Over the past several years, Jason Edmiston has created some of the most breathtaking works of art, most of which have had a decidedly horror and pop culture tone. From super heroes and villains to classic Universal monsters and modern boogeymen, Edmiston has created some truly unique and mesmerizing work. Recently, Edmiston agreed to speak with The Blood Sprayer to discuss his past, present and future.

The Blood Sprayer: First let me thank you for taking the time for this interview. I’m a really big fan of your work and am honored to be chatting with you.

Jason Edmiston:Thanks for this opportunity, and the compliment.

B.S.: Your work is obviously very pop culture oriented. Can you talk about how your early life was influenced in this way?

J.E.: Lots of TV, toys, comic books and no ability for sports. I’m what I like to call an “indoor cat”. I had lots of friends, but loved to spend time by myself as well, drawing and making art whenever I could. I would draw whatever cartoon characters, or movie stars or other pop culture icons that I was into at the time, and would be completely happy. I hated being bored, and nothing filled the time like an art project.

B.S.: Was art something you always wanted to do? What was your early training?

J.E.: I never wanted to do anything else. I can remember being about six years old, and knowing that I was going to be an artist for a living, and that never changed. I took art every year in public school, up through high school, and went to art camp many summers throughout my childhood. I went on to study at the Ontario College of Art (now known as OCAD) for four years.

B.S.:You’ve done a lot of advertisement work that still carries a heavy pop influence. Do you think pop icons, more specifically horror icons, help sell a product? is this something companies ask for?

J.E.: I think anything that a lot of people can relate to helps sell products. Companies often ask for specific genres of entertainment that are well known to the public from movies, books, music, etc. I’ve painted countless references to Star Wars, pulp novels, super heroes, etc, because everybody knows what to feel when they see certain pop culture characters , especially horror icons, and they have become shorthand for certain ideas. Dracula can be a metaphor for power, Frankenstein’s monster can suggest creation, and the Mummy can evoke feelings of mystery.

B.S.: One of your newest ventures has been the publication of your book Stages: The Art and Process of Jason Edmiston. From What I’ve seen of it so far, it’s an absolutely stunning look at your process for some of your most famous pieces. How did the book come about?

J.E.: I’ve been wanting to do a book for some time, and since I’ve been exhibiting more and more at comic conventions (where I sell prints and originals). I thought it would be a good opportunity to see if there was any interest in a technical, behind the scenes book that I could sell at these shows, as well as on my Etsy store. I designed and published this book myself, and made it for people that like my work, but might not want to hang one of my prints. Other artists might also find it interesting to see how I conceptualize, or how my paintings are developed. If this one does well, I hope to add another volume of new pieces, with more photos of every stage of the painting process.

B.S.:Although I encourage everyone to pick up a copy of the book, can you give us a taste of what your process is like for a new project?

J.E.: Sure. Concept begins by having an assignment given to me by a client, or having something swirling around in my brain for a while, if it’s a personal piece. I usually try to envision a “hook” in my mind before I start sketching anything. This is the thing that makes piece interesting. I usually like to have a picture of the finished piece in my mind first, and the drawing basically tries to turn it into something tangible on paper. I must admit I don’t enjoy sketching for sketching’s sake (although I love watching other artist’s rough stages), and prefer that a drawing develops into a fully realized piece eventually. If art was a meal, I’d skip the salad, and dig right into the steak.
After I’ve gotten a small conceptual sketch done to my (or my client’s) satisfaction, with all of the compositional elements in place, I blow the drawing up to final painting size, and tighten it up. I use drafting velum over my rough sketch, and refine the lines, adding details and shadows. The final pencil linear will have all of the elements in place, with light and shadow fully developed. This drawing is then scanned into the computer, and any minor issues are addressed. If for example, a head is 5% too big, I can easily shrink it down without a lot of redrawing. I then print out the full size art on multiple pieces of paper, and tape them back together and place it over top of the gessoed paper (or wood panel in some cases). Using graphite paper, I trace the drawing onto the painting surface. This way I avoid damaging the original pencil drawing.
With the pencil lines transferred, I cover the entire surface with a thin coat of raw umber. This tints the board to calm down the bright white of the gesso, giving the whole painting a cohesive tone, but doesn’t eliminate my line work. For most of my paintings, I then build up a raw umber underpainting of full values. This stage establishes all of the lights and darks, and allows me to adjust the focus of the painting. Next comes the color stage. Working on the background first, and with a mix of wet-on-wet and drybrush techniques, I paint my mid values, then go back and forth, from dark to light, until the full value range has been developed. I then move forward in the picture plane, employing the same method to the midgound, and finally in the foreground. After about 90% of the painting is complete, I go back over the whole painting and adjust the contrast and add details like reflective color and texture. Then I sign it!




