Enlistee's art gallery!

[Gareee]

Lookin goood! I love the asymetrical eye size!

Too bad you never do anything in widescreen desktop wallpaper size.

[Gasport]

AWESOME JOB! I agree with Mike, Don't tell me you simply threw that together in such a short time span...NOT possible!

[dlhenderson]

OK, I'll fess up. That is an older piece, but it WAS a relative "quickie". When I started this series, my intention was to do monsters. The first sketches involved werewolves, a Chaney Phantom, and screaming women. The path took a turn toward less specific imagery, leaving more to the imagination and having a lot to do with composition. Here's one that WASN'T a "quickie".

Title: Chlorophelia

[Gasport]

It never ceases to amaze me how you manage to get the eyes [especially in this piece] to light up so brightly in black and white! It looks almost as if it's been back-lit....so how about that Chaney Phantom??

[michblk]

Hey Mike (Illoman), did you draw a Mickey Mantle cover for a comic?  I think I saw it at a toy show this weekend.

BK

[CreepyJeff]

OK, I'll fess up. That is an older piece, but it WAS a relative "quickie". When I started this series, my intention was to do monsters. The first sketches involved werewolves, a Chaney Phantom, and screaming women. The path took a turn toward less specific imagery, leaving more to the imagination and having a lot to do with composition. Here's one that WASN'T a "quickie".

Title: Chlorophelia

Very cool indeed.  If you stare at this one and relax your eyes (just like you would do to see the hidden image in those 3-D posters that came out a few years back) the image moves in and out as though it's breathing. 

[dlhenderson]

This was the first drawing in the "series". I'll see if I can at least rustle up that Chaney sketch...

Title: Pandora

[Illoman]

Hey Mike (Illoman), did you draw a Mickey Mantle cover for a comic?  I think I saw it at a toy show this weekend.

BK

Awesome!! Yeah, it was done for a company called Personality Comics. That particular painting was done as a try out to get the job. They ended up using it without paying me, until I called them on it.

A friend of mine who ran a comic book shop here in Dayton gave three copies of it to a customer of his who went to Yankee's Dream Week the last year Mantle was there. He had Mantle sign a copy of it for me!!! The customer ended up buying the original art off me, and had it framed with *his* signed copy.

Thanks for thinking of me!

Mike

[michblk]

Awesome!! Yeah, it was done for a company called Personality Comics. That particular painting was done as a try out to get the job. They ended up using it without paying me, until I called them on it.

A friend of mine who ran a comic book shop here in Dayton gave three copies of it to a customer of his who went to Yankee's Dream Week the last year Mantle was there. He had Mantle sign a copy of it for me!!! The customer ended up buying the original art off me, and had it framed with *his* signed copy.

Thanks for thinking of me!

Mike

Glad they finally paid you on it and how cool to get a signed copy.  Thanks for brining back some of my childhood memories of Hal and his Bookie Parlor.  Whenever we went to see my relatives down there, they had to take me to his store.   If I remember correctly, I think at one point he had moved to a bigger store?  I also have a pic somewhere of me standing next to his mural on the outside wall of the store with all of the superheroes.

BK

[dlhenderson]

Better lay off the 'shrooms, CreepyJeff (or share 'em!). 

[dlhenderson]

This is a portrait I did of a coworker.

[Illoman]

Thanks for bringing back some of my childhood memories of Hal and his Bookie Parlor.  Whenever we went to see my relatives down there, they had to take me to his store.   If I remember correctly, I think at one point he had moved to a bigger store?  I also have a pic somewhere of me standing next to his mural on the outside wall of the store with all of the superheroes.

BK

He did indeed. He started out on Wayne Avenue, moved to a bigger location on Wayne, opened a second store in Centerville, then moved the original store to Wilmington Avenue, closed the south store, then finally moved to Shroyer. He and his wife Sue ran that until he passed away in 1999. She kept it open for two years, and sadly sold it. I still see her quite a bit, and have remained good friends with her.

Glad someone remembers Hal: he was a very good friend and a unique individual! If you find that photo I'd love to see it!

Mike

[michblk]

Glad someone remembers Hal: he was a very good friend and a unique individual! If you find that photo I'd love to see it!

Mike

Yes, I can't wait to share my childhood geekyness... lol   I might still have one of his business cards somewhere too.  Did you draw that?  Hal was a really good guy and was glad I was able to meet him!

BK

[Illoman]

Yes, I can't wait to share my childhood geekyness... lol   I might still have one of his business cards somewhere too.  Did you draw that?  Hal was a really good guy and was glad I was able to meet him!

BK

Yes, I designed his business card. Funny thing about those: when he took the original art to the printers, they misunderstood what he wanted, and printed the cards the original size as the art! He had these *huge* business cards, and he appreciated the novelty of them so he didn't get smaller ones made until much later. I designed a baseball card for him as well as posters, ads, etc...

Mike

[dlhenderson]

I'd like to thank y'all for your kind remarks over the past couple of weeks. I tend to work in a vacuum, or the proverbial dimly lit dungeon. My drawings rarely see the light of day and it's been encouraging to get the good vibes from my fellow army buds.
Here's one more and then I'll shut up.
This is the rare case where I was actually commissioned to create a piece for publication; the vampire novel Sunglasses After Dark by Nancy Collins. This was for the last chapter, called Psychotic Breakdown. Some have said that it reminds them of "Two-Face", but that was not my intent.
Oh, and Happy St. Patrick's day to any fellow Irishpersons out there in Monsterdom...