USING MAQUETTES

MAQUETTES ARE MODELS artists use in order to more fully realize a character. Maquettes are especially useful when the character reappears in an on-going series. I had known about maquettes for years. But it wasn't until I read the book Imaginative Realism that I fully understood their purpose. The comic illustrated below was the first project where I used maquettes.


In the story The Bureau d'Echange de Maux there are basically two characters. I needed to keep these characters on-model, that is, looking like themselves no matter what the lighting or angle. The story would not work if any ambiguity was introduced. Plus I wanted to maintain a higher level of reality than in my previous comics. To keep things simple I used plasticine clay and modeled the two main characters in busts about the size of my fist.


The story was quite short but the two characters appeared in nearly every scene and to keep the narrative from getting boring I needed to show them in a variety of poses. The maquettes allowed me show that variety and keep my characters on-model. The technique was so effective I adopted it in The Subterranean making maquettes of all the characters in white sculpey. Since The Subterranean takes place in an even more realistic world, using maquettes has been an invaluable aid in maintaining the realism desired and keeping a complex cast of characters on-model.

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EARLY INFLUENCES

THE FIRST BOOK I remember being read to me was Tik Tik of Oz. I loved looking at the strange creatures metaphorically brought to life by illustrator John R. Neill. More than any other artist he is responsible for my career as an illustrator. Not all the influence was useful. It was years before I abandoned trying to imitate his elegant style and embraced the rough-hewn look of scratchboard, a style truer to my own personality.


In the Cypher story SubWayward many allusions to The Wizard of Oz are apparent. There are even clock-work creatures similar to Tik Tok. For many reasons SubWayward was the most personally meaningful of all the psychologically charged Cypher stories. It was also the story in which The Subterranean appears for the first time.


With such a background, when the editor of Graphic Classics asked if I would do an L. Frank Baum story, I couldn't say no. The resulting comic, a somewhat obscure piece, appeared in Graphic Classics Volume 15. Page one is posted below.

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NEW POE ANTHOLOGY FROM GRAPHIC CLASSICS

IF YOU ARE AN EDGAR ALLAN POE FAN you may be interested in the new anthology from Graphic Classics. I did a 14 page story entitled Man of the Crowd. Perhaps not the best known story but it is an example of Poe's manic style. As always it was a real pleasure working with Graphic Classics on a comics project of this stature.

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GETTING READY FOR THE BIG LAUNCH

Things take longer than you expect. This adage is well known among professionals of all stripes. I have been working away on The Subterranean and it has taken longer than expected. Plus I decided I wanted to have at least 6 months of material at a rate of two pages posted per week. Wish me luck and I will see you soon! Many thanks.


Brad Teare

The Origin of The Subterranean --a video

 

When Brad speaks of building a mock space rocket, it wasn't full scale. Nor did he and his brother live in it for more than a day. He's romanticising the past --again.

Brad Teare, creative director at SandHog Comics , explains some backstory about origins of The Subterranean Chronicles and it's main hero.

Subterranean Maquette 2 of 2 video

Subterranean Maquette 1 of 2 video

A maquette (French word for scale model) is a sculpting term for a basic model used to determine the final pose and detailing for a master sculpture. Maquettes are also used in the conceptual design stage of movie preproduction.

In this two part video, Brad Teare creates a maquette for visual reference. This will be used when drawing The Subterranean superhero for SandHog Comics. The Subterranean comes to life. Well, not as much as Pinocchio.

The maquette was created on Thursday February 10, 2011.