If you know anything about comics, then you know David Lloyd, if only for his masterwork, “V for Vendetta.” David’s been in the comics industry since the mid-1970s, and can truly be said to be a pioneer in the industry. He worked with the great Alan Moore doing various comics about Dr. Who and Star Wars, but it was their 1981 collaboration on “V” that would launch them both into the stratosphere. It was David’s idea for the look of the character, the stark film-noir feel of the art, the lack of thought bubbles and sound effects…all cutting edge and revolutionary visual motifs. His career goes far beyond “V” of course, and he continues to work his magic today with recent projects like “Kickback,” a hard-boiled detective graphic novel.
Many thanks to Darren Rolfe of “The Mighty Monocle.” He’s a big supporter of the show and a good friend, and being the intensely polite Englishman that he is, he keeps his eyes open for me with articles and interview subjects. He has met David Lloyd at his local cartoonist group and found he was coming to San Diego Comic Con this year. David and I were unable to hook up at the Con, but that turned out to be fortuitous, because I would’ve only had him for 5-10 minutes. Here, we sit down at a local bar and share a couple of Guinness-like local brews and talk comics for over an hour. It was truly one of the best art related experiences in my life, and David couldn’t have been nicer or more giving with his time and words. Please go read “The Mighty Monocle” because not only is it brilliant, it’s done by a true gentleman.
Another great interview! Thanks for posting.
Well, first off I think you should record all of your shows at a bar. OK, maybe that wouldn’t be fair to the non-drinkers, but the background noise wasn’t distracting and very atmospheric.
What an amazing artist. I knew nothing about David Lloyd except that his artwork was beautiful. It goes to show that if you have a desire for education, you will receive it whether you go to art school or not. All of the books and materials are out there.
I was especially interested in what he said about his advertising work, because I’ve been observing the same thing. I’ve spent the last eight years making the most boring things look as exciting as possible (I have over 20 versions I regularly use of the word “plus”). You really are selling the story. I have more thoughts on that, but in a nutshell, work that draws the eye and brings a reader in is effective selling. Work that looks similar to the standard “look” nowadays may be technically remarkable, but unremarkable as a unique piece of work. That’s why readers can overlook a well-rendered strip and go straight for the stick drawing with good writing.
I love how you talked about advertising and how it defined a culture (and the references to Mad Men). A lot of people contend that advertising was the great art to emerge from the 20th century. They may be right. It’s probably what we’ll be remembered for.
And I finally understood what I love about his art so much. He’s right, there is no need for the obvious sound effects. Your mind, presented with the visual of a helicopter, should be sufficient for filling in that atmosphere, just like a radio show can present sound effects and rely on your mind to fill in the visuals. Great stuff.
Just listening to him reinforces drawing for fun. Finally, I know somebody out there who still likes crayons (actually, I didn’t like them until my 20s). I think his experience shows that it’s possible to do what you like without resorting to using your skills for a career you don’t really like. I used to have regrets about the choices I’ve made, but I am really happy with work that’s just mine and not the product of a corporate team.
What a great interview. Thanks again to Darren.
Man, how cool would it be to record all my podcasts at a bar! Would end up being expensive and hard on my liver, but still. Thanks for the comments…I’m glad that Stephen was moved by the interview like I was. I really got a lot out of this one. Maybe it was extra special because I was sitting right by him doing it live, but I just really loved his approach to things. And I agree that the advertising art thing is a vastly underrated realm of Art. If you really look at those paintings from the 30s, 40s, 50s, 60s and 70s, there’s some amazing stuff going on. And what a training ground for artists…so many of us focus on the “pin up shot” of Superman or Spider-Man, and we forget that we’ll be called on to do fire hydrants, bar-b-ques, cars, and buildings.
And yes, I loved the idea of “no sound effects” and how succinctly he put it. I mean, do we really need to see “whuppa whuppa” when a helicopter comes by? (When he said that, I immediately thought of comics where guys are firing machine guns that go “buddah-buddah-buddah.”) And the “drawing for fun” thing really resonated with me. I told him that after the interview that he made me want to draw again, and he reiterated that people who can draw anything have been given a gift, and you should at least use it yourself and your own growth. I’ve stopped drawing pretty much at all, mostly because I wasn’t going to make a living at it, but I have to get back into it for ME. Drawing with my daughters has really reignited the creative fire and the sheer joy of just doing it.