An obsessive collection of portraits from the Sandman comic series.
This is one of the previous Carnifex’s of Aurelia.
He appears in Sandman # 52 on page 22 in panel 1.
This is a great portrait from Lukas. He approached this character in a more extreme fashion than in the published comic. I really like this. This character is more visibly decomposing than in the published comic. The details are exceptional. The rotting flesh is practically dripping off his bones. I love this portrait.
This man is one of the guests who attended the book release party for Richard Madoc’s book “And My Love She Gave Me Light,” which was released in May 1987. He is speaking to another guest about how Madoc's latest novel transcends genre. I am unsure if this character is a book reviewer or simply pretentious.
This man appears in Sandman # 17 on page 12, in panel 1.
I really like this portrait from Anna. She managed to capture John’s attitude perfectly. He seems a bit smug, which definitely works with his pretentious conversation in the published comic. I like how Anna approached with portrait. I like the coloring she used around his face and the stubble. This portrait is absolutely fantastic!!!
At an air burial, each member of the funeral party tell a tale.
Master Hermas tells a true story from his youth when he and Klaproth were apprentices under Mistress Veltis.
When Veltis was an apprentice she accidentally broke a flask of preserving fluid. She was ashamed and ran and hid from her master. She chose the catacombs beneath the city as her hiding place. In the catacombs she travelled a path she had never taken before, passing a wall of mummies, and eventually finding herself in a huge room with six cerements hanging in that room.
This mummy is one of the mummies that she passed on her decent into the catacombs.
This mummy appears in Sandman # 55, on page 20, in panel 3.
This is a pretty intense portrait from Max. Max will often add tape to a portrait and paint over it, giving the portrait an extra texture. He did that here, which almost seems necessary. He used strips of tape as the wrappings of the mummy. Max also took it a step further and used cloth giving it an extra level of texture and creating a pretty awesome effect. This is a pretty awesome portrait!!!
Dressed in masquerade attire, they walk through the halls of the palace and encounter many revelers along the way.
This man is one of the many people they pass.
Death tells Sergei that this man drowned in a storm.
He appears in the Endless Nights, in Death In Venice, on page 18, in panel 5.
The curly-cue beard and moustache and the pointed chin on this character set it aside as one of my favorites that Anna has done. He has such a fascinating profile and Anna’s interpretation is gorgeous. I love the simplicity of the lines and the color contrast as well.
Their intentions for Rose were not pure or honorable and so thankfully Gilbert was not far behind her and was able to help keep her virtue intact.
Gilbert used his cane to beat these three thugs into submission and they ran down the street and away from Rose and Gilbert.
This Thug appears in Sandman # 11, on pages 11, 12 and 13.
John approached this portrait in a realistic manner. I think he did a great job giving this character a personality that reeks with vileness, just as in the published comic.
This is one of the cats who listens to the storyteller cat’s tale.
He appears in Sandman # 18, on page 4.
I really like this portrait from Lukas. This cat seems a bit ragged like a stray, which is pretty realistic for this story. Lukas also gave this cat a collar, with the number 28 on it. That is a really nice touch. I really like this raggedy little cat.
In order to find Destiny’s garden from Delirium’s realm they must find a labyrinth and Delirium chooses a maze at an amusement park.
This girl is standing outside the maze eating a hot dog.
She appears in Sandman # 47, on page 5, in panel 5.
This is one of my favorite portraits Anna has done so far. She looks absolutely sweet and happy and is completely adorable. I also really like her hair!!!
The Seeker tells Brant about Prez and his legacy and ultimately his tragedy.
While Prez was president he was engaged to be married to his high school sweetheart Kathy. They had a storybook romance, but it ended in heartbreak when a woman obsessed with Ted Grant shot Kathy.
This Secret Service Agent was one of the men protecting the president on this day and was there to help capture the obsessed woman.
He can be seen in Sandman # 54, on page 13, in panel 2.
I really like this portrait from Max. I like the line work for this character with the very minimal color from torn magazines. It works really well for this character. I also really like the expression on his face. He definitely seems very serious, as I would expect from a secret service agent.
Jim’s story recounts meeting a gentleman named Robert Gadling who was a passenger on the Sea Witch and was going back to England.
