How to get noticed
First step Getting that big break needn’t mean devaluing yourself. Comic art directors are looking for fresh approaches
Comic art directors are on the look-out for artists who are taking fresh approaches.
Getting noticed can be hard for an artist. You need that one great piece that breaks through the noise of the internet and gets people talking for all the right reasons. For David Talaski it was his pin-ups of familiar Marvel faces.
“Going from cheeky superhero pinups to an official Superman cover wasn’t the career trajectory I saw coming!” says the artist. His series of humorous glimpses into the everyday lives of The Avengers caught the eye of the commissioning editors at DC Comics, and soon David was drawing the Man Of Steel.
SUPER-BIG BREAK
“At the time I’d barely started doing cover work, so getting an email from DC was already a big surprise. Then realising that they wanted me to paint Superman make it Pride-themed made the whole thing feel super surreal,” says David. “For me it was a lot more than just getting to paint Superman; it was an opportunity to represent myself as an artist to an industry I’ve wanted to break into, it was an opportunity to represent myself as a queer artist, and most importantly it was an opportunity to make something special for the LGBTQIA+ comic community.”
David was inspired by the classic pin-up artists and themes of the mid-20th century because, just like
Superman, the ideas are timeless. “[JC] Leyendecker was the obvious inspiration for the one we went with, both for his style having that classic feel I was going for, but also as an homage to a prolific gay illustrator,” says the artist.
David’s cover is a sign of how the comics industry is changing, and shows the ‘big two’ are prepared to challenge preconceptions. David’s love of classic American illustrators and pin-up artists Duane Bryers, Bill Randall and Gil Elvgren is clear in the personal project that got him noticed and his commissioned Superman cover. It matters, says David. “Having yourself reflected back at you in the media you enjoy is something a lot of people take for granted. When you don’t have that representation it’s very isolating.
“I know as a kid, the most isolating years of my life, it would have meant the world to me to see characters like myself in comics. Even with this Superman cover, the number of comments I got from people
[JC] Leyendecker was the obvious inspiration for the one we went with…
saying how much it meant to them seeing Superman as an ally, showed just how important it was to people to feel seen.”
That’s how David views his version of Superman, as an ally. “I see him as a hero who will fight for those who can’t fight for themselves; I see him as the hero who strives to do the right thing even when it’s hard; I see him as a symbol of hope and potential of humanity,” he tells us.
And in that moment, when Superman is rose-cheeked and smiling in a moment of reflection, what’s he thinking about? “In the moment? He’s probably thinking about Krypto. What a good boy.”
STEP UP
That being said, comics still have a way to go to truly represent its readers and contributors. “I know personally I want to see more leading queer characters in comics, films and shows – and not just during Pride Month,” says David.
Yet, it’s heartening to discover that the big comic houses are opening their doors to everyone, and the best way of breaking into the industry is to just be yourself. Artists such as David Talaksi are getting there on their own terms.
You can discover more of David’s art at inprnt.com/gallery and on Instagram at instagram.com/davidtalaskidraws.