Talented comic/storyboard artists Ben Juwono (@e1n) is attending Anime Expo 2012! Check out these great One Piece and Pokemon art works he’s created, and be sure to visit him in booth B21. We recently spoke with e1n, who was kind enough to share some wisdom with all of you in Internet land.
How long have been drawing?
I started drawing in 2002 when I first picked up a series called One Piece. It inspired me to draw and it has very much influenced my style at the moment.
How long have you been using Copic markers?
I think I started back in 2007 or 2008. Before that all my work have been primarily done in black and white, because colors scare me. Thankfully I had a friend (@myrollingstar) who encouraged me to try out Copics – I’ve been using Copics since.
What do you like about them – as compared to other brands?
The way the ink blends is very nice and smooth, somehow easier and better than other brands. I mix colors a lot when I use Copics, for example, I shade skin with purple (V20 or V91) and the two colors blend nicely to create a new, consistent color. Also the brush nib is very easy to work with, I can make broad strokes or tiny detailed lines with just that nib. My favorite part about Copics, though, is the fact that it has a lot of desaturated colors. I don’t like to color my artwork with vibrant, saturated colors, because it’s a lot harder to unify the colors, but Copics offer very very light, desaturated colors like the 0000 series. They allow me to color lightly first to unify the colors, before adding the dark later on. I don’t see this in other markers; a lot of the other brands I’ve used, the colors are way too vibrant for my liking.
When was your first Anime Expo?
My first one was 2007, and I’ve been at the alley ever since.
What’s your official booth number, what are you selling?
According to the recently released, tentative table assignment chart, I’m in B21. I’ll be selling fanart prints of Pokemon and One Piece, as well as volume 1 and 2 of my original comic, “WAITT!”. I also recently printed my sketches into a book, so that will be for sale as well, and I will be taking commissions (which will be colored with Copics, if color is desired)
What do you like about anime?
I’m more of a manga reader. Comics speak to me more than animation. As for manga versus anime, I just find it a lot more pleasing to imagine the action in my head, rather than having it animated for me. It’s almost as if someone is already giving the action a context, and therefore limiting the imagination. In comics/manga, you just see the panels and you have to string the information yourself, so it feels a lot more interactive, and as a reader you’re more involved.
What inspires your art?
Humor and life experiences. I try to incorporate a lot of humor into my pieces because I like to laugh and I like making other people laugh. I also live a rather boring life, so whenever something boring is happening, I would draw a comic about how it could’ve been very exciting.
Have any marker pro tips to share?
Go from light to dark. Start with very light colors and make sure all your colors work out before you start adding dark, more saturated colors. This is probably against the Copic marker code, but NEVER EVER shade with the higher number color. For example, if you’re coloring skin with E21, don’t shade with E23 or E25 because it will just look very boring and unnatural. In nature, shadows are never of the same hue as the local color, and you can get a lot more interesting colors if you experiment other colors to shade. I always shade my skin with a purple (V20 or V91), and I always try to shade other colors with its complimentary, like red with green, yellow with blue, etc. Also, when in doubt, shade with BV20. I found that color magical as it can shade almost anything and make the shadow look natural.
Any convention selling pro tips?
Be nice to your customers, greet them, talk to them and treat them not as customers, but as people with similar interest. Do not shove deals in their face or try to call them out from distance to come look at your table. If they didn’t have any intention to buy in the first place, they’re not going to. Make sure your booth stand out and can be seen from distance. Use decorations, attractive tablecloth. Be as professional as possible in attitude and appearance, and customers will come.
Visit Ben online: http://bjwno.net/
