Comic Artists You Should Know: Chris Samnee

Okay, here we go. Back from a little time away from this blog and through most of those early posts that I felt were necessary before really diving into the meat of what I want to do here. Its time to talk about a specific artist in the comic world. As with most things I tend to hit on, the goal is to show that comics are more than many people seem to think and that they deserve a great deal more attention in all aspects, but especially in the art world.

Normally, this is the point where you go straight to the king of comics, Jack Kirby. He's the man to really influence everything that's come since in a way that no one else has. There's a long list of other huge names in the comic world when it comes to art (Steranko, Ditko, Romita, Moebius, Perez, just to name a few), but I want to hit on someone newer to start this off. Those guys have been covered in a ton of places by smarter people than I, and while I'll likely get to them at some point, I'd like to try some names that are even less likely to be known to people that care about art.

So we begin with Chris Samnee, a relatively new talent in the industry. Very relatively, as he's been working for quite a few years now, but the comic world is full of "Hot New Artist!"s that have been working for years and years and only suddenly received the attention they deserve. He's done work for most of the major companies, Marvel, DC, Dark Horse, Vertigo, and Oni Press, just to name a few. But he really caught the attention of readers with 2010's Thor: The Mighty Avenger, written by Roger Langridge.

Above is one of Samnee's covers for Thor: The Mighty Avenger (and as usual, make sure to click on the image to see it larger), and it is pretty much a perfect example of his work. He pencils and inks himself, and the truly noticeable part of that is Samnee's masterful use of blacks and negative space. He is one of the few artists currently working in comics to so strongly use blacks in an effective way, and is able to use it to imply linework that isn't even there. While, of course, implied line is one of those basics of art that is taught in pretty much any Drawing I class worth its salt, the use of it is rarely as effective in actual practice in modern comics anywhere but with Samnee's work.

And then there are the more obvious qualities to his art: Strong motion and pitch-perfect emotions. No one ever stands around looking boring in a Samnee-drawn comic, and he has a way of drawing a 'talking heads' scene that can be as exciting as a fight. Emotion is captured and exaggerated in just the right ways to say everything that is needed.

On top of all of this is Samnee's style. Many would call it "cartoony", which does the work a great disservice. His art harkens back to Silver Age comics, a style that many that don't read comics (and many that do, admittedly), see as childish, weak, and simple. This is, of course, not the case at all. The admittedly more simple styles of early comic books and comic strips should never be so quickly dismissed, as Samnee's modern take on the same clean, simple style easily shows.

Above is a piece that Samnee did for Comic Twart, Superman: The Movie in six panels. Its simple, and nails the entirety of the film in such a short space. While not the best example of showing how he can lay out a single page to tell a story, as this jumps large amounts of time, I think it DOES show a strength in storytelling nonetheless. There is much to be said about capturing a full length movie in six simple panels, and Samnee nails them in more ways than just reproducing what is seen in the film. Angle, expressions, use of black, and the choice of key moments is what pulls it together and really shows a grasp of storytelling that most of us can only hope for. Not to mention that he made sure to keep "Otisburg" on Luthor's map, which is just wonderful and fun if you know the movie.

Its hard for me to say much more about his work without devolving into repeating myself. I could go on and on in circles about the use of blacks and negative space and just how well Samnee can tell a story or draw a simple pin up that can put a smile on anyone's face. So its likely best I wrap this post up, but I have a couple more things to mention before I finally hit the 'publish post' button staring at me right now.

First, is a bit more expanding on just WHY I picked Chris Samnee as the first artist to talk about. There's more to it than just not wanting to pick the traditional guys to talk about when trying to explain to other artists (or anyone, for that matter) just why comic art matters and is more than second-rate crap as many in the world (art world and just the world) tend to see it. A larger reason is that I look at Samnee's art and I'm blown away. I look at what he does and how well he does it, and I want to be able to do that. His art inspires me in a way that few others ever have. I'd like to think that one day, after my wife and I have both spent years fighting together to make comics of our own, that I can be half as good as Samnee. I'd like to think that if his art can have such a strong affect on me, maybe one of the few people that read this can have a similar experience. Because, as I've said in every single post and will likely keep saying until I'm physically restrained from doing so, comics matter and they are legitimate art. And Chris Samnee is a prime example of why, and he's working right now.

So with that in mind, here's a tiny sampling of where to find his work and just what's out there that Chris Samnee has worked on. I highly suggest checking out his website, www.chrissamnee.com, where he constantly posts amazing pin ups such as the Cyclops and Daredevil shown above. Of course, the best way to get more of his work is in the comics, and the full run of Thor: The Mighty Avenger is out right now in two digest-sized trades, along with Serenity: A Shepherd's Tale with Joss and Zack Whedon. Currently drawing the monthly title for Marvel, Captain America and Bucky, written by Ed Brubaker.

How Comics Are Made

I'm to the point of wanting to start diving into specific artists, but before doing that, realized it would be best to nail down the process behind things first. Talking in detail about how great an inker is doesn't do much good if the reader doesn't have a knowledge of inker that extends beyond 'tracer'.

That means this post is dedicated to breaking down the different types of things that go into making comics. Now, the focus here is on American comics, as the techniques and some roles don't exist in other types of comics around the world. And even then, this is generalized. Not all comics use all of these roles. Some are painted, some aren't inked, some are silent and lettering isn't necessary, etc. You get the point.

