Faery # 4 (illustrated by Lars Brown)

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!!!

In Sandman # 19, Dream, Titania, Oberon and a host of faeries travel to Wilmington, England to watch the first performance of A Midsummer Night’s Dream.

This character is one of the Faeries to attended this performance.

He appears on page 9 in panel 6.

Lars did a fantastic job with this portrait and it’s one of my favorites he’s done. I love his choice of colors and the life he brought to this character. I also really like the background done for this. He did a great job capturing this character and his surroundings!!!

The Creeper’s Dream Lover (illustrated by Max Rugers)

When The Creeper breaks into the quiet house in “The Brambles” he is immediately overcome with a living dream. He feels himself in the embrace of an imaginary lover…as if she were a dream.

“He can feel the warm tightness of her skin; the scent of her sex is heavy in the air. Her lips taste of roses and passion, and she holds him like her life depends on it.”

This dream lover is a result of Rachel’s abuse of the sand contained within Morpheus’ pouch , which was stolen by Ruthven Sykes in 1930.

The Creeper’s Dream Lover appears in Sandman # 3, on page 6, in panel 5.

Max did a great job with this portrait. I really like the colors and the details and how he drew her with a “sexy” expression on her face and yet it still looks cracked, as if she is not solid in our reality.

Citizen Of Baghdad # 110 (illustrated by Emonic)

When Haroun al Raschid and Morpheus walk through the market place they see many people and shopkeepers.

This woman passes them as they stand at a grapeseller’s booth.

This woman appears in Sandman # 50 on page 25, panel 2.

This is another amazing portrait from Emonic. I really love how elegant she looks.

Lizard (illustrated by Max Rugers)

When Lyta Hall hallucinates, after Daniel’s abduction at the hands of Loki and Robin Goodfellow, she imagines various people and animals as things that they are not.

Lyta sees this lizard and imagines it is Geryon, who warns her not to trust Euryale and Stheno.

Did she really encounter Geryon or was it all in her imagination?

This lizard appears in Sandman # 60, on page 19, in panels 3 and 5.

Max did an awesome job with this portrait. It looks incredibly life-like. As with some of his other portraits, Max used tape and painted over it to add texture to the portrait. I definitely like the look that this creates.

Sandman Anniversary Benefit Show

Tonight, in Portland, is the opening night of the Sandman Anniversary Benefit Gallery Show. The show is taking place at Floating World Comics in downtown Portland.

Here is a link to the event:

Floating World Sandman Anniversary Benefit Show

All of the art is for sale and proceeds go to Doernbecher Children's Hospital.

If you are in the area, please stop by and see the gorgeous art.

If you are so inclined, please purchase some of the art and support this fantastic cause.

Halloween Partier in New York # 3 (illustrated by Max Rugers)

I was planning on doing a double post last night to celebrate Halloween, but we got home late from Trick Or Treating and so I decided to just post it today...a late Halloween treat for everyone!!!

In 1992 Neil Gaiman was in New York with some friends for Halloween. He became separated from his friends and during that brief moment he encounted Choronzon.

This woman is one of the Halloween partiers in New York.

I absolutely love this portrait. It’s one of my favorites that Max has done at this point.

She is in The Last Sandman Story (from Dust Covers) page 4, panel 5 and the sidebar to the left.

Halloween Partier in New York # 2 (illustrated by Lars Brown)

Happy Halloween!!! I hope you all went out and bought Sandman Overture yesterday. It's a fantastic first issue!!! In "The Last Sandman Story" (published in Dust Covers), Neil Gaiman recounted a story where he met Choronzon in New York at Halloween.

As you would expect, on Halloween, in New York, there were people having a good time and partying. This woman is one of the Halloween Partiers in NY while Neil is speaking with Choronzon. She is pretty easy to spot. She’s the only naked partier.

She can be found in The Last Sandman Story page 4 and is in panel 9, as well as along the sidebar.

Lars did a great job with this character.

Snakes (illustrated by Max Rugers)

When Morpheus decides to call on the three witches to determine the location of his stolen tools he needs to travel through dreams finding references to certain things within the minds of those asleep. He encounters the gallows, the honey, the crescent moon and the snakes easily enough.

