The master comic book artist
This lens isn't just for fans of Alex Ross, but for artists who wish to learn from him. Alex Ross is an amazing artist. He is also kind enough to share his process through his books, magazine articles and vidoes. While I admire him for his ability, I revere him for his generosity.
Alex Ross at a Glance
Nelson Alexander "Alex" Ross is an American liberal, comic book painter, illustrator and plotter, acclaimed for the photorealism of his work. Ross is praised for his realistic, human depictions of classic comic book characters.Mark Evanier. "Alex Ross' Hollywood press conference"; "Point of View" Comics Buyers Guide #1474; February 15, 2002
From the late 1990s, Ross has done much work for the industry's two largest and most historically important publishing houses, Marvel and DC Comics, but Ross is also the co-creator of Astro City, an original series that explores superhero mythology.
Althoug...
Photoidealism
Take note of the following images:

The image on the left was drawn by Andrew Loomis, which describes in detail the measurements for an ideal male, and the image on the right is a character study of Superman by Alex Ross. Notice how in this image, or any other for that matter, that Alex Ross renders, his heroes are drawn with the idealistic proportions set forth in Andrew Loomis' books.
Andrew Loomis and the books that influenced Alex Ross
A little more about Andrew Loomis
Many artists have a hard time explaining how it is they do what they do. Andrew Loomis did not have that problem. In addition to the helpful diagrams and examples in his books, is an engaging, almost chatty writing style.Here are a few quotes from "Figure Drawing For All it's Worth" that I especially love:
"May I confess that two weeks after entering art school, I was advised to go back home? That experience has made me much more tolerant of an inauspicious beginning than I might otherwise have been, and it has given me additional incentive in teaching."
"Every artist will do 'good ones' and 'bad ones.' The bad will have to be thrown out and done over. The artist should, of course, make a critical analysis to determine why a drawing is bad; usually he will be forced to go back to fundamentals, for bad drawing springs from basic faults as surely as good drawing springs from basic merits."
"I not only assume that my reader is interested in drawing but that he wishes from his toes up to become an efficient and self-supporting craftsman. I assume that the desire to express yourself with pen and pencil is not only urgent but amost undeniable, and that you feel you must do something about it. I feel that talent means little unless coupled with an insatiable desire to give an excellent personal demonstration of ability. I feel also that talent must be in company with a capacity for unlimited effort, which provides the power that eventually hurdles the difficulties that would frustrate lukewarm enthusiasm."
If you can only buy one Alex Ross book, buy this one
Alex Ross in his own words
Alex Ross in action
Who am I kidding? It's impossible to buy just one Alex Ross book
Recent Alex Ross projects
Alex Ross on the web
- Official Alex Ross site
- Read Alex Ross' official bio. While his original artwork is for sale here, and justifiably expensive, you can download cool wallpapers for free.
Art instruction lenses
I'm no Alex Ross, but I study the same fundamentals, like perspective and anatomy. I put the following lenses together for those serious about learning illustration.-
Learn to be an Illustrator
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This lens exists to help those who would like embark on a serious study of drawing and painting in styles both representational and exaggerated. The books, links, and videos recommended in this lens will develop an artist's ability to use line, value...
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Illustration Demonstration - Conan
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This lens was created to demonstrate how I typically produce images. I have a cartoony style and I use this process primarily for T-shirt designs. This is not the only way to create images of course; it is simply my approach. I hope you find it help...
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Digital Painting Techniques
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I'm creating a lesson plan for myself to get better at digital painting and using the Wacom. This lens will document the lesson plan in case anyone else wants to follow the same path.
Are you in the Alex Ross Fan Club?
Share your stories, sightings, thoughts, rants, raves...
PHX Comics wrote
For your Alex Ross Fans
PHX comics has recently placed a 1 time auction on ebay of an Alex Ross Collection. If there are Alex Ross fans that you know would like to add this to their collection or start their collection could you send them to the link below:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=220366374543
robyamor wrote
This page has a lot of useful info on the guy, thanks. Anyway, I did a tribute piece about 10 years ago for KC and placed it on my spanking new (and spare) blogspot page. I'll add more artwork when I get the time to feeling "empowered" again...Cheers, Roby
(http://roby-loosescrews.blogspot.com)
coreybrown wrote...
This guy is amazing, and so is your lens about him. I think you're right - it is impossible to buy just one.
P.S. If you buy something from this page...
... you'll automatically be making a donation to The Acumen Fund, working to solve global poverty. by GannonBeck
Read my blog at GannonBeck.com (more)







