Bob Little is a remarkable artist from Canada. His skills are well rounded and his pieces stand out in their own right, but he also works well with others as an inker/colorist. His latest projects are Avalon with writer, Alex Batts, and Roots Riot with writer, Mark Bernal.
Welcome, Bob!
Thanks dude, I appreciate that!
They call the eyes the gateway to the soul. You create exceptional eyes and the characters themselves shine through. Do you intentionally think of the character when you work on eyes?
Yes I do, and drawing a character’s eyes is almost always the first thing I will do, depending on the shot. With the eyes, you can convey almost everything you need in terms of conveying emotion and storytelling.
From digital to traditional; pencils, inks, and colors; grayscale to watercolors... What motivates you to work outside of, I don't want to say 'comfort zone' because you seem comfortable in all habitats but, styles that are familiar? What makes you try new ways of expression?
I think it’s from watching what a lot of other artists are doing, and wanting to try it out for myself, whether it’s digital colouring on a new app or trying out a new brush set, or experimenting with ink wash or new watercolour techniques. I think it’s healthy for artists to step out of their comfort zones and try new things. Personally, I find switching back and forth between using different styles and media helps to keep things fresh and exciting. For a while, all I was doing was digital art when I was working on my first two comics, and I was getting burnt out from it. What really kept me going was switching to traditional pencils and inks when I worked on ‘Psionicide’ for the Cybersync anthology with Apollo City Comics. And between pencilling and inking projects, doing colours with other creative teams has also been fun.
What gets you excited about working on a project?
Storytelling gets me the most excited, whether I’m writing and drawing my own stuff, or whether I am part of a creative team trying to tell a good story. And the other important thing is working with good people. If you’re trying to make a comic with someone you don’t gel with, then the payoff probably won’t be worth the time. It takes a lot to do the art for a comic, whether you’re pencilling, inking, or colouring. I like to work with people who inspire me. The other thing that excites me about potential creative projects is how my art style and interests fit into it. Take Avalon, for example. When Alex Batts asked if I was interested in working with him on a cyberpunk title, I was definitely pulled in because I love the genre. We’d already worked together for the Cybersync Anthology too. On top of that, his script was fantastic. Or when you and I connected about your children’s book idea, Moxy the Tree. That also inspired me -- and maybe that also spoke to the idea of stretching my artistic muscles with something different. So yeah, it’s the people, it’s the style, and it’s the story that pulls me in.
You can either do it all or work on a team with other artists. What's the best advice you can give to an artist working in a collaborative environment?
Do you know Chris Hadfield, the Canadian astronaut? He got semi-famous a few years ago when he recorded a cover of David Bowie’s “Space Oddity” from space -- literally! Anyway, he also does a lot of writing, and one thing he discussed was how to be a good team member. He said that you could be a zero, a minus one, or a plus one when working on a team. His suggestion, when you first join, is to aim to be a zero. That is, be competent. Keep your ego in check, be humble, and do what you were brought on the team to do. If you think about it, the likely reason you were brought on was to keep doing what you already do well. So aim for zero! Don’t be a negative one and disrupt the good energy of the team, and do your best to bring the vision of the creative project alive by doing what you do best. When you work long enough with team members and aim to be a zero you’ll eventually find that you can become a plus one, actively adding all kinds of value.
Bob, please answer the most important question ever, the hotly debated topic...
What's the best pizza topping?
Pepperoni is the correct answer. Without pepperoni, how can you even start to build a proper pizza? Seriously.