This portrait is of the dream snakes that Dream uses to call upon The Hecateae.

The Snakes appear in Sandman # 2, on page 17 in panel 4.

Max did a great job with this portrait. I like that his snake had a colorful pattern on it that resembles fire.

Serial Killer # 41 (illustrated by Ron Chan)

I love this portrait. It’s fantastic and creepy and Ron did an awesome job with it!!!

This is one of the serial killers who attended the Cereal Convention from The Doll’s House storyline.

This particular serial killer is sitting in the audience listening to Nimrod’s introductory speech as the convention gets under way. He is sitting in the front row.

He can be seen in Sandman # 14, page 12, panel 1. He is in the front row of the audience, the second person from the left.

Previous Carnifex of Aurelia # 4 (illustrated by Max Rugers)

Carnifex Carys XXXV goes into hiding during a revolt against his kingdom. He hides in the tombs of the previous Carnifex’s of the realm.

This is a previous Carnifex. He was somewhat mummified after his death and kept in this tomb.

He can be found in Sandman # 52 on page 22 in panel 4. He is on the far right and is wearing green robes.

Max did an awesome job with this character. It’s horrifying and creepy and beautiful!!! It’s really disturbing…

Man From The Ancient Necropolis # 1 (illustrated by Lars Brown)

This is one of the men from the ancient Necropolis.

Scroyle tells the others gathered for the air burial at Mount Calamon about his conversation with a traveler regarding the origins of the Necropolis Litharge.

As told by Scroyle, when a group of strangers entered the Necropolis, which is no longer named, and asked for the cerements and for the book of rituals used for their funeral rites, the Necropolitans laughed and called them mad. According to the storyteller, who happened to be Destruction, the hearts of the ancient Necropolitans were hard and did not care for their duties.

This is the reason the ancient Necropolis was destroyed and Litharge became the new Necropolis.

This man appears in Sandman # 55, on page 16, in panel 2. He is on the far left. I really like this portrait from Lars. He added a nice touch to this character with the skull insignia on his vest.

Old Woman # 1 (illustrated by Emonic)

Rose travels to England in hopes of discovering the answer to the cryptic message given to her from Zelda, who said the message from from Rose’s Grandmother, who is dead.

Rose arrives in England and goes to Fawney Rig, where Unity Kincaid spend a majority of her life asleep. Fawney Rig was originally the home of Roderick Burgess and later became a nursing home run by Paul MaGuire, the lover of Alex Burgess, who has been asleep since Dream’s escape in 1988.

While wandering around the house Rose encounters three women who are residents of Fawney Rig. One of the women, Magda Treadgold, tells Rose a story of a Man Who Loved The Ladies.

This man would try to romance any woman with a pretty face and once they outlived his desire he would move on to another woman. Well, one day he saw a beautiful woman bathing in a river and he promised her that if she was his “lady-love” he would give back the clothes he had hidden. She agreed but only under the condition that she would be his wife and would be married at the next church they passed. He agreed and promised saying things like “If I don’t marry you, may that the worms shall eat me and if I don’t marry you, I wish that our children might grow wings and fly away.”

She became his “lady-love” which is really just a polite way of saying that they had sex.

On their travels they passed a church, but the man made an excuse as to why they could not be married in there. Eventually she became pregnant and needs a house to live in.

The Man finds a cottage inhabited by an Old Woman. The man went into the house and found the Old Woman was asleep in the bed. She was old and weak and the man smothered her and buried her in the midden heap, which is a dump for domestic waste.

It is unclear if the woman was a witch or simply an old woman. That aspect changes depending on who is telling the story.

This is that old woman.

In the published comic we never see her face, only the moment where she is being killed and so Emonic had to give her life based on the glimpse we see of her in the bed being smothered by the Man Who Loved The Ladies.

Emonic did a fantastic job with this character. I really like his interpretation of this Old Woman.

This Old Woman appears in The Kindly Ones…in Sandman # 62 on page 12.

John Hathaway’s Driver (illustrated by Max Rugers)

When Dr. John Hathaway visits Fawney Rig, in Wych Cross, England, the home of Roderick Burgess and his Order of Ancient Mysteries, he is driven there by his personal driver.

This man is his driver.