On their journey they faced a fierce storm and the following day the sea was calm with no wind to propel them. The crew spent the day repairing things that the wind had damaged the previous day and each of the sailors performed their own superstitious rituals hoping to call the wind to guide them once again.
One of the sailors noticed a large school of fish racing toward them on the horizon. The men cast their nets and caught hundreds of fish as they passed the Sea Witch.
This man is one of the many sailors who caught fish as they leapt out of the ocean and into the nets.
He appears in Sandman # 53, page 17, panel 3.
This portrait has a sense of freedom about it that I was not expecting. It feels fresh and free and is absolutely perfect. Even though this is a very minor character this is definitely one of my favorite portraits from John.
Standing before a gathering of all the demons in Hell, Dream searches for his helmet and finds it with Choronzon.
This demon is standing near Chronzon when Dream finds his stolen helmet.
This Demon appears in Sandman # 4, on page 14, in panel 6.
This is a completely fascinating portrait from Lukas and I absolutely love it. In the published comic, this demon looks like…a strange mushroom looking creature. Lukas took the idea of him looking like a plant or fungus and turned him into this. He’s certainly not horrifying, but he’s fun to look at in a horrifying way. The bulbous nature of this creature’s skin is disturbing and visually interesting. It adds a unique texture to this character and I can almost envision how this creature would feel if it were a living breathing demon and for some reason I imagine he would smell like overcooked broccoli. I can honestly say I’ve never been able to imagine how a character smells by a piece of art. This is a fantastic portrait from Lukas.
Here is Demon # 233…
Orpheus encounters the Bacchante after returning from Hades without his beloved wife, Eurydice. He is profoundly grief-stricken and in mourning after losing his one true love. He chooses not to flee from the Bacchante, even though he was warned of their arrival by his mother, Calliope.
The Bacchante arrive, wild and drunk and they eventually kill Orpheus, eat his body and throw his head into the river.
This woman of the Bacchante appears in The Sandman Special # 1, on page 43 in panel 6.
Anna did a wonderful portrait of this horrific character. I wanted to push Anna to draw a character that is more disturbing that she would typically draw. While she definitely did not make this character and gruesome as they are portraited in the published comic, I definitely think she captured the wild and natural characteristics of these women. I really like this portrait.
On the night Lyta Hall has dinner with Eric Needman there are several other patrons at the night club.
This woman is one of them.
She appears in Sandman # 64, on page 22, in panel 1.
This is an absolutely fantastic portrait and is easily one of my favorites that Max has done so far. I love the contrast between the darkness of the character and the background. I also love the texture of the blackness in the silhouette. This portrait is sexy and it’s a perfect portrait for a completely obscure character.
As they began their several citizens of Venice watched the caravan leave the city. This man is one of those who watched the travelers leave.
This character appears in Sandman # 39, page 13, panel 3.
This is another wonderful portrait from John. In the published comic this character is barely more than a human shaped outline in the far background. John basically designed this character based on the shape of the character in the comic and gave him personality and a life that isn’t really there in the comic. I also really like that he drew the background. I love the gate and think it fits perfect with the time period of this portrait.
This Emissary is at the council meeting.
He was there to witness Cluracan’s predition that the dead would being to rise to collect the debts owed to them.
He appears in Sandman # 52, on page 12, in panel 5.
Anna’s use of thick lines and bright colors make this seemingly uninteresting character stand out. The multiple shades of greens and blues on his head scarf are lovely.
This demon appears as Dream is speaking to Lucifer and the demons and telling them that without dreams Hell would be powerless because “what power would Hell have is those here imprisoned were not able to dream of heaven.”
This demon appears in Sandman # 4, on page 21, in panel 4.
Max did a wonderful job drawing this frightening and incredibly obscure demon from Preludes And Nocturnes!!!
His investigation leads him to Scotland Yard. He sneaks into the Records Room. At the same moment Wesley is looking through the files, the Records Clerk passes the door and finds it odd that the room is not locked. He enters the room. Wesley uses his sleeping gas to subdue the records clerk as he continues to search through the Scotland Yard files.
This is the Scotland Yard Records Clerk.
