Betty is a young, beautiful woman. A mod scenester in the late 60′s. She is murdered by her husband. She returns, as a ghost, in the present day to protect her grand daughter.

Since character design is such a strong part of my vision for Inkubator Story Lab, I chose to design Betty’s character on a life-sized canvas, rather than a sketchbook page. I immersed myself in imagery and reference material specific to the era and to what I felt would be her character.

Reference photos with index card-sized thumbnail sketches for the canvas. The bottom left sketch is the one I chose.

Working large forces me to really get to know Betty as I find her form. I have to stand, crouch, sit and move side to side to work on a canvas this large. I become one with the process and all of the thoughts I have about Betty in my subconscious start to spill out and I know which lines are true and which are untrue and which gestures ring with authenticity and which feel forced.

The following photos are a step-by-step process of the first phase of this character design. The canvas is 3′ wide x 5′ tall. The materials are multi-colored pastels and acrylic paint.

First I roughed in the rib cage and very basic skeleton with a sepia pastel.

I chose to add the flat background color to further create a distinction between the positive and negative space. Since the final composition will be a detailed figure against a plain background, I wanted to ensure a very strong composition.

Here I honed in on the true form. I reinforced the most genuine construction lines and smudged the pastel to fill out the form. I also added the shovel and trowel and the hair to fully form the silhouette (I usually avoid superficial details this early in the process).

With the teal background filled in, I can step back and squint and start to see the drawing purely as abstract shapes. If necessary I can create a more harmonious structural composition before I commit to details.

It may seem counter-intuitive to paint over all of my construction lines. But I am confident that I know where to replace them. They served their purpose in creating a truthful structure. Painting a base coat on the figure will allow me to revise the form with more pastel on top before adding clothing.

The final image is a very simple base composition to start the next steps. From here I will slightly revise the figure, add clothing and accessories and some superficial details with different colored pastels.

Self-portrait of the artist trying to remember what item he is forgetting before he leaves the apartment.

On March 8, 2011 I moved to Seattle, Washington. After six weeks of sleeping on the couch at the palatial Harvey Hill Estate, enjoying the exceptional hospitality of my hosts,  I begrudgingly moved to a small studio apartment one block down the street (heretofore known as Harvey Hill Bungalow).

I signed a lease, bought some furniture from Goodwill and within days I was living gloriously alone for the first time since 2002. Then I was hit by the sudden concrete realization that this is not a vacation, that I did indeed ship all of my belongings across the country to start a new adventure. All of the failed attempts at striking out on my own filled my vision, each new beginning of the past now a stinging reminder of what might’ve been. Will this time be different? I think so. It already feels more right, more healthy and easier than any previous attempt I’ve made at hitting the reset button.

I wanted to celebrate this invigorating moment in my life. So I invited two of my newest associates and one of my oldest friends for a dinner party.

Okay, I set the camera on my phone to go off in ten seconds. Look like you're having fun!

Dinner was fresh cod, asparagus and carrots, all purchased at Pike Place Market an hour before. We drank Apex Chardonnay and Maryhill Sauvignon Blanc. Dessert was berries and fresh whipped cream.

I am humbled to be welcomed by so many interesting, brilliant and wonderful people in the last two months. Those that went out of their way to make this a great experience are too numerous to name.  The one person though, that I couldn’t pull this off without, as usual, is Brandon. Thanks buddy.

Reference sketches, for the new autobiographical comic book, from photos taken in 2004.

After settling in, I began a new project. It is the story of my life in Boston from 2003 – 2007. Told in comic book form, it will document my struggle to succeed as an artist, become a man and make sense of the women I fell in love with. Autobiography is a tricky genre, but one I enjoy.

My flirtation with autobiography goes back at least ten years. I never had the confidence or courage to commit to a project of this nature. I am insecure about the potential misconception that this will just be a vanity piece, an exercise in ego, a mere excuse to obsess about myself. I try to remind myself of the great work done in both self-portraiture and autobiography by many of the artists and writers that inspire me (Egon Schiele, Kathe Kollwicz, Eddie Campbell, etc). It is only in the last few months that I realized why I feel so compelled to tell these stories and how I can eradicate this insecurity.

I intend to focus on a finite period of time, book-ended nicely by my arrival in and departure from the city of Boston. The goal of the story is not a chronological account of my life, it is an objective exploration of the highs and lows and the adventures that pushed my limits professionally, personally and artistically. The natural end of this story was more than four years ago. For the first time in my life I feel a true sense of perspective when looking back on my past. When I first left Boston in 2007 feels like an eternity ago. Those adventures, those life lessons, they almost feel like they happened to someone else. I have very few ties to that period; no girlfriends, no clients, few close friends, no website or professional affiliations, etc. I am free mentally, emotionally and geographically to explore every aspect of that era of my life.