He appears in Sandman # 1, on page 1, in panel 2. He is the second person to appear in the Sandman comic series and the first character with dialogue.

Max has done a lovely job with this portrait. I really like the subtle details and texture on his face.

Dr. John Hathaway (illustrated by Russel Roehling)

Hi...remember me. Okay, yes, it's been a while and I feel guilty, but things have been incredibly busy here at the Sandman Portraits HQ and sadly I've been neglecting all of you... Sorry. It won't happen again. Honest.

I do have some exciting announcements, which I'll save for another time.

Next week is the release date for the first issue of Sandman: Overture. I am sure that you are all as excited as I am.

To celebrate the release next week I've decided to post new portraits every day until next Wednesday!!!

First up is...well, the first character to appear in Sandman....

John Hathaway was the senior curator at the Royal Museum in London.

On June 6th 1916 Hathway visited Roderick Burgess at his manor in Wych Cross, England and brought him a copy of The Magdalene Grimoire, which belonged to the museum. Hathaway’s son, Edmund, was killed the previous week when his Destroyer was sunk off Jutland (in the Battle Of Jutland in WWI). Burgess believed that with this book he could capture Death and prevent people from dying again, a subject which spoke to Hathaway after his recent tragedy.

In June 1920 during an overdue inventory of the Royal Museum’s catalogues it is discovered that several books and manuscripts were missing and John Hathaway came under suspicion.

Hathaway planned to kill himself and in his suicide note he implicated Burgess in blackmailing him to obtain books and documents that originally belonged to the museum. Hathaway used a knife, one of the museum artifacts, to kill himself. Unfortunately the letter was destroyed, through magical means, by Burgess and so the truth about his involvement was never discovered.

John Hathaway appears several times in Sandman # 1. He is actually the first person to appear in the entire Sandman series.

This portrait was painted by Russel. He did a stunning job with this character. Not only did he capture the personality of the character perfectly, but he also managed to capture a creepy atmosphere around him. This is a fantastic portrait!!!

Man At The Renaissance Fair # 20 (illustrated by Max Rugers)

Hob and his girlfriend Gwen attend a Renaissance Fair, in the epilogue to The Wake. Hob is, of course, disillusioned with the fair, mostly because he lived through the Renaissance and finds the whole thing inaccurate and over romanticized. At one point he is talking Dave (and his sheep puppet Lambkin) telling him that back in the day people would talk about a “vegetable lamb,” which was a lamb that grew on a bush. This was, of course, cotton.

While Hob is talking to Dave, this man is walking past them.

He appears in Sandman # 73, on page 10, panel 5. He is on the far left.

I like this portrait from Max. It’s simple and yet intricate at the same time. I really like the detail on his beard and hair.

Foreign Soldier (illustrated by Max Rugers)

While Cluracan is in Aurelia, a Foreign Soldier tells an innkeeper that the Carnifex is planning on selling the citizens of Aurelia into slavery to cover the debts of the Church treasury. The innkeeper then tells some of his customers this shocking news, which quickly spreads throughout the city.

This is one of the several rumors circulating through Aurelia causing a revolt against Carnifex Carys XXXV.

What the citizens of Aurelia do not know is that this Foreign Soldier, and the other people who started the rumor, were really Cluracan in disguise attempting to prevent the alliance between Aurelia and the Plains Folk.

This Foreign Soldier appears in Sandman # 52, on page 20, panel 4.

Max did an awesome job with this portrait. I really like the detail work on the soldier’s face. He definitely looks battle worn. I also like the orange background. It creates an interesting contrast to the soldier.

Max also drew a neat sketch of the character on the back of the Foreign Soldier.

Roman Citizen # 1 (illustrated by Emonic)

This man is one of the men who works in the Roman Marketplace.

He appears in August from Fables And Reflections. He can be seen in Sandman # 30, on page 6, panel 2. He is lifting a table and is partially off panel.

One of the things I really like about this project (and I'm sure I've said this a thousand times) is that there are a lot of characters in the Sandman universe that are either obscured by being off panel or are too tiny to recognize their features. This project brings those characters to the forefront and makes them more important than obscure background characters.

Emonic did a wonderful job with this Roman Citizen. He made him a character instead of some guy without a face in Rome.