He appears in Sandman Midnight Theatre on page 23.
John did a great job with this portrait. I really like the perspective of this portrait and I like that he appears to be looking out through the corner of his eyes, as if he’s suspicious of something. That’s a nice subtle touch that really adds a lot of personality to this character.
They did not ask who sent the messenger. There are some things that even The Endless do not inquire about.
Desire’s messengers were lovebirds and these are those love birds.
They appear in Sandman # 70, on page 3, in panel 4.
Anna did a wonderful job with this portrait. I like that the birds are snuggling, giving us further proof that these are lovebirds. The colors she used are bight and vibrant, which I think works really well for this portrait.
Here are the lovebird messengers that were sent to Desire summoning her/him to the Wake…
This serial killer is one of many seen going to the hotel for the convention.
He appears in Sandman # 14, on page 1 in panel 2.
I really like this portrait from Max. When I offered this character to him I wasn’t sure how he would approach it. This character in the published comic sort of resembles V (from V For Vendetta) and I thought that Max might go that route. I am glad I was wrong because what Max did is so much better!
Max took this character who is hidden in the shadows and kept him hidden in the shadows, but was able to add to his personality. This character is frightening. I love the perspective and how he is looking down. This creates a really eerie image. I also really like the colors Max used. The character is hidden in the shadows, but the background has a lot of reds and since this character is a vicious killer it definitely adds some horror to the character.
He calls together all the residents of The Dreaming and tells them what he is about to do and expresses his concern that he may not be returning since Lucifer holds a grudge against him for publicly embarrassing him when he last visited Hell to reclaim his stolen helmet.
This creature is one of the residents of The Dreaming who stood before the King Of Dreams and listened to his speech.
He appears in Sandman # 22, on page 7, in panel 4.
I really like this portrait from John. In the published comic we catch of glimpse of him amongst a group of creatures. John did a straight forward interpretation of this character, but the line work for the creature’s fur really stands out and gives the impression that he is definitely furry…sort of like a spider version of Cousin It. This is a particularly fun portrait.
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.
This Emissary appears in throughout the Season of Mists storyline, but specifically can be seen in Sandman # 27, on page 11, in panel 4. He is in the middle.
Anna did a fantastic job with this portrait. In the published comic we see a silhouette of this character, but nothing more than a shape of who this character was. I always pictured him as some sort of knight since there were several knights who were emissaries. Anna took this character and defined him in a surprising and cool way. Instead of the tall plume on top of a helmet she made the “plume” his hair. I really like her approach to this character. This is another portrait that shows why I enjoy this project and how some of these obscure characters can be interpreted in so many different ways.
This man is a dignitary from an unknown place who attended the parliament.
His character appears in Endless Nights, in “The Heart Of The Star” on page 6 in panel 3. He is one of the obscure background dignitaries.
This is definitely an interesting interpretation of this character. I really like it, especially given the unknown characteristics of this dignitary. I like that Max really thought about what this character might represent for the parliament.
This is one of the previous Carnifex’s of Aurelia.
He appears in Sandman # 52 on page 22 in panel 1.
John did a fantastic job with this portrait. It’s a bit gruesome and he didn’t hold back with this portrait. I like that he is predominantly bones, but there are clumps of hair still clinging to his decomposed body.
Today's character is the Ticket Inspector from Hazel's dream in A Game Of You.
Hazel experiences weird dreams the night George opens his chest and releases the starlings, who are servants of The Cuckoo.
She dreams that she is on a train and the ticket inspector looks at her ticket and asks her to go with him. He leads her to some stairs leading to the cellar of the train. In her dream she questions why there are cellars on trains. She goes down and finds Foxglove standing next to a box and inside the box is Hazel’s dream baby.
This man is the Ticket Inspector who checked Hazel’s train ticket and took her to the stairs leading further into the nightmare.
He appears in Sandman # 33, on page 14 in panels 3 and 4.
Anna’s use of overlapping color is very striking. I was fascinated by the purples, peaches and blues used to shade the Ticket Inspector’s face and neck. Anna is very talented in bringing the characters to life. Looking into the eyes of the Ticket Inspector, you can see his hardships and his passions.
