COMMISSIONS!

I'm now accepting new commissions, information is available at THIS link.
So if you're a collector, or just want some snappy art...visit the site for info, and email Simon...he'll set you up with receiving your own personal piece by yours truly :)
Thanks!
~T.Cypress

The Coffin

It's always an honor for me to be asked to contribute to great storytelling.
In this case, super talent Mike Huddleston asked me to contribute a pinup to his upcoming Hardcover Collection of THE COFFIN, published by IDW.

Hope you enjoy my little pinup celebrating the hardcover's release, and please remember to pick up your copy of THE COFFIN this September!
~T.Cypress

CANDY BARR

Candy Barr-1950's burleque dancer.

While riding the train thru Brooklyn I came across some graffiti that had been destroyed with acidic cleaner. The job unfinished left the colors running like candied colored paints. It was the prettiest thing I'd seen that day, and it inspired my painting of Miss Candy Barr.

Miss Barr was known in Texas/Las Vegas at your high end burlesque shows, but she came "famous" for her business with Jack Ruby, the shooting of her estranged husband, and prison time for drug possession.

WIP photos below...

~T.Cypress

Tutorial

ABOVE- here is the line drawing of my painting. I used india ink in this case to ink the pencils, but usually I like to use a burnt umber acrylic ink. The Burnt Umber line work typically blends in with the finished painting for a more "lifelike" effect rather than a heavy dark india inked outline.


ABOVE- This is the underpainting. Generally you want the underpainting to be a tonal rendering of your light/dark values. In this case I didn't do a very tight underpainting...mostly just a quick block in with darks using burnt umber acrylic paint, and a light layer on top to pull the painting together. This is actually a bad example of an underpainting, but many painters might go tighter with a painting nearly finished in a tight tonal, monochromatic piece indicating light source, and shadows. I usually just want to get right into the paint/textures so I use a very simple wash, building up in layers towards a deep dark for shadows. But nothing too time consuming. The underpainting acts as a surface for your paint to adhere too, and as your layer for your shadows. Traditionally opaque painting will have portions of the underpainting showing in shadowy bits, pulling the whole painting together with harmony.


ABOVE- The painting will be completed with acrylics, an opaque medium. Traditionally acrylics, like oil paint is used by building atop layers of thinner paint with thicker paint...gradually moving from your shadowy/dark values towards your light source/light values. Here I am building my forms by painting thicker layers of light value around the form atop thinner shadow values beneath. This gives the painting dimensional, and visual form. Rule of thumb, the lightest values, and light source parts of the painting will be the thickest. Acrylic paint wont stick evenly if your too using too thin a paint atop a thicker base.


ABOVE- Here is a look at my middle values filled in. I like to get as much of the painting worked up to it's middle before dropping in the lightest values. You see the underpainting remains untouched in the background, and in portions of the figure.


ABOVE- Ok, now I've moved toward the figure finish. I'm dropping in my light values (thickest paint), to indicate light source, and pushing the forms. Building the painting from dark towards light. I'm trying to "pull" the figure from the shadows.


ABOVE- Whoa! What happened, I totally ruined my painting...Just kidding.
With the figure nearly done I begin work on the background. I start by adding more darks, very loosely, and thinly. I'm mostly interested in mood. Depth and drama is created with dark vs light, thick vs thin, and hard edge vs soft edge contrasts.


ABOVE- Nearly there. I'm dropping in my thickest paint, tightening the background, and figure. I'm trying to remain aware of "happy accidents", and allowing the paint to do it's own thing. In this phase I'm using ALOT of gloss medium to color correct, build color depth, and other special effects. "Gloss Medium" is a varnish that mixes with your acrylic color to allow the acrylics to become transparent. This way you can tint your painting with effects, and BLEND shades. Also the gloss medium re-news the original vibrancy of the acrylic color. Acrylics dry as a matt-color...losing it's "out of the tube" intensity, and saturation...so I layer gloss medium atop my painting to bring back the vibrant color. The finished acrylic painting looks more like an oil painting with blending effects, and thick impasto applications.


ABOVE- And the finished painting.

~T.Cypress

My ORIGINAL ART available at www.gotsuperpowers.com

Sorry I've been neglecting my site for the past year! But please friend me at Facebook, where I've been posting new art, and sketches.
-friend me

Also, I have a new Art Dealer...Simon Miller here
Contact him for original commissions, and published art.
I'm really proud to be included with his great artists he represents like Mike Allred, and Jason Alexander. Great stuff for sure.

