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NEW ARTBOOK- IT'S HERE!



   Well, almost. GROUNDWORKS: The Marvel Art of Mark Brooks is off to the printers and will be available starting at San Diego Comic Con on July 12th-15th. The book is a 48 page full color hardback and contains over 200 sketches, designs, concepts, and full color works much of which has never been seen anywhere else. From the moment my pencil hits the page to the glossy final image, you'l see all the steps it takes to produce my work for Marvel. I've tried to produce a book that's more than just a book of art and created something that shows the momentum of an image and gives the viewer an idea of the foundation of how a piece of art winds up in the pages of your favorite Marvel Comics. Hence the title- GROUNDWORKS.

PRE-ORDER:

   Not going to San Diego this year? Fear not! I am opening pre-orders right now and we can ship the book anywhere in the world. The book is $25+ shipping and you can get one by simply e-mailing MARKBROOKSART@MSN.COM with the subject line "Groundworks artbook" and we will reply back with order and shipping instructions within 48 hours. And as a BONUS to everyone that pre-orders their copy before July 12th I will include a special edition signed BOOK PLATE. Books will begin shipping immediately after San Diego Comic Con on a first ordered, first shipped basis.

GROUNDWORKS: The Marvel Art of MARK BROOKS
pre-order book plate edition
48pages 9"X12.5"   $25




Thanks for looking and I hope to hear from you soon!
-Mark

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It's convention season again and as always, I will be making the rounds both in the US and abroad. Here's a full list of appearances and I hope to meet a lot of you this year. If we've already met, well, I hope to see you again! Lot of new stuff in the works including a new 'art of' book featuring my Marvel work over the years that will include sketches, concept work. and finished pieces, most of it has never been seen beyond myself and my editors.

Phoenix Comic-Con Phoenix, AZ- May 24-27 2012
HeroesCon- Charlotte, NC- June 22-24 2012
San Diego Comic-Con- San Diego, CA- July 12-15 2012
*Singapore Comic-Con- Sept 1-2, 2012
*DragonCon- Atlanta, GA-  August 31-Sept 3, 2012
New York Comic-Con- New York, NY- Oct 11-14, 2012

*projected conventions that may be subject to change

On another note, I have gotten numerous requests for portfolio reviews and want to work out a way I can do reviews but in a public manner so that everyone can read my ramblings and possible learn a little something. This would involve people submitting their portfolios(4 pages of sequentials and a cover or 2) and I will post them up in a journal and proceed to critique it. To do this you would need to have 2 things- 1) a tough skin that can take the bad with the good and 2) be willing to be critiques in front of the whole world(or at least Deviantart). I am by no means an a**hole and won't go out of my way to hurt anyone's feeling but I will be completely honest and honesty can sometimes be brutal. If you're up for it please send me a private note with links to each page(maximum 4 and they should one continuous story) and cover of your work that you would like critiqued. If you already have the pages hosted on a image linkable site like Photobucket, all the better! I will pick one that I think will best help the artist and the greater DA public and post it in a week or 2. Good luck!

I also still have copies of my artbook Angelic for online order so, if you would like a copy, shoot me an e-mail at markbrooksart@msn.com with the subject line "Angelic artbook" and we will get back to you with order instructions. Only a few boxes left and when they're gone, they're gone.

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Ya'll Come See Me at San Diego Comic-Con!! BOOTH #4403


It's that time of year again where we go all out for that behemoth of a show – San Diego Comic-Con!  In addition to finishing up issue #13 of Uncanny X-Force, the last few weeks have been all about prepping for this show and making sure there is plenty of new stuff available.  Here is what's going on this year!

First – make sure you know where I'm located: BOOTH #4403 in the "Illustrators" section of the show floor, just inside Lobby F, between the bag check and the 20th Century Fox booth.  I'm NOT in Artist Alley.

BOOTH #4403 will be set up for Preview Night through show close on Sunday.  I'll be there along with Stephane Roux.  