Book Release Party Guest # 17 (illustrated by Max Rugers)

When Richard Madoc’s book “And My Love She Gave Me Light” was released in May 1987 a book release party was held.

This man was one of the people who attended the party. He is standing near the sign featuring the cover of the novel.

This man appears in Sandman # 17 on page 12, in panel 1.

I like this portrait from Max. While this character does not appear to be as happy and carefree as he does in the published comic, I like the depth of this portrait. I enjoy the use of the heavy blacks and the white out to add highlights. It’s a great portrait.

Faery # 10 (illustrated by Joëlle Jones)

This Faery is one of the Faeries who crossed over into the mortal plane with Titania and Auberon to see the first performance of A Midsummer Night’s Dream.

He appears in Sandman # 19, on page 5, in panel 4. He is obviously the giant pink Faery in the background of the entourage.

I love this portrait from Joëlle. The colors on this Faery are fantastic and I really like how he turned out. He sort of looks electric!!!

Emissary # 20 (illustrated by Max Rugers)

When Dream becomes the caretaker of the Key To Hell, Emissaries from various cultures and pantheons gather in hopes of obtaining the ownership of Hell for their own uses.

This man is one of those emissaries.

Who does he represent and why does he want the Key To Hell?

These are questions that are never answered, nor do we even get a very clear view of this character or any of the characters dressed similarly.

This Emissary appears in throughout the Season of Mists storyline, but specifically can be seen in Sandman # 27, on page 3, in panel 7. He is in the middle.

This is another cool portrait from Max. I really like his interpretation of this character.

Billy Scutt (illustrated by Emonic)

In World’s End, Petrefax tells a story of an air burial he attended for school in which the three other people performing the burial told stories.

Mig told the story of a man named Billy Scutt,his grandfather, who had been convicted of being a Resurrectionist (meaning he dug up dead bodies for anatomy) and was scheduled to be hanged. When his time had come he was offered a chance to prolong his life by becoming the new hangman, under the agreement that he would be hanged near the end of his life.

Billy Scutt was the best hangman the town had ever seen.

After many years of being the hangman in the town Billy Scutt became ill and word began to spread around the town that he was too old and could no longer able to perform his job; he would soon die. When the Sherrif’s men came to take him to the gallows, Billy Scutt, with the help of his wife, was hoisted up, into a standing position, using his hangman’s rope to prevent him from collapsing.

After the sheriff’s men left, Billy Scutt went back to his bed and died that night.

He appears in Sandman # 55.

Emonic did an amazing job with this character. I think he really did an excellent job capturing this character.

Emonic will be at San Diego Comic Con this weekend and will be at book H-11. Stop by and buy some of his prints or get a commission from him and tell him you've seen his work here. He'll appreciate that!!!

Porn Star Man & Porn Star Woman (illustrated by Max Rugers)

In Brief Lives, Dream and Delirium search for their missing brother with the help of Ruby Elisabeth DeLonge, their chauffeur. After driving many miles and visiting the house of the recently deceased Bernie Capax, Ruby suggests stopping for the night in a hotel and resuming their search in the morning.

As Ruby readies herself for bed she flips on the tv and there is an adult film on the television.

These two characters are the actors in that adult film.

They appear in Sandman # 44, on page 12, in panel 3. They are on the television.

Max did a wonderful job with these characters. I like that they are very beautiful and crisp and perfect….as I imagine actors in these types of films would appear. I also like that the portraits lack color, which gives the sense that they are not characters that embody the “real” world, but from the television.

Man # 133 (illustrated by Joëlle Jones)

This man appears in Preludes And Nocturnes in a ship station as Ethel Dee and Ruthven Sykes attempt to disappear from the watchful eye of Roderick Burgess.

This man appears in Sandman # 1, page 16, in panel 2. He is a silhouette near the center of the page.

Joëlle did an awesome job with this character. I really like the little details she added to him. Yes, he does bear a remarkable similarity to Man # 36. I accidentally sent the same character to two different people, but ultimately I don't think it's a problem since this man was in the shadows in the original published panel. I mean really…didn’t everyone look like this in England during the 1930’s?

