Wednesday, October 29, 2008

Greg Ruth Interview, over there

I think Greg Ruth is the only artist I ever bought more than one drawing from. In fact, whenever I here his name, I think of standing in front of his portfolios at MoCCA Art Fest with Dan Dos Santos and Greg Manchess, each of us saying, "I want this one...no, that one,...no wait...."

You can see the attraction - bold brush strokes, mysterious shadows, dripping mood and emotion. He creates dark worlds that are somehow comforting in their solemnity.

It also turns out that he's incredibly articulate. Go over to Tor.com and read the full interview.

What was the hardest part about establishing yourself in the field?
...just trusting my own vision for the kind of comics I want to do, and believing in myself enough to go forward with it is an ongoing task. It really is an act of hubris to stand up above the throngs and state that you know what’s best and are worth investing in and taking a chance on. I’m not much good at self-promotion, so this kind of thing has been tough to grapple with. But you gotta do it. You gotta risk seeming like a bloviating ass, or an overly earnest goofball in this business if you expect the gatekeepers to take notice. Find your weak points and work ’em until they’re strong.
Read the full interview on Tor.com. He talks about his process, how he established himself, and a bit about the recent movie announcement for Freaks of the Heartland.

10 comments:

Corina St. Martin said...

It's a stellar interview and I really appreciated how well he articulated the feelings of an illustrator just starting out. Lot's of great advice. Thanks for interviewing this brilliant artist.

Cheers,

Corina

ces said...

Now that was an interview! Good questions - even some different ones! And very interesting answers.

Thanks!

Lana Gramlich said...

Cool painting. It reminds me of a sunset photo I took not long ago.

bill said...

such a beautiful, transparent process. man he can draw.

Anonymous said...

Irene, if you have this piece, I think it would look better out here, rather then hanging in a dark NY apartment. hint, hint

Irene Gallo said...

Hi mom!

I _wish_. It's the one that got away...But at least it went to Dan so its close by.

Irene Gallo said...

Lana - that's awesome!

bill - "transparent process" is a great term. I'm stealing that.

bill said...

irene, that's ok. i'm a teacher i steal all of my great terms.

Anonymous said...

This piece of art is incredible. Going to check out the interview now.

Anonymous said...

Thanks for posting this, Irene!