J.K. Woodward Interview!

Phenomenal graphic artist and illustrator J.K. Woodward found the time in his nonstop schedule making IDW look good (like they really need the help) to answer these bothersome questions from our own man hipdeep in the frontlines, Richard Caldwell...

James, thanks for taking some time out to share with us. You've had one of those lives thus far that has pulled you all over the country. Do you think the travel, the exposure to so many different places and people, has sharpened your creative mind's eye?

In all honesty, its hard to say. I've been bouncing around for so long. But, I think so. I remember my first move in 1986 (to Los Angeles) was an almost culture shock experience. I quickly moved back to New England but tried again for L.A. 2 years later. If I hadn't done that I'm not sure I'd be the painter I am today. I had taken myself outside of my environment and found that it was a lot easier to say "why not". It's as if I was giving myself all these restrictions based on peers and surroundings that were completely unnecessary and I wasn't even aware of it until I was separated from it. There are "rules" that govern people's behavior in every location and/or scene within it. When you're new somewhere, you're not aware of it yet and I think that can open you to new things. For me, in L.A., it was art. I had always been penciling comic pages and had dabbled in some acrylic and watercolour painting, but never really explored the art scene outside of comics until I got to L.A. If you had told me in '86, that I'd be experimenting with surrealism, impressionism or even abstract; that I'd be painting in oil on 6 foot canvas instead of brush and ink on 11x17 bristol board, I wouldn't have believed it.
I think this is just part of a person's natural development and growth, but I think by making big and sudden changes in your life, you can accelerate it and even take it to levels you hadn't considered before. So in that sense I would have to say that yes, the exposure to so many different places and people, has sharpened my creative mind's eye, because that kind of exploration is what it takes for me, personally to grow.
In addition, if you're working in comics, it's always nice to have experiences in different regions and cities because you never know what a script may call for.

So which came first for you, the commercial art or work in comic books? And how did you land that very first comic book gig?

Commercial work.
In the 90's I was doing a lot of freelance album covers for a German record producer. This would later (1999-2000) lead to a move to Frankfurt to do this full time. After moving there I worked full time for this record company for about a year and then it all went to hell. I started getting work for advertising agencies as a freelance illustrator, but found this new career EXTREMELY unrewarding. I started painting a lot more and I was doing a lot of small gallery shows around the Frankfurt area. It kind of took the sting out of working in advertising, but what I really wanted to do was publish something.
Here's where I got back into comics. At the time I was working on an oil painting series called Flesh Angels and I really wanted to publish all the pieces as an art book. I arranged the pieces and worked out the story with writer and long time friend, M.D.Koffin. She wrote some first person narratives to go with the paintings and the art book was ready. Finding a publisher to take a chance on an unknown was going to be near impossible, so having no patience for that I published it myself as a comic. It had the same dimensions as a comic and a saddle stitched spine, but any similarity to an actual comic ended there. It was basically 32 paintings, though I still consider it my first work in comics.
Flesh Angels got the attention of Phil Smith who was looking to self publish a story himself and needed an artist. We did two and half issues of a book called Gelding, but it never went anywhere. Phil and I went our separate ways professionally, but are still friends today. Phil is now an editor at Top Cow. During and after this time working with him I also did two other very important twelve-page stories. One was for A David Lewis' Mortal Coils and the other was Michael Colbert's Crazy Mary. Both got a great deal of attention for indie titles, but it was my work on Crazy Mary that got the attention of Chris Ryall over at IDW. He started me on a four issue mini for CSI:NY and while I was still finishing up issue 3 he told me Peter David was bringing Fallen Angel to IDW and had decided on me as the artist. I worked on this series for the next three or more years as well as X-Men Origins:Beast, a few Star Trek books and a myriad of covers for IDW, BOOM! and DDP.
So it all started because I hated working in advertising and I couldn't afford to publish a proper art book and I couldn't be happier it worked out the way it did. Comics are a huge part of my life and I kind of turned my back on them in the 90's. I'm glad I got pulled back in.

Why had you turned your back on comics? I know everyone even remotely related to the industry still holds grudges and regrets over the implosion, but were there other reasons for you? Are you passionate about the medium now, beyond it just being your trade of choice?

I didn't really make a choice to consciously abandon comics, life just started to get in the way. The early 90's were a crazy time for me. I was just distracted for a few years and then when I tried to come back on board I was lost. A lot happens in superhero comics in just a few years.
But the 90's weren't a total comic reading void. Because I was so lost in what was going on in the big 2 (and the new and blossoming 3rd), I directed my attention to stuff I had previously ignored. I would buy the Cerebus phone books because it was something I could just keep by the bed and read some pages every night, or not, whatever. It required very little commitment from me. Reading comics like that was a lot more fun at that time. I had enough on my mind and didn't want to worry about getting to the comic book store on time every week. When I was done with my Cerebus phone book, I would go get or order another one. I could read at my own pace which was crucial at this time in my life.
That all changed in or around 2000-2001. I started reading Jones' Hulk, Grant's X-Men and Arcudi's Doom Patrol. This was also around the time I discovered Alex Robinson's Box Office Poison, so it was a VERY good year for me and comics, be it superhero titles or indie cartoonists. So, yeah, I would definitely say I'm passionate about the medium now! I always have been. I just took a small break for a short while.