MARK BROOKS ITEMS AVAILABLE AT THE BOOTH

ART PRINTS AND LITHOGRAPHS
*NEW* DC "Sirenes" art print featuring Poison Ivy, Catwoman and HarleyQuinn. $20 [link]
*NEW* Art nouveau Black Cat $20 [link]
*NEW* Thor Spread, oversized lithograph - $30  (BOTTOM full color image) [link]
*NEW* Akira featuring Kaneda art print $20
[link]
Baroness with smoking gun $20 (Image on the RIGHT)  [link]
Scarlet Witch $20 [link]
White Queen $20 [link]
Various other prints $20

ART BOOKS
Angelic (2010) – 48 page hard cover art book, $25
Devilish (2009) – 48 page hard cover art book, $25
Or you can purchase both for $40

ORIGINAL ART
Uncanny X-Force original pages
Various other covers, interiors, video game art
Original penciled piece used in the DC "Sirenes" art print
Book of prelims, sketches and original pages priced at $50 and under

COMMISSIONS
As most people are aware, SDCC is a crazy show and often the time needed to complete many commissions is just not there.  My goal is to get 3 done, but even that might be a stretch.  I know that's disappointing, but I try to produce quality over quantity and I hope everyone understands that.

WE'LL ALSO HAVE FREE POSTCARDS FOR ANYONE THAT COMES BY!

ORDER ONLINE!!
    But fear not if you want to get your hands on one but are not planning to attend the show. WE WILL BE OFFERING THE pPRINTS BY MAIL ORDER AND CAN SHIP ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD. Simply send an e-mail to MARKBROOKSART@MSN.COM with the subject "PRINTS" and we will get back to you with ordering instructions and all the details you need.

PANEL:
  As of right now I will be doing a panel along with Stanley"Artgerm" Lau hosted by Deviantart founcer Angelo Sotira on Saturday covering Deviant Art and how to utilize it to it's full potential. Check your SDCC program for time and panel room.

For any question please direct them to @brideofdiablo on Twitter>

So, if you are planning on attending San Diego Comic Con please make sure to come by and say hello!

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It's that time of year again, SAN DEIGO COMIC-CON 2010!

Just like last year I will be a guest of the show but unlike last year I will be in a swanky booth instead of Artist Alley. You can find me in the illustrator area at BOOTH #4403! Please stop by and say hello


Now for the big announcement! As you may or may not recall I debuted my artbook 'Devilish' last year at the show and opened it up for order via Deviant Art. Well, this year is no exception. Debuting on Wednesday's preview night at Comic-Con is 'Angelic: The art of Mark Brooks vol.2'! It's a hardback full color saddle stitched book with a spot varnished cover. It's chock full of pin-ups, covers, sketches, and design work from the length of my career so far and includes some familiar work as well as stuff never seen before now.
Hard cover, 8 3/4x12 3/8 inches, 48 pages, full-color, full bleed, sewn pages. Price: $25.00  I will have limited copies available at the show so please come by early to get your copy if you're going to be at the show.


I'll also have new lithographs as well as some classics so, hopefully, there will be something you will dig. All lithos are a mere $20.   


ORDER ONLINE!!
    But fear not if you want to get your hands on one but are not planning to attend the show. WE WILL BE OFFERING THE BOOK BY MAIL ORDER AND CAN SHIP ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD. Simply send an e-mail to MARKBROOKSART@MSN.COM with the subject "ARTBOOK" and we will get back to you with ordering instructions and all the details you need.

Thanks for reading and I hope to see everyone at the show!

Best,
-Mark

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First off, I'm on TWITTER so follow my day to day antics over there when you get the chance- [link]

Secondly, there are still a few copies of my artbook left before the new book goes in production so make sure to get your copy while you can because once they are gone, they're gone never to be produced again! It's a hardback full color saddle stitched book with a spot varnished cover. It's produced by Brand Studios and, if you've bought a book produced by these guys, you know how impressive these book look. it's chock full of pin-ups, covers, sketches, and design work from the length of my career so far and includes some familiar work as well as stuff never seen before now. .
Hard cover, 8 3/4x12 3/8 inches, 48 pages, full-color, full bleed, sewn pages. Price: $25.00


ORDER ONLINE!!
    But fear not if you want to get your hands on one but are not planning to attend the show. WE WILL BE OFFERING THE BOOK BY MAIL ORDER AND CAN SHIP ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD. Simply send an e-mail to MARKBROOKSART@MSN.COM with the subject "ARTBOOK" and we will get back to you with ordering instructions and all the details you need.
SAMPLE PAGES:




In addition to the sketchbook I will have convention exclusive lithographs including the art nouveau Darkstalkers piece as well as (and due to popular demand) a new reprint of the X-Men:Family Matters print. Both are oversized at roughly 15"X30" or larger. All signed and numbered and limited to 200 each.