B.S.: Each of your pieces tells a beautiful story in amazing detail and although your subjects are pop figures, I never feel like your work is cartoony or over the top. What techniques and materials do you employ to keep that balance or real to the unreal?

J.E.: I paint traditionally with acrylic on watercolor paper or wood panel. I try to paint realistically, even when my proportions or subject matter are on the surreal side. There’s a fine line between subtle humor and slapstick when it comes to exaggeration, but if you treat unreal subjects with realistic lighting and texture, it can fool the viewer into believing that they can exist in our world. I feel that traditional tools can also help towards this goal, as you can’t help but see the artist’s hand in the piece, and sometimes the texture of the actual paint.




B.S.: I wonder if you'd share the creative process and story behind some favorite pieces:

Night of The Creeps Meets The Monster Squad : Fright Rags has never ceased to amaze me when it comes to fan appreciation and the Fred Dekker/Tom Atkins double feature last summer was no exception. How did you get involved with them and how did you go about crafting one of the most awe inspiring mash-ups ever!

J.E.: Fright Rags is amazing. I completely agree that they constantly give the fans what they want time after time. I met Kristy Jett from FR through Facebook, and knew about their t-shirts for a while. I inquired about doing a project for them, and (the owner) Ben Scrivens offered the NOTCMTMS poster job to me. We discussed several possible compositions, including one where Dracula’s head opens up and slugs shoot out. It was decided that we have all the good guys from both movies versus all the bad guys from both movies. It was a real challenge to find good reference for some of the characters, and variety in their poses. It was a lot of work, but a blast to paint.




Imagine my joy when I received one of the best Christmas gifts ever this year in the form of your Source of 5 Essential Nutrients piece. Combining cereal monsters and Classic Universal characters you created a crazy, clever scene. How did it come about?

J.E.: Glad you like it! I always loved cartoon cereal mascots, especially the monster ones. I knew that there were a few of them, and I did some research and was reminded that there were five altogether. They each had a big screen counterpart, and it was only natural to imagine what they would look like if painted realistically, using their Universal Monsters inspiration as reference. It was difficult to find the proper balance between the elements that make the cartoon characters recognizable, and those features that resembled Karloff’s Frankenstein monster, or Lugosi’s Dracula. I also focused on the most interesting parts of the character’s costumes, and this determined whether they were shown as half body, or only head and shoulders. The mash-up concept was inspired by one of my big influences, pop artist Ron English (of Supersize Me fame). I later met Ron at San Diego Comic Con, and he loved the painting, and eventually bought it for his collection. A real thrill for me.




Speaking of Universal monsters, you created the very original Monster Mash piece. What was it’s genesis? Was it done to fulfill a mad scientist need?

J.E.: I really like paintings that mash up different characters in a pop culture blender. Mad magazine, Garbage Pail Kids, and Wacky Packages have been doing these sort of crazy juxtapositions for years, and I wanted to do my own. The monster idea led me to think of stitching them together like a crazy Dr. Frankenstein. It’s a fun way to get in all your favorites into one piece, and has been a top selling print for me.




In the last few weeks I could have kicked myself for missing out on the astounding Maniac Cop II (one of my favorite characters of all time!) piece that you did for the Alamo Drafthouse. Can you tell us a little about this experience?

J.E.: Working for Alamo was a real honor for me. I’ve been a fan of their posters for a long time, and have always wanted to do some for them. They knew about me after the Night of the Creeps poster, and asked me to do a poster for Zombie, but that fell through. Later, when the opportunity to do Maniac Cop 2 came around, I was available, and was thrilled to get another chance. It was a real steep learning curve for me, as I had never done a screen printed image before. I had to learn on the job, and with the guidance of well known poster artist Rob Jones, I managed to put together an image that I’m pretty proud of. I was thrilled to find out it sold out in a couple days.




B.S.:You seem to have a lot on your plate from print work to a possible line of monster toys and also work with various bands. Are there any other exciting upcoming projects you’d like to tell us about?
J.E.:I’m working on a couple of group gallery shows right now, as well as a few new Wacky Packages cards for Topps. On top of that, I’ll be exhibiting at Wondercon in April in San Francisco, San Diego Comic Con in July, and New York Comic Con in October. I also hope to sleep sometime in 2011.

B.S.:Thank you again for chatting with us and can’t wait to see more incredible work in the future!

J.E.:Thank you Mike. It was a pleasure for me.

You can view Jason’s work at:

www.jasonedmiston.com

http://jasonedmiston.deviantart.com/

and you can purchase his amazing designs at:

www.etsy.com/shop/JasonEdmiston

Tags: artist, Jason Edmiston, Monster Squad, Night of the Creeps