Again to Something Different

I just watched a few videos on Mike Mignola, this one here, and he mentioned how he used to be inspired by Frank Frazetta, an earlier science fiction and fantasy illustrator. They draw the same subject matter, but their styles are completely different...but maybe I can make some comparisons.

On the left are images by Frank Frazetta.  On the right Mike Mignola images from good ol google. The top two look similar, lots of movement, the action happening right in front with no middle ground and these characters are on a roof, in combat or getting ready for combat. Mignola doesn't have that realistic rendering like Frazetta has, but the composition and the division of space he definitely does. Instead of using fabulous colors in this rendered, traditional oil painting sort of way, Mignola figures out how to show the colors flat but still with value, almost piecing the positive and negative shapes together on the page.

This time Mignola goes completely flat and shows what has inspired me as an artist, the beautiful, colorful negative and positive shapes. What I recently noticed about Mignola's work is how he sets a scene with all of these artistic elements and in this comparison I feel the similarity between the two (no not just with the round sun) but of two monsters looking in the distance before or after a battle. 

Of course the viewer behind the monster will feel different than in front, full face yet looking past the viewer in that same way, not seeing or caring about the onlookers. 

I compare the two simply because I want to see how one of my inspirations dealt with his inspiration and how this affected his art. I think I can see the bits of influence in there.

Comic books might not be my favorite type of art but Mike Mignola just might have an influence on mine, even if it is a small one.