When the idea to create a Guardians of the Galaxy™ print was born, we knew it was the perfect design project for our artist, J. He is a lifelong fan of comic book artwork and has been drawing superheroes since elementary school. J. was beyond excited at the opportunity to take on this project, and now that it’s been released, we sat with him to discuss his experience working on this print.
What was your inspiration for the Guardians of the Galaxy™ print?
My inspiration was to depict an intergalactic planetary scene with images of the characters that capture the personality of each member and the unique group chemistry that is the Guardians of the Galaxy™. There are subtle comic book references with the framing of Rocket, Groot, Gamora, and Nebula scenes. There are also motifs that further hint towards the humor and lighthearted nature of the Guardians™, like the cassette player and headphones and the mixtape that Peter Quill listens to.
Working on this print was more of a dream come true.
Do you have a favorite scene from Guardians of the Galaxy™? Is it in the artwork?
There are so many, but one of my favorites is Rocket riding on Groot’s back while yielding his gun – it captures their relationship perfectly. That also happens to be the first scene I worked on when creating the art.
How did this compare to working on a classic Aloha shirt?
The process was different in that I had to work closely with MARVEL for style and direction as opposed to creating completely original artwork. Their original art had to be redrawn and recolored to be printed on Spooner Kloth™. I put a lot of pressure on myself to do well since it was our first MARVEL print.
Have you always enjoyed drawing superheroes?
Yes, I’ve always admired MARVEL comics and would try to draw superheroes and make my own comics as a kid, so working on this print was more of a dream come true.
You’re known around the office as the Reyn Spooner Marvel expert. Have you always been interested in Marvel?
MARVEL has always been an inspiration of mine since I was a youth. In my notebook at school, I would draw pictures from my comic books instead of listening to the teacher and/or doing my actual schoolwork.
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