Welcome to my weekly column showcasing up and coming or undiscovered talent, bringing to your attention creators that I feel will be break-out stars in the near future. Some are already well on their way to super stardom, while some are just on the outskirts.
Everyone has a favorite comic book creator. One they’ve discovered recently, or maybe followed from the very beginning of their career. Some have so many favorites it’s hard to choose just one. Every single one of those creators started somewhere, be it by producing photocopied mini comics to sell at their neighborhood comic shop, getting a table in the artist’s alley at their local comic convention, publishing fan fiction, posting images to deviantart.com, or doing commissions through the internet or at conventions. There are so many different ways to break into the American comic industry.
Jeff Stokely caught my eye with his recent star turn on Simon Spurrier’s Six-Gun Gorilla from BOOM! Studios, a book that I admittedly originally passed over due to the silly title. This book is insane amounts of fun, and part of the reason is Jeff’s fantastic artwork.
He has previously had work published in The Reasons For Dragons, The Thrilling Adventure Hour, and Fraggle Rock by Archaia Entertainment, as well as work for TokyoPop, and UDON Studios. He has also spent time creating designs for Mattel’s Max Steel and Masters of the Universe lines, and game illustration for Cryptozoic and Square ENIX.
Jeff Stokely is a true draftsman, able to work in a diverse number of styles, whether it be traditional comic work with pen and paper, or using Photoshop wizardry to manipulate an image. His work on Fraggle Rock is completely different than his work on Six-Gun Gorilla, but they share stylistic details.
His pages have a dynamic layout, and a strong storytelling sense, that drag your eyes exactly where he wants them to go. His panels have a kinetic movement to them, even if the character is sitting still, and his action scenes leap right off the page and into your lap.
His highly detailed SGG pages have a fluidity to them, while also being very loose and almost whimsical, and his characters have so much life in them. You can tell he is having a lot of fun with this book!
Keep your eyes on the comic shelf, as I see even bigger things coming from Jeff Stokely, a Future Comic Rock Star for sure!
You can follow his work here, and here, and while you’re at it, follow him on twitter.
[…] have been a fan for a while now, but Jeff Stokely’s art is on a whole other level on The Spire. It is elegant, fluid, and […]
Just what I needed–another comic to follow! 😉