There are universal lessons and experiences in my past and they are in the form of stories of consequence, of cause and effect, of reckless adventure, of kissing pretty girls and living your dreams, of dancing and screaming and fearing nothing, of believing in yourself so deeply that you expect the world will surrender itself to you and still coming up short, over and over and over again.

Inkubator Story Lab is about finding, cultivating and ultimately telling the stories that remind us why we are alive, that show us the best of ourselves and give us the strength and courage to move forward. It is fitting that the first major story I tell through Inkubator should be my own.

Every time I see you it's like hearing Bad Brains for the first time.

The Bad Brains were a jazz fusion band from Washington DC that evolved into one of the most intense, vital and original hardcore punk bands of the early eighties. There was nothing like them before and nothing like them since. They were four black men taking the punk sound into crazy, brilliant new territory. I was twenty years old when I heard them for the first time. It was like seeing a fucking Martian. I listened to that album hundreds of times over the years, deciphering lyrics, letting the wall of noise gradually dissipate into distinct guitar, drum and bass lines. In my head, I could eventually hear the songs in slow motion, how they would sound if they were stretched out to three or four minutes, not played at hyper speed. I love that album… but part of me always misses that feeling I had when I listened to it for the first time: I had just discovered something unique, genuine and full of crazy life…

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I’m taking a break from working on the wrestling themed pin-ups. I need to clear my head a little and come back at them with fresh eyes. I bought myself a sketchbook for Christmas. I had not owned a sketchbook for the last two years. I used to fill two sketchbooks a year, just jotting down observations, drawing people I saw and most importantly, remembering moments and people in my life that seemed to matter. I’m immersing myself in those old sketchbooks and journals right now… and also creating new ones.

I had a few glasses of wine last night at the Old Spot in Salem with one of my all-time favorite human beings. This is a sketch of that. Hope ya dig it.

Discovered on an exploratory excursion into the jungles of Borneo, Suzie Savage, the daughter of the tigers, is a threat to lady wrestlers everywhere. She speaks no English and had to be trained in the manners of polite society by her handler, the mysterious Masked Professor. Like the striped predators in her native jungle, she is both a patient and ferocious hunter.

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Check out Suzie Savage in the 2011 Pin-Up Calendar. Pre-sale deals only last until Friday so get ‘em while they last.

If just five people each day use the buttons below to share this link on their Facebook page it will help me tremendously to get enough eyes on this website to sell the calendar. I appreciate all of your help and support!

John Quinlan is the only model who posed for the calendar that was also a legit pro wrestler. From 1999 to 2002 he wrestled for various promotions throughout the Northeast alongside such legends as King Kong Bundy, Tito Santana, Honky Tonk Man, “Superfly” Jimmy Snuka and his mentor Brutus “The Barber” Beefcake.

While working together on the 2011 Pro Wrestling Pin-Up Calendar & Almanac of Facts I had a chance to ask John some questions about his pro wrestling career. Here is part one of that interview:

What inspired you to become a pro wrestler?

I was always training and lifting weights with all my friends. We entered bodybuilding shows together and at that time I had the honor of having my image used in numerous calendars and fitness catalogs. Back then I had hair and a goatee beard and everybody kept telling me I looked just like this pro wrestler named Buff Bagwell. So I saw the guy on TV and saw a few similarities. My friends thought I should act on it and enroll in Killer Kowalski’s Pro Wrestling School.

What was your experience at Killler Kowalski’s Pro Wrestling school like? What was Kowalski like?

Killer Kowalski’s Pro Wrestling School was an incredible experience. I loved the interaction and sense of family I had with all the guys that were training there. There is so much history involved when one hears the name Killer Kowalski. He was the greatest villain the pro wrestling world has ever known and he paved the way for the heels of today. To be able to say I am an alumni of Killer’s school with some of the other big names that graduated from there (including Triple H, Chyna, Big Jon Studd and Perry Saturn) is an honor I will always cherish! Walter “Killer” Kowalski was one of the greatest human beings I have ever known. He was very kind and gentle and really trained you as a pro wrestler on an individual basis rather than just a number. Now that he has passed on I consider myself privileged to be trained by him and have him in my life.