Who has influenced what you do, in or out of comic books? And what's your studio space like- are you big on ambiance, beit movies, podcasts, music?

Influences outside of art are just too numerous to name, but if I keep it to just art influences, then the great cubists Braque and Picasso, surrealists from Dali to Giger, contemporary I like Warhol and Hockney and comic artists John Byrne and Bill Sienkiewicz. Byrne for form, Sienkiewicz for style.
My studio? Well I rent a space separate from my home at a place called Juvenal reis studios (http://www.juvenalreisstudios.com). The atmosphere here is different from day to day, depending on things like what I'm working on, when the deadline is, how much sleep I've gotten (or haven't gotten as is generally the case). But most of the time it's music or podcasts, as movies or tv can demand too much visual attention.
Usually for music in the studio, I prefer classic 77 punk or some Kalifornia 80's hardcore. I need that constant energy feed it gives me. When it comes to podcasts, it's usually comics related. I don't have any friends in NYC yet that are into comics, so it doesn't come up much as a topic of discussion in my social life. In comics it's good to know about stuff even if it is outside your area of interest. That's where podcasts come in.

If you had been unable to pursue art so directly over the years, what do you think that alternate reality you would be doing with himself? What else interests you?

The alternate reality me would be doing life without the possibility of parole.
Seriously though, I'm not sure. I spend every waking moment (literally 16-20 hours a day, 7 days a week) painting. I can't imagine doing anything else. My work IS my life. It IS me. There is no distinction. I can't see how I would exist without art. It's rare that it happens, but if I'm not working and still awake, I'm usually drinking. So I guess without my work, I'd be an alcoholic...or a sex addict...a junkie perhaps. Point is, without art, I'm left with only base, animal-like, self-indulgent interests. I think without art I'd be this barely human thing scurrying around the city in an effort to satisfy whatever particular craving or lust happens to be rolling around in my primal beast head at that particular moment, with nary a thought of consequence or future. By night I'd be a frontman for an 80's style hardcore band called "Testicular Fortitude".
Either that or I'd probably do something in computers. I actually have an associates degree for it that I'm still paying for.

There is a lot of honesty to that. Not in working with computers, but in the connections between obsession and addiction. So many great writers and artists have danced on that thin grey line, throughout history.
So what do you have to look forward to in the future? What current and upcoming projects are you at liberty to plug away with here for our readers?

Yeah, you're right. There is a lot of truth in that. It's a little frightening (and invigorating) to think about.
Let's see, what am I doing? There's a lot of uncertainty in the future because I'm planning out all these ambitious but secret endeavors. So I'll have to wait to tell you about that stuff. But in the meantime, I'll be plenty busy with freelance work. I just finished a Star Trek: Captain's Log and am currently working on an 11 page guest spot on GI Joe: Cobra II. I have another Captain's Log after that and a project lined up with Chris Ryall, but it's too early to talk about that one. Somewhere between finishing the next Captain's Log issue and starting the Ryall project, I expect Peter will have the script for the next Fallen Angel mini. I'm anxiously awaiting that one!

How is it, working with Peter David? I've heard he can be the artist's writer, but I know he really has formed some great rapports in the past, like with Larry Stroman on X-Factor and Dale Keown on the Hulk. Do his scripts challenge you, or does he play into your strengths?

Both. When Peter needs something for a scene, it's going in the script. I have no doubt about that and sometimes that means a challenge.The apocalyptic New York battle scene between Fallen Angel and Illyria at the end of Reborn is a good example of that. But he also seems to pay attention and remember when something works with an artist. I hear a lot of artists complain about underwater scenes. And yes, if you're penciling, it can be hard to pull off. You often have to rely a lot on the colourist to make the underwater atmosphere believable. But as a painter these scenes are easier for me and in issue 3 or 4 of Fallen Angel he had written a short underwater scene and it really worked. Underwater scenes came up two more times after that. They were longer and more complex. I think he knew I enjoyed them or at the very least, noticed I could do them well, remembered this, and made a point to accentuate any water scenes that came up. There are many examples of this kind of thing that leads me to believe he pays close attention and knows how to get the best out of me, but that doesn't mean he goes easy on me. In the end the script needs what it needs and we both understand that it's my job to deliver. I really do enjoy working with him. I feel like I have an understanding of what he expects from me and he has a good grasp of what I can do and what I enjoy.

That is fantastic. Now let's end this on a silly note. Your jetpack is soon to crash on an otherwise deserted isle. What tools of the trade could you absolutely not live without? Presuming alcohol and wi-fi are already in the picture, of course.

Brushes, canvas, and oil paint. That would be the absolute minimum. Though since I have wi-fi, I'd probably want a laptop. That way I don't have to worry about which books or music I'd have to bring with me since I'd have access to all of it. Though I think I'd still want a paperback copy of Catcher in the Rye. I always found Holden Caulfield to be good company. Does it have to be deserted? I was kind of assuming that I crash landed on Themyscira. Yeah, if I crash land on Themyscira, then all I need are brushes, canvas, oil paint, a laptop, and a paperback copy of Catcher in the Rye... and a toothbrush.
Brushes, canvas, oil paint, a laptop, paperback copy of Catcher in the Rye and a toothbrush on Themyscira.

ah paradise island...


http://www.jkwoodward.com

read his blog here and follow his tweets here.

And of course, all images trademark of their respective copyright holders.