Attached we have examples of various stages (script, inks, and colors) to help show how things change and look at various stages. These are from a book from Marvel a few years back: Immortal Iron Fist #1. It was written by both Ed Brubaker and Matt Fraction, and the pencils and inks were handled by David Aja, with Matt Hollingsworth on the colors. I apologize for not having the pencils to compare but Aja handled both the pencils and inks, and my best efforts to find the pencils have failed. Still, this should give a good visual idea of how things work, especially from the script to art stage. And I highly, HIGHLY recommend clicking the thumbnails to get a better look at the images. The thumbnails really don't do Aja's art any justice.

So I'll start at the 'usual' beginning.


Writer: A writer does about what you'd expect in comics. They write. Shocking, I know. What's worth mentioning here is the how, as it can vary from writer to writer. There is no standard form of a comic script. These days, it isn't uncommon for a writer to use a screenplay style very similar to movies and television scripts, but it is in no way universal. Many writers break things down as simply as a basic panel description of what they want the artist to draw, and a few lines of dialogue, with little else. Some, like Alan Moore, can writer pages on how the mood and feel of a single panel on a page should be.

It really comes down to how the writer and artist work together. Some artists love a stricter breakdown, while some love the freedom of just being told "They fight, have fun" in a script. This is taken to the extreme in what is called "Marvel Style", called as such because of how common it was during some of the earlier days of Marvel thanks to Stan Lee. With this style, the writer just gives the artist a basic plot outline for the entire issue, with no real breakdowns, and then the artist sends back pages and pages. With that, the writer THEN puts in the dialogue. With Marvel Style stories, the artist is much more intimately involved in the writer process, and it's something that some people swear by.

Layout Artist: This is one of those roles that is many times wrapped under the label of penciler. But there are some artists that simply take the script and do breakdowns, or layouts. Sometimes it's to save time for the penciler, sometimes not. Some pencil artists like to have another hand to help them break down panel shapes and the overall way a page flows.

Pencil Artist: Here's the artist that usually gets the most attention. This is the person putting down the final, well worked pencils that determine pretty much everything. All the art on the page is based off of what happens here. If there is no layout artist, this is the artist who truly sets the flow for the page. A good pencil artist is essential to a readable book.

Where the writer sets down the words and the idea, it's the pencil artist that sets it all into motion. In some terms, they could be seen as the director of the movie, putting their vision onto the page from the framework of the script. But there is more to it: The penciler is also all the actors, the set designer, and everything else. This is a stage that can truly make or break a book in how you relate to the characters, or simply if you can read the panels in the correct order.

Storytelling ability is king here even more than rendering the art perfectly.


Inker: This is not the 'tracer' as some would say. In every single way, that is a failing to understand what an inker actually brings to a comic. Years ago, inkers were credited as an Embellisher, and that's still a very good way to look at this step. An inker takes the pencils and renders them in solid blacks and whites, sometimes with tones of grey depending on the medium they've chosen to use.

The importance of the inker is in bringing to life and shaping the forms the pencil artist has already put down. Solid, strong blacks are a staple of American comics, and balancing those on a page is a subtle and essential art. In many ways, this can be seen as a type of extremely nuanced and very important shading on every aspect of the art.


Colorist: Here is another more self-explanatory person in the making of a comic. The colorist, obviously, colors. But this goes further than simply keeping in the lines and making things pretty. All the fundamentals of color theory apply here and are vital to making or breaking the overall work.

The inker has already given a strong pass of blacks and whites, which can help to determine where the shadows are, but a good colorist can make them even better. Color pallets make or break a story, just like they do for any other work of art. Sometimes a flat coloring style is used that resembles the older, four-color process that we're used to seeing in the comics from the 60s and 70s, but other times the art is fully painted: be that digitally or traditionally.

Letterer: And now, with all the art down and, hopefully, finished, another important person in the process comes in. The letterer adds nearly all the text. Word balloons, captions, title pages, etc. All of that is for the letterer to do, as are many sound effects that aren't necessary integrated into the art by the pencil artist.

While all of this is, obviously, important, the letterer does something else that is more subtle but is arguably one of the most important parts of a comic book. In placing word balloons and captions, the letterer will show the reader how to read the book. A good letterer will bring your eyes along the image that the pencil artist has already set up, from one piece of text to the image to another. This can go in traditional, left to right manner, or, if done with skill, back and forth in nearly random patterns that follow the art.

Everyone Else: And that is in NO WAY the entirety of people needed to make a comic, but those are who we're focusing on. Beyond them? You've got editors holding the communication lines between them all and making sure the book actually comes together, assistant editors trying to keep whatever they're assigned to straight, cover artist (usually a different artist than those working on the interiors of a book), graphic designers to help with everything from logos to organizing cover designs, to the interns helping wherever they're ordered to and hoping to one day turn the internship into a job. And even THAT isn't everyone, but you get the picture.

Comics come about due to the effort of a great many people. Sometimes. Other times? One person does it all. Sometimes there are only two. But one way or another, most of these things tend to be necessary for a comic to happen. Sometimes the same person does multiple parts of the process, as we see here with David Aja penciling and inking the work. Okay, we don't see the pencils, but you get the idea.

I hope.

Once I get to talking about specific artists, we shall see if this very brief overview has done any good.