Faery # 5 (illustrated by Max Rugers)

Today is Max's birthday and to celebrate I wanted to update the blog with one of my favorite portraits he has done so far.

Max did an awesome job with this Faery!!!

This Faery is one of the faeries who attended the first performance of A Midsummer Night’s Dream on June 23rd 1593 in Wilmington, England near The Long Man of Wilmington, which Morpheus also called Wendel’s Mound.

He can be seen in Sandman # 19, page 8, panel 3. He’s very easy to spot.

This is a wonderful portrait. In person it sort of glows!!!!

Happy Birthday Max!!!

Corpse From Rachel’s Dream # 2 (illustrated by Russel Roehling)

This man is one of the many dead people that haunt Rachel’s nightmares of the end of the world and civilization as we know it.

In the Destruction story from Endless Nights, Rachel has dreams of the world ending. Sometimes it’s by fire, sometimes by ice and sometimes all the deaths are caused by some disease. In Rachel’s dream, she sees this corpse while walking through a mall. This man died while sitting on a bench inside the mall.

He can be seen in Endless Nights, in the Destruction story, “On The Peninsula” on the first page in panel 4.

Russel did an amazing job with this corpse. The shading and details of this painting make it seem almost realistic and horrifying. It’s beautiful and gross at the same time. I love it!!!!.

Bus Passenger # 1 (illustrated by Max Rugers)

In London in June 1920, the news of John Hathaway’s suicide spreads through the city. Young boys are selling newspapers with headlines questioning his mental health and asking questions of the mysteries surrounding his death. The streets are bustling.

This man can be seen sitting on a bus, which is driving down these busy London streets.

This bus passenger appears in Sandman # 1, on page 14, in panel 1.

This is a great portrait. I am not sure if Max intended this, but when I look at this portrait I see either Alan Moore or Rob Zombie. Either way, I really like this portrait.

Knight of Clouds (illustrated by Emonic)

This is a very interesting character who appears in one panel in The Kindly Ones.

While reflecting on Dream’s week, prior to the Kindly Ones entering The Dreaming, we learn that on Moonday Dream “arbitrated in a dispute between the Knight Of Clouds and The Body Politic. He awarded the Magic Lantern Show to the Knight Of Clouds, although he permitted The Body Politic to retain custody of the Six Screaming Stones and The Snows Of Yesterday.”

There is a story there that I would love to read….even if it was only a short 8 page story appearing in one of the Vertigo anthology books that they used to do.

The Knight Of Clouds appears in Sandman # 64, page 2, panel 1.

Emonic did a wonderful job with this character. I definitely like the perspective of the portrait.

Interlude - Blood Kiss Kickstarter

I don't do this very often, but I wanted to mention a new Kickstarter campaign that I think everyone who reads this blog would be interested in supporting.

Michael Reaves (who co-wrote the Interworld novels with Neil Gaiman) has written a film and is trying to get it made. This movie is called Blood Kiss and it is a film noir Vampire story set in LA in the 1940's. The story is about a detective named Joe Belicek, who must solve a murder before a deranged killer murders strikes again. The victim....a vampire and the killer is hoping to use them to gain their power.

Sound interesting? Well, it gets better.

This film marks the acting debut of...wait for it...Neil Gaiman. Yep, that's right, Neil is going to be one of the actors in this film. At this point I am not sure who he will be or how large his role will be, but he is one of the announced actors. Two other actors have been announced. Amber Benson, best known for her role as Tara in Buffy The Vampire Slayer has been cast for this film. Also announced is Christina Moses, who some may know from Star Trek: New Voyages Phase II and Nikita. Tom Mandrake is doing artwork for the film (and I have to say the poster art is pretty amazing).

Here is a brief word from Neil regarding his role in Blood Kiss. I am personally excited to see this film and I hope that you are too.

If you are interested in contributing, please go to their Kickstarter page and pledge. Every little bit helps and they do have some awesome rewards. Heck, if you are so inclined you could even pledge your hard earned cash on the Belicek Level and be one of the actors in this film!!!

Okay, if you can, PLEASE support Blood Kiss and help make this movie a success!!!

Click here to view their Kickstarter page!!!

Tomorrow I will be back with our regularly scheduled Sandman portrait.

