Digital Art & Illustration 05: Focus on Aaron Alexovich.

• Posted: July 3, 2008
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• Author: Chris Murphy
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• Filed under: Illustration
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• Tags: Character Design, Comics, Webcomics

In the past ten years I've watched as indie comics transitioned from the cheaply printed rags to the more affordable (and arguably better quality) screen versions.

Indie artists have long since caught onto the fact that online distribution for a niche title or genre is a far more effective compared to traditional (and expensive) distribution channels. Not only that, but the appetite for indie titles, stories, and art is considerable — such as mine, which is how I stumbled across Aaron Alexovich’s site: HeartShapedSkull.com

I love comics. I love comic books; I the funnies in newspapers; I love mainstream comic books, but most of all, I love indie comics. It’s true that there is a lot of crap out there, but now and then you come across a title that not only delivers an interesting storyline, but backs it up with a great style.

What I really like about Aaron’s style is the paradox and sheer quirkiness of his work: a little rugged and unpolished, but refined at the same time. The subtleties in his work are great — everything from little background details in his pages, to the character designs.

There was so much to take in on the first read that I found myself coming back a few times just to appreciate the aesthetic and story. Reading through the archives and even perusing some of the commissioned work, you begin to really sense how much of Aaron’s personality and sense of humour comes through.

Aaron’s work reminds me of the grittiness of Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird’s early work on TMNT (before it was “kiddie-fied”), as well as animation influences from artists like Jeff Matsuda.

Here are some more samples of his work:

I won’t say too much more about Aaron’s work — check it out for yourself.

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