An Artistic Monday with Dan Nokes

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Today I am thrilled to interview Dan Nokes, illustrator extraorinaire.  I got to talk with him over the past week and learned not only is he a great artist, but a really great guy!



Enjoy the interview:



Q.  I know you went to school for graphic arts at the College of Southern Maryland, but were you always into art?A: I have always considered myself a storyteller first and foremost.  I have drawn since I could remember mainly as an outlet for the ideas, stories, creatures, and characters I have had simmering around in my head.Q.  How did you get into the field?  Can you talk a little about your journey?A: I have been a comic creator on an amateur level since middle school.  There was always been a need to get into doing projects for Marvel or DC or any big company that would have me.  I sent in submissions to quite a few companies but it took a good 10 years just to the level of competency where I was receiving actual rejection letters.  Then I went to SPX in the late 90's as an attendee.  I sat in on a symposium being given by Jeff Smith who was doing a 1 on 1 Q and A with Will Eisner.  The man was 83 years old at the time and gave the most concise and thought provoking analysis of sequential art that I have witnessed to date.  From that point, I made it clear that I was going to go make and publish my own comics.Q.  Do you think school helped your craft, or did art come naturally for you?A: Honestly I never finished college, although the one art professor there was one of the few persons who I would say had a positive influence on me.  I grew up in the 80's and 90's.  This I would say is the last great era of when high school and college level art educators did not see sequential art or fantasy illustration as a CAREER PATH or A LEGITIMATE ART FORM.  As a result my drawings were kind of frowned on by most of my teachers.  Now with Hollywood, pop culture, and video gaming industries being as profitable as they are, its gained a level of acceptance in "polite circles".Q.  I have seen some of your work online, can you discuss the project you are working on?A: I'm currently working on two projects: The first is fully my own called ADAM AND EVE: BIZARRE LOVE TRIANGLE IN THE ZOMBIE APOCALYPSE.  Basically its about a guy named Adam who lives in a Bunker underneath Andrew's Air Force Base 7 years after an undead outbreak.  His only companions are his genetically enhance laboratory dog, the bunker's sentient super computer, and his Zombified ex-girlfriend.  He has avoided complete insanity, by painting this semi denial of a rose colored existence in routine and outlook.  It works fine for him until he checks e-mail (Part of his routine, and for some reason, even in the apocalypse people still get spam mail?!) and discovers a plea from a girl 60 miles away called Eve.  They start an online relationship and as that unfolds his world he made for himself is falling apart.  He decides to leave the bunker and look for his lady love.  He packs up his gear and dog, downloads the computer into a segway and leaves a dear john video for the zombie ex, and leaves the bunker.  The kicker is that as he opens the door to the outside world in search of his new life, he accidentally opens all the door and is followed unknowingly behind by the undead Miss Zombie.My other project is as an illustrator for a children's book by Nick Davis called UNCONDITIONAL: A TEDDY BEAR'S TALE.  This is about a Teddy Bear named Tristan who for years has been the protector of his owner, against the forces of under the bed, in the closet, and the dark places that occupy a boy's bedroom and night time slumber.  The story opens up on Tristan's last night on the job.  His boy is coming to an age where he no longer believes in childhood fantasy or nightmare.  So Tristan is to be retired to the attic.  While it uses fantasy and nursery rhyme and children's story elements.  At its heart it's a story of coming to the end of one's career and facing an end and how one deals with such a thing coming to pass.Q.  Has anyone or anything inspired you?A: Numerous!  Science Fiction, Fantasy, Science Fact, The art and craft of storytelling and those who ply it well.Q.  Do you work in any other field, and if so, what do you do?For the last 10 years I have been a "jack of all trades" at my one man publishing company putting out such books as The Reptile and Mister Amazing (2002), The Paranormals (2003-2008), The Pistoleers (2008-2010) and Adam and Eve: Bizarre Love Triangle in the Zombie Apocalypse.Q.  Who are your personal favorite artists? A: Walt Simonson, John Byrne, Jim Lee, Bill Sienkiewicz, Vincent Van Gough, Dave McKean, Jack Kirby, Frida Kahlo, Diego Rivera, Salvador Dali, John Romita Jr., and others too long to list!Q.  Are you involved in any other art (writing, music etc.) ?  A: Again my art is always closely tied to my love of storytelling.  Writing is just a beloved craft to me as drawing and art.Q.  Times are tough, and our economy forces many schools to tighten their belts.  Usually the first programs to go are the arts, what do you think of this, and how do you think this will affect us in the future?A:  Math, engineering, and sciences are important and the educational system in this country has been a mess to begin with. But the arts, music, and related fields all develop such important attributes such as ABSTRACT AND CREATIVE THINKING, and INDIVIDUAL EXPRESSION that lead to innovation and ingenuity that fueled the economic, inventive, and industrious minds of the past.  Without those programs kids grow up with the what, and how of forging a future, but not the why.Q.  Is there any part of your work as an artist that you find challenging, or that you do not like?A: From a craft perspective, I always find backgrounds, vehicles and everyday objects challenging.  Most of us types don't focus on those type of things where were young and as a result have a greater difficulty trying to master those type of things when formally learning the craft as a career avenue.  Also hands are a big hang-up for me.  They are the most flexible part of the human body.  And therefore literally have hundreds of different positioning and angles.  Ive gotten decent, but even now they still tend to trip me up!  Q.  Can you tell us about any projects you have done in the past?A: Reptile and Mister Amazing was my first project in 2002.  It was a super-hero graphic novel about a geriatric ex super hero teaming up with a Dinosapien janitor to take on an omnipotent game show host.  I then went on to do a 12 issue series called The Paranormals.  It was basically a feeble minded robot, chain smoking vampire, teenage witch, alcoholic werewolf, and angry Scottish dwarf trying to save existence from negation.  I then did a western story from the perspective of American Indians, ex-slaves, and immigrants called The Pistoleers. Q.  Any projects in the works? A: After I wrap up Adam and Eve and Unconditional, I have two projects in the works.  They will be my first real foray into the world of webcomics.Q.  In a perfect world, what would be your five-year plan as an artist?A: Art is (And this is going to sound cheesy.) is all about self discovery.  An artist can learn, grow, and output, a massive body of work in a short period of time, or take years or even decades to get to some sort of point where they have find their "EUREKA" moment.  There really is no five year plan.  I can only offer the advice of that without passion for what you do, its just another day gig.  Q.  Some say that being an artist is lonely work, do you agree?A: It is lonely to be sure.  For someone who is supposed to reflect a mirror of the world at large you spend an infinite amount of time in such a droll small corner of it to apply your trade!  Q.  Do you have any advice for someone who is just starting out or thinking of becoming an artist (illustrator, graphic artist etc.)?A: Besides the passion bit: You are never done learning.  This is a lifelong educational experience.  Even more so now that we are living in an era that for the first time in the history or artistic expression the tools themselves are changing.  The computer is the greatest game changer to art since pigment.  Q.  If you could do it all over again—would you do anything differently?A: Everybody does come to that question at some point.  But I am just starting to have success now.  If maybe I had done things differently.  Maybe I would have been at a point where I would be wealthier and more successful today.  But I see others who are at that point who take that success for granted.  Im sort of glad that I took the untraditional route and learned things for myself.  I know things because I learned them, observed them, and came to conclusions on my own, and not because it was part of some plan, or design or that's what was considered a societal norm.  At the end I am me because of the decisions I made, good or bad.  And as far as I know, me is not entirely too bad??Dan, thank you so much!!!  It has been terrific learning about your journey, and getting and artistic view of the indie world.  Looking forward to seeing more of your work.  :)