So I'll see you here soon with some new art, but in the meantime please check me out at Facebook, and let's be friends :)
~T.Cypress

AEON FLUX pin-up art for sale at EBay!

Want to own an original drawing?!!


HERE is the link to the EBay auction for my pin-up for Aeon Flux!
Details at the site.
~T.Cypress

BLACK CANARY

AKIRA commission on eBay!

http://qurls.com?i=48007
Here's the link for the eBay auction of this Akira piece of mine.
Info at the auction :)


-T

JERSEY GODS

I recently finished a cover for a book called JERSY GODS, published by Image Comics, written by Glen Brunswick. I'll post a process sequence for this painting soon.
Please visit the JERSY GODS blog at www.jerseygods.blogspot.com for more info on this great series.

The RODD RACER BLOG!

Please visit-
www.roddracer.blogspot.com
for daily updates concerning the development of my latest project RODD RACER.
The blog includes sketches, production art, and a few finished pieces.

Update

I've been very busy on multiple projects so I haven't been updating enough. Here are some work in progress of Rodd Racer which I'm currently wrapping up preliminary art. I'll try to post more very soon!
-T

KILLING GIRL the tradepaperback

My latest painting is for the cover of the upcoming KILLING GIRL tradepaperback that collects the Image comics series KILLING GIRL issues 1,2 (Frank Espinosa art), and issues 3-5 (Toby Cypress art). A great action series of comics.
I used acrylic paint on board for this painting.
-Toby

SWALLOW Vol.4 in stores NOW!

That's right, and MY artwork is in this puppy!
Go get yourself a copy available at fine comic shops, and Amazon.com.
I'm very proud to be included in the pages of SWALLOW with artists I worship, Ashley Wood, Kent Williams, Paul Pope, Jim Mahfood...so many.
This book is an amazing effort of art put together with the hard work of Ashley Wood...the busiest man in comics.
-Toby

SWALLOW Vol.4

I'm very proud to announce my work will be seen in the upcoming volume of SWALLOW vol.4 published by IDW.

Not sure when it's due out, but I've been a huge fan of the book, and feel honored to be included with the top notch talent the book features.
Look for it soon!

KURSK...

KURSK...a short story written/illustrated by me.
"Codename Colonel KURSK, a cursed man, born through secret science, bred to destroy."
more info soon!
-T.Cypress

UPDATE!!
KURSK...a short story written/illustrated by myself can be seen in the pages of POPGUN vol.1.
POPGUN is an anthology of comic stories featuring the industry's hippest creators of indie comics, together in a massive collection of comics' coolest stories.
Pick up your copy of POPGUN vol.1 at comic stores, and book stores around the country.
-T.Cypress

The BATMAN- Year 100
"Beatdown in Chinatown"
this is a commission I recently finished imagined as the Batman fighting his way thru an ambush in Gotham's Chinatown district.
inspired by Paul Pope's "Batman year 100" storyline.
I wanted the piece to have cinematic action, and storytelling.
the original measures at 17"x36".
-T

Commission Work?

Hey Gang,
I am currently accepting original commission work for the next couple months as I prepare for the San Diego Comic Con in July!

*Attached above is an example of a recent commission I just finished for a client that wisely wanted one of the first original drawings of Drag'On from my current book RODD RACER!
Drag'On, the antagonist of the story.
Drag'On, the mysterious hitman for the Yakuza crime clan!

I don't do many commissions, but this is your chance to own your own work of orginal art by T.Cypress for this limited time!
If you would like to commission your own original work of art of your favorite characters...
please contact:
tobycypress@hotmail.com

Look for RODD RACER releasing later this summer/fall, and be sure to pick up the RODD RACER Convention Special Sketchbook at the San Diego Comic Con!!
Thanks!
-T

RODD RACER article...only on The Pulse!!

http://www.comicon.com/cgi-bin/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=36;t=005127
Follow this link to my article on RODD RACER at The Pulse.
It will shed some more light on my latest project, along with a few new images.
-T

RODD RACER a work in progress

Rodd Racer is a story inspired by the old adventure strips of Milton Caniff, and Frank Robbins.

It takes place in a fictional 1930's environment which slants towards the futures of Fritz Lang.

A story about a young, ambitous racer who risks it all to win greatness, but finds more than he gambled for in the violent world of the street derby run by gangsters known only as...Thunder Road.

RODD RACER

a story by T.Cypress

coming soon