Thanks for reading and I hope to see everyone at the show!

Best,
-Mark

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So I'm going through some photos from the New York Comicon that I took and discovered this among the shots. Never noticed it until now.


Then I'm going through my wallet to pay for a soda at the store and found this among the crumpled bills.


Now today, I'm surfing online and find this.


Very weird indeed.

Drawstick Forums:[link]?

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Every week I get a handful of requests to review or critique an up and coming artist's work either through e-mail, Facebook, Myspace, or Deviantart. I'm usually too strapped for time be able to oblige mostly because it takes a long time to give the work it's proper attention and typing out a critique is far less effective than actually speaking with the artist. Recently, I have come up with a way to give portfolio reviews verbally without having to type a long critique as well as help others that might not be having their portfolio reviewed but could still take in a lot of knowledge by listening in. Each week a portfolio will be chosen from the submissions and reviewed live during our Tuesday podcast on Breaking the Panel on Talkshoe.com- [link].

If you want to have your portfolio reviewed live on the air during an episode of Breaking the Panel please put your submission pages in this thread [link] on the Drawstick Art Forums along with your name, age, and any other information you would like to include. You will need to register for the forum to be able to submit your pages Please keep your submission to no more than 4 sequential pages and 1 cover.

It's very important to realize that your work will be shown via a link and discussed LIVE during the show by me and a panel of other artists. We will be doing a real hard nose critique that will be fair and honest. We will be telling you and the other listeners what you are doing right and, more importantly, what you are doing wrong and how to possibly fix them. You will need to have a tough skin and be able to take a critique if you want to submit. You will also be invited to call in if you would like to participate live but it's not required to be chosen. The episode will also be available on itunes immediately after the show ends. Only one portfolio will be chosen each week since we will be spending a good amount of time discussing the submission and wouldn't have time to do more than one.
  It's also important to mention that I, in no way, consider myself an expert on comic art or critiquing other's work. I am just a guy that has worked in comics for a good while and have learned a lot through my experience. My only hope is that I can pass on a little of what I've learned and help some people in getting where they want to go faster.

Thanks for reading and I look forward to seeing what you guys submit!

-Mark

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After years of absence, I've relaunched the Drawstick art forums and would like to encourage everyone to come by and log in,sign up, or re-register. I've wiped the board clean and given it a fresh coat of paint so I hope you'll come by and have a look around. I'm encouraging an open lounge atmosphere with little intervention by me or the moderators. When we last left off, we had 1800 members and I've invited everyone back so I expect the board will be hopping in no time but, for now, it's a virgin board ripe for the pillaging. This board is for you guys and gals so I hope to see you all there!
Drawstick Art Forums: [link]

