InterPop Comics Q&A: Horror Artist Cliff Richards Brings the Scary
Cliff Richards is the dynamic artist who’s drawn the mysterious Abyss for InterPop in Emergents Presents #1 and #3 and is part of the all-star artistic lineup in The Nine #3, available here. He’s an expert at all things horror and macabre. Read on to know more about his influences, tools, and favorite comics!
InterPop: What are some of your artistic influences?
Cliff: My first influences were the big guns John Buscema, Gene Colan, and Ross Andru, but the biggest influence was Alex Raymond. Of course there are so many others, but to make a long story short, these ones were the first ones when I was kid.
InterPop: Working on these comics means you’re working with a horizontal page template. How has that changed your approach to a page?
Cliff: At first glance I thought it would make things harder for me, but Rachel gave me all the feedback to make the transition smoother, and now it’s not a problem at all.
InterPop: Do you work traditionally or digitally, and what tools do you use?
Cliff: When I started 20 years ago, my work was totally traditional, but as time went by, my fellow artists’ friends started to use digital tools, and I thought it was amazing. These days, my work is totally digital, but for commissions I still jump to the old paper artboard and traditional pencils and inks.
InterPop: What was the comic that made you want to be a comics artist?
Cliff: Again, Alex Raymond on Flash Gordon and Rip Kirby were my first comics as long as I can remember. Later I discovered the horror comic books with lotas, a great artist that influenced me to want to work in this media. I couldn’t be more happier to still work in this market.
InterPop: What’s next for you art-wise?
Cliff: Since I have so much interest in horror books, I like to work on this genre sometimes besides superhero stuff, but all I want is to keep drawing comic books as long as I can.
