With hundreds of new comics hitting the shelves every month, it can be hard for some aspiring creative minds to rise above everything out there and make a name for themselves, but some persistent writers and artists are able to stand out with years of iconic work making anything they produce instantly recognizable.

Such is the case for Geof Darrow. Darrow has enjoyed a career as a comic book artist for several decades, over which time he's worked with many great writers, like Frank Miller, with whom he won two Eisner awards, one for Best Writer/Artist for their collaboration on Hard Boiled, and another for Best Penciler/Inker for The Big Guy and Rusty the Boy Robot. He also won a third Eisner for Best Writer/Artist for Shaolin Cowboy, on which he served as both writer and artist, proving his talent with all facets of the pen and pencil.

His talents also extend to the big and small screen, where he has an impressive number of movie and TV credits for his creation of character and concept designs from the likes of the classic DC team up show Super Friends and work with the Wachowskis on all three Matrix movies and Speed Racer.

Darrow's newest showcase of his artistic abilities, Lead Poisoning: The Pencil Art of Geof Darrow, provides his fans with a look into his artistic process, showcasing how crisp, clean, and detail oriented art is, even before the inking and coloring processes are completed. Featuring strictly black and white pencil drawings from work Darrow has done on comic book pages, covers, and even some previously unreleased art, Lead Poisoning also includes words of praise from other great creative minds, such as Joss Whedon, Chuck Palahniuk, Mike Mignola, Stan Sakai, Richard Corben, Sergio Aragonés, David Mack, John Arcudi, Brian Bendis, and Dark Horse Publisher Mike Richardson.

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In one such quotation, Hellboy creator, Mike Mignola, talks about the uniqueness and originality found in Darrow's creations:

"To me it seems like most comic artists these days are still showing us the same old characters in slightly different costumes or pitches for TV shows - too many trying to cash in on whatever is popular at the moment. Way too few are willing to unscrew the top of their heads and let us look inside."

Likewise, Marvel writer/artist David Mack heaps praise on Darrow's creativity and craftsmanship.

"This is Geof in his supreme Zen state. His human and animal sides are united. They have achieved mastery of their tools, which are lifted to the heavens in gratitude and oneness, an extension of the person. The Earth and sky are intersecting here. The pinnacle has been ascended. The landscape of reality is now in view. The figures are centered in the composition as Geof's mind is centered. Imagination and reality are integrated."

For more art from Geof Darrow and more commentary from other great artists, be sure to check out Lead Poisoning: The Pencil Art of Geof Darrow in July, shortly before his appearance and San Diego Comic-Con.

Source: Dark Horse