast and were simply amazing.
One More For Wonder Woman Day III
Not only did I create my own piece of art for Wonder Woman Day III this year (see below), but Ray Caspio and I collaborated together on another piece like we did last year for Wonder Woman Day II.
This one, based on the ABC TV series starring Lynda Carter, has Private Etta Candy (played by Beatrice Colen) and Yeoman Diana Prince (Lynda Carter, of course), who we wanted to make sure were represented in the auction this year.
This illustration is available as 8 by 10 inch prints for $20 + $8 shipping on regular photo paper or $25 + $8 shipping on metallic photo paper, which I highly recommend for vastly superior quality. Please use the "Contact Me" form at the left to request one and inquire further about other pricing and size options.
Etta Figures it Out?
8.5″ x 11″ on Bristol Board
Ray Caspio: Pencils
Kevenn T. Smith: Inks and Colors (Prismacolor)
Wonder Woman, Diana Prince and Etta Candy ©DC Comics 2011