Bruce Wayne! Dick Grayson! BATMAN '66 "Secret Identities" Sketch Covers!

Back again with more fun sketch cover commissions!

This time it's a trio of covers depicting the cast of the good guys from the 1966 BATMAN TV series!

"Batman" Bruce Wayne (as portrayed by Adam West), "Robin" Dick Grayson (actor Burt Ward), plus the secret identities of "Green Hornet" Britt Reid (actor Van Williams), and "Kato" (actor Bruce Lee)!

All done in colored pencil, ink, and crayon!

Click images below to enlarge!

New Batman and Robin Sketch Cover! BATMAN 1966 TV Series!

 Here is a fun commissioned piece!

Using marker, crayon, colored pencils and ink, I created this homage to the famous 1966 BATMAN television show!

Click image to enlarge!

New 1940 BATMAN #1 Sketch Cover! DC Comics!

 The folks at DC Comics have published an exciting facsimile reprint of BATMAN #1, from 1940, but this time fronted with a (mostly) blank sketch cover!

I couldn't resist the chance to create a sketch that evokes the "Golden Age" period and the feel of the BATMAN movie serials of the day...

Click images below to enlarge!

BATMAN-THE ANIMATED SERIES! More Rare Artwork and Designs!

Here, direct from my voluminous vaults, are more rare images from my work with the 90s BATMAN-THE ANIMATED SERIES properties! Click each to enlarge!

Below: The original cover art for a BATMAN "Mark and See" coloring book!

Notice how the publishing firm reversed the image, and substituted the loom-
ing visage of Killer Croc with an insidious image of the Joker? I wonder where 
they cribbed that Joker image…

Below: That's where that Joker artwork came from! Here 

is a style guide piece that spotlights the daring Dynamic Duo, 

doing their best to thwart an oversized death trap!

Below: Batman makes a leap from his own speeding 

Batmobile, to get the goods on some escaping thugs! I 

love the sense of motion and skewed perspective I was

able to achieve with this one!  A portion of the art was 

even used for the cover of the premiere BATMAN-THE 

ANIMATED SERIES DVD set, as well as a toy racing set!

Below: DC comics was being told that manufacturers wanted more

images of Batman and Robin together, and this was part of answering

that call! Again, lowering the viewer's perspective made for

an exciting layout, one that gets to include the Batmobile, too! 

This design was used for trading cards, package art, even

t-shirts!

Below: The original art for a dramatic scene of Robin and 

Batman, just as they complete the capture of their two greatest 

foes! Not sure where this art was re-purposed…T-shirts? 

Posters? Puzzles?

Below: Speaking of puzzles, here are my pencil roughs for a 

series of kid's puzzles that were tied into the 1997 BATMAN & ROBIN 

live-action film! It was interesting trying to depict the movie's 

stars in the "animated style!"

Below: A piece I both pencilled and inked, for one of the original BTAS style guides from DC!

Below: Here are some images used on the Kenner NEW BATMAN ADVENTURES action figures packaging!

1940s Robin Commissioned Artwork! Batman! DC Comics!

Just finished!

Talk about an offbeat assignment!

A fan asked for not only a large illustration of the 1940s "movie serial" Robin (as portrayed by actor Johnny Duncan, in the 1949 BATMAN AND ROBIN chapter serial), but he also had several unique "sketchcards" done, all to be signed by the actor, at a later date!

A very fun and unexpected art assignment!

Click below to enlarge!

DC Comics Christmas Ornament Designs! Batman! Wonder Woman! Superman!

Here are some rough product concept sketches for some superhero-themed Christmas ornaments! The idea was to create several fun design ideas that also incorporated the character's powers, friends, foes, and props! These were very quick color comps, commissioned by the Hallmark and DC Comics folks! Click images below to enlarge! See more here!

BATMAN-Themed 2011 Holiday Card! From Start to Finish! Harley Quinn!

Since the 90s, I've been commissioned (by famous comic art fan and collector, Tim Chandler) to create a unique BATMAN-related Christmas card! Here is this year's card, one that gets sent to only about 100 lucky recipients! Tim wanted an "outdoor criminal carnival" theme, complete with the usual characters he asks for every year, as well as the usual "right-side-to-left" reveal composition, upon the opening of the card!

Below: Several rough pencil sketches to get some ideas going! Note Harley Quinn's constant moving around the scene, from a (poison gas) balloon booth, to soon trying to "slingshot" Batman and Robin into the drink! The early concept also had face-painted kids milling about the grounds, as well as tons of stolen loot! Click to enlarge all images!

Below, left: Figure sketches done in an effort to work out Nightwing's pose and placement! Below, right: One more pass before the final pencils!

Below: The final pencil version, with Harley moved from her face-painting booth, no kids, Isis the cat in place, and a vat of "expired eggnog" in place of "deadly acid!" Below that is the final inked illustration!

Below: The finished, computer-colored Christmas card!

Robin vs The Joker! Fan Commission from Start to Finish!

A great and fun commission for an overseas fan! He wanted to see the 70s-era Robin, caught in a then-ubiquitous death trap, as laid by the evil Batman foe, the Joker! Click images below to enlarge!

Below: My original rough layout! The Joker has Robin trapped in a gigantic custom "action figure" toy package! Robin struggles to free himself, as the Joker lowers the trap using a huge "grabber claw," as if plucked from a "pick-a-toy machine!" Note my different sketches and ideas for the Robin figure!

Below: More sketches for Robin, picturing him still bound by those endless twist-ties that come with real toys in their packages!

Below: I then wasn't happy with the Joker pose, and wanted a more "open" display from the character...Also chose the "struggling" figure of Robin.."

Below: In order to get the lettering just right, in the proper perspective, I scanned the pencils, and laid in the text using PhotoShop, warping all text into the proper perspective! ...This allowed me to trace the lettering off onto the final inked piece...I even included the 50s "Robin" comic book logo!

Below: The final, inked piece! Click images to enlarge!

Below: With computer colors added!

Look Out! Here Comes--BATBOY & RUBIN?! MAD-Inspired Art!

Inspired by a recent episode of the fabulous new Batman animated cartoon, THE BRAVE AND THE BOLD, here is my own take on that parody of the Dynamic Duo, BATBOY & RUBIN! The cartoon producers, of course, based their version on the fabulous and memorable 1950s MAD magazine BATMAN spoof, drawn then by Wally Wood. I tried to not only get a Wood feel to this, but also a sort of "busy and bruised" look, almost along the lines of a "Big Daddy" Ed Roth car-and-cycle-centric cartoon from the 60s! Whew! How many more influences could I have jammed in?! Click to enlarge each image below, as I take you through a step-by-step creation process!

Below: My original starting roughs and sketches, trying to get a proper spoofy feel! I had a devil of a time getting the right look for Batboy's head, tricycle, and expression!

Below: The final b/w inked illustration of the dysfunctional duo!

Below: I added pencilled gray tones, on a separate overlay, then merged the two layers in Photoshop!

Below: The final, computer-colored image! I added a proper BRAVE AND THE BOLD-styled explosion for the background!