First off was to look at how it has been done before, which meant looking at plenty of older material such as the black and white Warren mags, from a time when graytones were more commonplace, whereas now they are more of an aesthetic choice than a financial compromise. I then looked at films from the pre-colour days; the use of black and white cinematography in order to better understand contrasts. I found that this actually wound up better informing my black and white art as well as the graytone part of the process. Once I had an idea of where I wanted to go with the look of the graytones it was time to start experimenting on the pages themselves.
I approach it exactly as I would colouring with a limited palette, and I think it is working out well for my doing so. This is, of course, all part of an ongoing learning curve and by the time I have finished the book I should have a better idea of what works and what doesn’t. In the meantime, please enjoy the example I prepared for this post!
GONZO is available for pre-order via the SelfMadeHero store. It will be officially launched at Leeds Thought Bubble in November, where Anthony will sketching and signing copies of the biography.