Corpse On The Death Barge # 1 (illustrated by Max Rugers)

When Scroyle’s father died, he escorted his body to the Necropolis Litharge. His father had promised Scroyle as an intern in the Necropolis as long as he could be buried within the city.

Scroyle came to the Necropolis on a Death Barge, carrying many corpses of the recently deceased. This corpse is one of those bodies.

You can see this corpse in Sandman # 55, on page 13, panel 1.

Max did a fantastic job with this character. There is a sensitivity with this corpse that I really like. It sort of reflects the respect given to the dead by the residents of the Necropolis.

Eurydice (illustrated by Joëlle Jones)

Eurydice is a character that Gaiman took from Greek mythology and placed her within the Sandman universe.

In Virgil’s Georgics, Eurydice was the wife of Orpheus. One day a Satyr saw her and chased her. She accidentally stepped on a viper and was killed by the venomous bite. Orpheus, who lost the love of his life, played his lyre and sand songs so sad that the gods told him to travel to the Underworld and ask Lord Hades to release her. After singing, Hades and Persephone agreed to let Eurydice return to the land of the living, but only if Orpheus walked in front of her and he did not look back to catch a glimpse of her until they reached the land of the living. Orpheus, of course, began to doubt that Hades would allow her to return to the land of the living and so he turned and looked at her and she vanished back into the Underworld.

Ovid retells the story, in Metamorphoses, in a similar fashion, but blames Eurydice’s death, not on being chased by a Satyr, but by dancing with Naiads on her wedding Day and it was at this time she was bitten by a serpent.

In “The Song Of Orpheus” (Sandman Special # 1), Gaiman sticks primarily to the Virgil version of the story, but incorporates the story of Orpheus into the Sandman mythology.

Orpheus is the son of Morpheus and Calliope and the Endless attend the wedding of Orpheus and Eurydice. On the night of their wedding, Orpheus’ friend Aristaeus, a satyr, becomes drunk and sexually aroused and wants to make love with Eurydice. She spurns his advances and when he starts to become forceful she runs in hopes of escaping him. While running she steps on a snake, which bites her and she dies.

Death, Orpheus’ aunt and a guest of the wedding, takes her.

Orpheus mourns for his wife. He seeks the help of his father and asks to help bring her back. Morpheus tells him that he cannot help. Orpheus then contemplates suicide in hopes of being reunited with his lost love, but his uncle Destruction stops him and tells him to visit Death. Death grants him the ability to not die in order to enter into the Underworld in hopes of retrieving Eurydice.

As in Greek mythology, Orpheus asks Hades and Persephone to release Eurydice. Orpheus sings and the dead, as well as the Furies, cry. Hades grants Orpheus his wish and allows Eurydice to return to the land of the living, but only if he walks in front of her and does not look back see if she is behind him. Once they cross the threshold into the land of the living, only then can Orpheus look upon his wife. Just as Orpheus approaches the gateway and sees daylight be begins to doubt Hades’ promise and thinks that Hades is playing a cruel joke on him. As he gets closer to the doorway he looks back and sees the apparition of Eurydice and she once again returns to the realm of the dead.

Eurydice and the story of Orpheus appear in The Sandman Special # 1.

I asked Joëlle to draw Eurydice because I was hoping that she would capture the absolute beauty of the character and I am very glad she did. Eurydice is gorgeous. Joëlle did an amazing job capturing the beauty of this character and really drawing a perfect representation of the character. It’s absolutely perfect!!!

Dreamer # 13 (illustrated by Max Rugers)

As John Dee, inside his dream reality, attempts to destroy Morpheus, dreamers all over the world had troubled sleep. They whimpered and moaned and even screamed “as if caught in the darkest of nightmares.”

This is one of the dreamers who had was affected by John Dee’s hatred and chaos.

She appears in Sandman # 7, on page 13, in panel 4. She is too the right and is one of the more apparent dreamers.

Max, once again, did an awesome job with this portrait. It’s one of my favorites. I like his color choices and just the overall beauty of this sleeper. She is so elegant and lovely. One thing I really like about this project is that this character is barely even noticeable in the comic, but Max took this character and painted an amazing portrait of her. This is a perfect example of why I started this project in the first place!!!