Tell me about your debut match, how did you feel going into it? What do you remember about it?

My debut match was in November of 1999. I went to the match in New Hampshire with Killer Kowalski, Aaron “The Idol” Stevens and Jerry Blue. I wrestled in a 3-way Tag Team match with Stevens and another wrestler named Tre “The Smooth Operatin’ Gangsta”. I remember before going out there Kowalski sitting in the corner and calling me over to him. He looked at me and said, “You look good John, you look good”. I was honored that one of pro wrestling’s greatest said that to me. I was already looking forward to gettting out there and performing but after that I was pumped to go! I wrestler under the promoter assigned name John Bagwell, younger cousin of Buff Bagwell. The crowd loved it and we won the match. I signed some autographs and took some photos with the kids that were there. Very cool all in all.

Ed Leslie aka Brutus "the Barber" Beefcake and John Quinlan ham it up for a photo (2001)

How did you come to train with Brutus “The Barber” Beefcake? What was working/travelling with him like?

I met Ed Leslie aka Brutus “The Barber” Beefcake through his wife. My best friend Peter was friends with his wife Barbara and she introduced me to Big Ed. Ed was one of the coolest guys I have ever known. In 2001 we trained everyday together in the gym. Those were some great workouts man! Traveling with him was equally special. I got to know and become close friends not only with WWE legend Brutus “The Barber” Beefcake but Ed Leslie one of the world’s greatest dads! He was such a great father to his daughter Alana. That is the side of Big Ed that not too many people get a chance to see. I will be forever grateful to Ed for watching over me and taking care of me not only in the matches where we wrestled each other but in the matches where I wrestled against others.

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Part two of the interview will be up tomorrow. Until then, please check out the calendar page as it is now officially for sale! Every calendar sold means more time for me to create comics in 2011! Thanks for helping to spread the word via the Facebook and Twitter share buttons, I truly appreciate it.

Lady Rumble was just a simple housewife and home maker who sometimes day-dreamed of a life of travel and adventure. She was drifting through life in a blur, unable to realize her true vision of herself. But then… World War II, that great shifter of the paradigm, struck the innocence of a nation. Brave men shipped off to war, brave women took their places, ensuring a consistent flow of productivity. On her way to the factory, Lady was stopped by a crotchety old promoter and asked to try out as a girl wrestler. Flattered, frightened, apprehensive and enthusiastic, she stayed up all night stitching together a costume.

Lady Rumble hit the ring like a stick of sexy dynamite and the rest, as they say, is for the history books…

Megg poses as Fuego pelo Diablo (which, if Google Translate is not lying to me, means Fire Haired Demon). Fuego pelo Diablo is inspired by a blend of modern and classic luchadore costume styles.  I tried to strike a balance between the simple clean lines of the legendary El Santo and the energetic detail of the more frenzied Juventud Guerrera (a personal favorite, especially before he lost his mask to Chris Jericho)… and then I tried to make it sexy.

There isn’t much information in my research material about female luchadores, so I may be completely off in putting together a back story for this character. But, it was very important to represent Mexico in the calendar in some way.

Fuego pelo Diablo was an American woman, an expatriate drifting aimlessly through the sands of Mexico when she was descended upon by a band of young thugs. She was beaten, mugged, about to lose her virtue when she was rescued by Rey Destino a famous local technico (a good guy Mexican wrestler). He nursed her back to health and — in awe of her fighting spirit — trained her in the art of lucha libre. Fuego pelo Diablo, as tough and dedicated as she was, could not win over the Mexican fans who would not cheer her against native women. When her trainer (and lover) distanced himself from her professionally, it was the last betrayal she could accept. She turned rudo (a bad guy Mexican wrestler) and sided with her lover’s nemesis, the feared El Pollo Volondo.

Rob Costarelli poses as Power Train. Power Train is inspired by a couple of my childhood favorites: Road Warrior Hawk, Road Warrior Animal, The Ultimate Warrior and just a little bit of Big Van Vader. Rob is an imposing figure in a small living room (aka the studio at Inkubator Headquarters International). When he starts talking to you he’s friendly as hell, but until then you really get a sense of what intensity, determination and drive can produce in a human being. In the eighties, pro wrestlers truly became larger than life. It was the decade of bigger, stronger and faster. I knew that unless I found someone like Rob, I couldn’t represent these characters properly in the calendar.

