From One Ghost To Another

This is the second part of my interview which originates on Aaron Bias' The Ghost Who Blogs blog. Out of this spooky encounter of kindred spirits, these two old ghosts (Aaron and I) hope that all of you readers have a quick read and some lively comments. To read part one of this interview, please, click here.

GWB: Who has inspired you artistically?

SV: That would depend on how far back in time we want to go. Among the old masters I enjoy Michelangelo's power; Caravaggio's dramatic lighting and Jan Vermeer's geometric perfection. Closer to our time I would probably choose J C Leyendecker,  Maxfield Parrish, Norman Rockwell and Albert Dorne. ( For more inspirational artists from The Golden Age of Illustrations, please visit The American Art Archives) Among the pioneers of comic book art, Alex Raymond and Hal Foster will always be my heroes.

GWB: I know that you grew up in Italy, moved to the U.S. and do work for Team Fantomen in Sweden - so I have to ask: Do you prefer the Phantom in red, blue or purple?

SV: I have to admit that, after a while, I got used to the taste of the blue costume. It makes me think of the generations of Scandinavian readers that have known and loved it, that way, for close to 60 years. I also like the flavor of the purple costume which, so far,  I’ve only drawn once for an upcoming Frew cover. The red costume is my absolute favorite… at Christmas time when I draw it on my greeting cards!

GWB: How do you feel about the current state of the comics industry?  What, if anything, would you do to improve it?

SV: I think, overall, the state of the comic industry is good. Even if companies barely brake-even with their sales of printed material, the ancillary market still brings in the big money. Besides, comic book based movies continue to be successful and highly profitable. Therefore, if I were to do anything about it, I’d probably take a “laissez-faire” approach and let the competition among creators and companies bring us better and better products.


Again, thanks to Aaron Bias for his un-bias interview. It was fun!
Aaron's fascinating recollections of his first encounter with The Phantom can be read here.

Phantom Graffiti

A little anticipation of an upcoming cover.
Lots of "subliminal messages". What do you see?

Jungle Patrol!

 At long last, I've finally completed my latest Phantom issue which should be hitting the stands in June (Australia)  and July. (Scandinavia)
The story is set in the year 1667 and stars the sixth Phantom along with the original members of the Jungle Patrol ( Redbeard, Black Bart, Salla and Crusher). Above is a sneak-peek at this issue's cover.  The original art of the entire issue, can be purchased (at a very special price) by going on my website. (Click Here!) Some of the interior pages can also be viewed, at the same address. Let me know what you think.

Mutation of a Cover [2 of 2]

This is the last installment in a series of six posts, which I started in January. During these four months, I've been chronicling the evolution (and eventual mutation) of one of my Phantom covers,  from its preliminary sketch to the coloring by two different artists. Today, I'm proud to present the official blue-costume version, colored by Eugenio Mattozzi, which will be published by Egmont, on its Scandinavian publications. The purple-costume version, colored by Antonio Lemos, will appear on the Australian market, courtesy of Frew Publications.
Correct me if I'm wrong, but I think this is the first time a variant of the same cover (interpreted by two different colorists)  is published both by Egmont and Frew. Am I right?
The original art of this cover can be purchased, at a very special price, on my website. (Click Here!)

2 More from Marvel

My work, along with several other artists' is appearing in two upcoming publications from Marvel Comics.
The first is  The Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A to Z Update #1. (On sale April 2010)
The second is Deadpool Corps: Rank and Foul #1 . (On sale May 2010)

Cover Price for both comics is $3.99

(Click on the image to enlarge)

April Fool !

(Click on the image to enlarge)

Mattozzi's Matinée

As promised on a previous post, here's Eugenio Mattozzi's original illustration for the cover of The Phantom: Generations # 15, later revised for The Phantom: Generations TPB. (Moonstone, June 2010)
What do you think?

R.I.P. Dick Giordano

Legendary artist/editor/entrepreneur Dick Giordano passed away today, at the age of 77. Besides being one of the most famous  and influential artists in the history of comics, Dick has been a member of Team Fantomen contributing illustrations for eight stories and one cover, between 2002 and 2007.
I was privileged to work for Dick  when he was Executive Editor at DC Comics and to have him ink one of my stories, which appeared on DC's Showcase '95 # 9 . I met Dick Giordano in person and  greatly benefited from his advice, sense of humor and love for the comic-book medium. I will always remember him with great fondness. Riposa in pace, caro amico!

Future Felmang

Here's the image of an upcoming Egmont cover, I have just received from  Phantom Artist Extraordinaire, Romano Felmang. What do you think?

 

(Image Courtesy: Romano Felmang - Click to enlarge)

A Glimpse into the Future

Yesterday I posted about a Trade Paperback reprinting my old POWER PACK stories.
Today I'd like to spotlight another TPB, and its cover, which was masterfully executed by my cover colorist Eugenio Mattozzi.
The volume: "The Phantom: Generations  TPB" (Moonstone Books - June 2010)  is  a 376 pages collection of one shot comic novellas, with each story (by a different creative team) telling a tale of one of the 21 Phantoms
Included are two bonus never-before-published stories by Tony Isabella and Mike Bullock as well as work by creators like Ben Raab, Pat Quinn, Tom DeFalco, Don Hudson, Mel Odom, Michael Stribling, Will Murray, Enrique Alcatena, Joe Bucco, Danny Fingeroth, Mike Baron, Alex Saviuk, Gordon Purcell, Greg Cox, Steven Grant, Justin Gray, and more!
Congratulations to Eugenio for illustrating the cover of such a prestigious volume.

P.S. : If I receive enough requests, I'll try to convince Eugenio to let me post a variant version of this cover .