best!
-Mark

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I'm trying to think of the best way to word this without coming off as some sort of dickhead because it's something that really pressed my buttons this past weekend and I feel the need to vent. I write this not only for everyone else to read and maybe discuss but in hopes that the person that did the deed in question will read it too and better understand his actions as well as where I'm coming from.
   This past weekend I attended the New York Comicon in Manhattan. The New York fans are some of the best in the world and I always have a really good time meeting them, signing books, doing sketches, or whatever else might come to mind. Along with this I also sell copies of my sketchbooks and lithographs of work I have done to anyone that would like them. I think it's very important to be accessible as an artist both personally as well as the merchandise I sell so I try to keep my prices very reasonable so anyone can afford at least something from my table. For many years now I have had people that would bring all sorts of things for me to sign including comics I've worked on, posters, books, trading cards, and even an action figure or 2. Every once and a while people would bring me pieces of my artwork that they print themselves from the web as well and I would usually sign them but recently stopped in the last year or so, the reason which I will get to in a moment.
  This brings us to the event in question. A person walked up to my table on Saturday and produced 6 prints from his bag, 2 were 8.5"X11" and the other 4 were roughly postcard size. He placed them in front of me and asked if I would sign them. I immediately recognized that these were not anything produced by me or Marvel Comics so I asked if he had printed them himself. He said yes so I politely said that I couldn't sign anything that was produced by someone taking my artwork off the web and making their own prints. His response was that not everyone can afford a print or sketchbook and it became obvious that he was getting angry. Again, I explained that this is my living and my artwork is how I feed myself so people downloading and printing my artwork illegally is only hurting my ability to make a living. He then said I was the only one of the 200 artist he has done this with that has refused to sign. I again apologized and explained that I am not the only one that doesn't sign illegal prints. At this point, I had various other people standing around my table and I was a bit flustered by the whole situation since his anger caught me by surprise. He again verbalized with genuine anger and surprise that he couldn't believe I would refuse to sign his prints and then walked off in a huff. I thought on this all weekend and am finally able to put into words what I wish I was able to articulate to the man at the show.
  So now you're probably asking, "what's the big deal? sign the damn prints!". Well, for many years I did and about 70% of the time the prints would end up on ebay. A lot of the work you see on my page is done just for myself so I can have original lithographs to sell at shows and appearances so I was never paid to produce the work. My pay comes when I take the artwork to shows and people buy the lithographs. If someone prints something from the web, has me sign it, and then sells it on ebay he has now profited off my hard work as well as taken away a small percentage of me making a living. Contrary to popular belief, most comic artists are far from rich and most of us are just trying to scrape a living a get by so protecting our artwork becomes extremely important for us to continue making a living. Of course, I'm not saying that this person was definitely going to take the prints to ebay and sell them but I can't take that risk and even if he didn't intend to sell them, my feelings on the subject still stands.
  So, to that gentleman who asked me to sign your prints I ask him this- If you illegally downloaded a musician's latest CD, burned it to a disk and took it to an event where that musician is signing autographs would you ask him to sign your pirated disk? How about asking an actor to sign your illegally downloaded movie or an author to sign your illegally downloaded manuscript from his latest book? Unless you are completely amoral or vacant of any sort of tact I would guess your answer would be an emphatic "NO". So why would you think it would be any different from a visual artist? I, like any other art, really appreciate anyone enjoying my work. After all, it's the reason I got into comics in the first place but equally as important is my ability to feed myself and my family and put a roof over our heads. Will me signing your illegal prints cause my house to go into foreclosure? Probably not but there has to be a line drawn somewhere and I think I was more than kind to this person in explaining this and feel he had absolutely zero right to get angry.
    I can only hope that he didn't realize the full consequences of his actions or how it effects me and any other artist he does this to. As always, these are only my opinions and I welcome anyone who disagrees. Perhaps I am being too harsh or am missing something so I am open to other ideas. In the end I hope the person I encountered on Saturday in New York will read this and have a better idea of where I'm coming from and give his actions a little more thought.

ADDENDUM: We will be discussing this very subject tonight as well as comic book convention etiquette tonight on the podcast "Breaking the Panel". Go to the following link and log in or register to listen in or call in with your questions or comments!: [link]

Thanks for reading!
-Mark

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Just a quick journal to thank an amazing Deviant that has really snazzed up my page by creating a really cool custom CSS layout for my journal entries! KyleRobinsonCustoms is a huge asset to DA for all the support he provides everyone as well as his talent for creating custom action figures(something near and dear to my heart). Here's a few samples of his work and I'd really appreciate it if you went over to his page and had a look around. I promise you won't be dissapointed!







Thanks for reading!
-Mark

All the people I think you should check out!

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Wow, this is so unexpected! I've always dreamed the day would come but I never knew it would be such a huge surprise. I want to thank my Mother and Father as well as my wife and son for giving me the inspiration to always achieve what I set out to do. My agent Sal Bernstein, my accountant Harvey Lemonjello, and my stylist the Amazing Rosha- I couldn't have done it without you guys! Ow, I know I'm forgetting some people..The fine folks at Marvel Comics for all the opportunities, the guys at Strathmore for all the fine paper and pencils and the peeps that make my color so vibrant- I'm looking at you Adobe! Finally, a big thanks to Jesus for whom with all things are possible!

  Okay, all jokes aside, I really appreciate being given this honor and, while I have no idea who nominated me or why I was chosen, it always feels good to be recognized by your peers and I assure you I don't take this lightly. Can't say that I'm all that clear on exactly what the honor means other than that cool little comma next to your name but still very cool none the less. Thanks to all the guys that have commented on my main page and I promise to keep trying to make as much semi-kickass artwork as I possibly can. Can't promise I will always succeed but the effort is the most important part anyway, right?

Thanks again!
-Mark

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