Way of the Undead Fist

Wow, I already do not like this.  But between trying to get my son into a good preschool, Doctors appointments, contacting lawyers, plumbing, new windows, friends & family from out of town (who I was glad came) and the normal Barista work and stay at home daddy stuff… well I can understand why I’ve gotten a bit behind. I haven’t had time to record audio for the next tutorial.  Though it’s all shot.  So will try again next week.  So I thought I’d post about something that bummed me out.  That of course is the passing of Art Legend Bernie Wrightson.

Though I never met the man (those who I know did always spoke well of him), I always looked up to him as an artist.  His B&W work on Swamp Thing, Frankenstein and so much more.  Someone told me once that my work reminded them of Wrightson and I wanted to scream ‘Sacrilege’! But I was also appreciative of the compliment.  Make no mistake, Bernie was a treasure and there will not be another artist like him in our lifetime.

However that’s not why his death saddens me.  I’ve been kicking around this industry, trying to break in for 20 years.  I’ve met some great artists & writers and embarrassed myself plenty.  But the guys I really love, I never got to meet, or if I had the opportunity I passed it up.  I could have met John Buscema, didn’t and he died months later.  Will Eisner, same thing.  It was easier to introduce myself to Morgan Freeman at a party than to say 2 words to a comic legend I admire.  I was too young to tell my grandfather that I loved him, and that I understood that the Parkinson’s disease wasn’t him.  Bernie’s passing is another influential person in my life has passed without me telling them what they or their work meant to me.

We artists and geeks can be a hermit like lot.  Spending too much time in solitude, drawing, writing, gaming, wasting time on the computer.  My advice to all of you is to find those people who are important in your life and tell them how much you love them.  What their work has meant to you.  How they touched your lives.  Because in the end that’s all artists, friends and family … people want to know and hear.  So next week I’ll post the tutorial.  For the rest of this one, I’m going to call some old friends and have a few beers.   If you’re smart, you should too.  Peace and love, God Speed Bernie.