Power Train was a force. He was never a gifted wrestler, not much of a talker and may not have been super agile, but he brought raw, brutal strength and intensity to the ring. A champion could not truly be a champion until he proved himself against Power Train. Power Train is the Goliath by which any David must be measured to win the hearts of his audience. But, like any great heel, he barks at us and curses us out, but he magnetizes us. We cheer for the Davids to overcome the tremendous size difference and get the three-count, but sometimes, deep down, we want Power Train to smash them.

But, like I said, Rob’s a good guy and it’s all just make believe (which is what makes it fun in the first place). Here is a photo of him from a recent competition to give you an idea of what my source material was for this drawing:

Check out Rob’s fitness and lifting blog.

Today is Thanksgiving. For breakfast, I had a plate of pot stickers with a teriyaki & soy sauce mix and a bottle of Rolling Rock. This is my fifth or sixth straight morning of working from one day into the next. There is much to be thankful for. The last time I was as productive as I am right now was ten years ago; art school. Working on this calendar has taken over my life. This project was entirely self-conceived and self-motivated and now that the end is in sight, I realize just how good of a year it’s been for me creatively and honestly, I can’t wait to finish this project so I can just fucking crush 2011.

After conferring with my elite team of web engineers it has been decided that the 2011 Pro Wrestling Pin-Up Calendar and Almanac of Facts will be available for pre-sale from Monday, Nov. 29th until Wednesday, Dec. 8th. Stay tuned for updates.

Happy Thanksgiving!

It was a super productive forty-eight hours here at Inkubator Headquarters International. Model number ten, Annaliese, did her session yesterday and model number eleven, Robert, did his session just an hour ago. Both drawings came out solid. Of all the sessions so far, I was most excited to draw these two themes, so I’m psyched they came out good.

Annaliese and I used to work together. She has the distinction of being the only person who asked me to be in the calendar.  I finally scheduled her for a session yesterday. We were aiming for a Betty Page “jungle girl” theme. This was her first ever experience posing for a drawing, how’d she do?

Robert is a professional figure drawing model, which I used sparingly for this project since I usually don’t like the vibe I get from figure models. But, he was excellent, had a great form, understood how to use his body and really brought a lot of mood and style to a very difficult pose. Plus, he had a good personality, which is a nice bonus.  I modeled his character after Martin “Farmer” Burns, a turn-of-the-century catch wrestler, strong man and carnival performer best known for his pioneering mail-order exercise course Lessons in Wrestling and Physical Culture and for being the trainer of Frank Gotch, arguably one of the greatest wrestlers to ever walk the earth.

Feedback is always appreciated,  remember, you can use your Facebook login to comment on this blog.

Also, if you’re interested in helping me to promote the calendar online (and make some money doing it) please check out the Affiliate Program page.

As part of the research for my graphic novel I started hiring models to pose for me. It is these drawing sessions which later evolved into the 2011 Pro Wrestling Pin-Up Calendar and Almanac of Facts. I hired a total of twelve models (one for each month) and did ten gesture drawings of each model. So, at the end of this project I completed one-hundred and twenty gesture drawings. The images in this gallery represent some of the best from that group (don’t worry, I promise to do a “Worst of…” soon, just to keep it honest).

Gesture drawing is about energy: finding the energy in the model and transferring the energy through the charcoal, into the drawing. It’s also about trying to inhabit the form of the model, not just draw it. You never want to reproduce when you draw, what you really want to do is recreate. Learn the forms, feel their movement, let this transfer through you into the page. It’s not nearly as esoteric as it sounds. It’s mostly a manner of being focused, relaxed and right-minded in your actions. The subconscious mind has a far greater understanding of what you are trying to do than does the rational mind. With sensitivity and practice it is very easy to allow your hand to be controlled by the subconscious, to be loose and free (and simultaneously focused).

At the beginning of this project I tried doing my gesture drawings very small, with an ink pen. But Brian said they looked too tight and lacked energy. So, I did something I hadn’t done in over ten years (and hoped to never have to do again). I bought an easel, a pad of newsprint and charcoal. It took me two or three sessions before I started to feel comfortable with gesture drawing again, but the positive effect it had on my overall drawing was too obvious to discount. Working large also allowed me to free myself from my rational mind as I could make broad, sweeping gestures across the page and my hand became a tool of my subconscious.

Major thanks go to all of the models who posed for me. As well as my friend Brian who really helped me tremendously with his honest criticism of my drawings. There is nothing more valuable than a friend who has the guts to tell you when you suck. Also, big thanks to my friend Nick who not only helped with criticism, but scanned all of these over-sized drawings for me! So, help me thank him by checking out his beautiful animations.