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Friendly Friday: Transformers and Dan Khanna

There’s something about Transformers that I find uniquely satisfying. Is it the big giant robots beating the crap out of each other? Maaaaayyyyyybe. Is it the hilarious way that Megatron would shut down Starscream‘s whining with a single glare? Or the fact that there were ultra-rare female Transformers who showed up in the movie but were thought to be extinct? Okay, maybe not so much. (Side note: I want that story. Did Megatron kill them all?) Starscream was definitely true to his name. But Soundwave, hoo… He was the shizzit. I mean, seriously, you have a boom box Transformer with a chest that can open and close to release other Transformers. That is legendary, right there.

Thanks to a re-issue of the original, I did manage to get my hands on this bad boy.

Fast forward to New York Comic Con many years later… I wasn’t able to attend, but for our anniversary my SO brought home several retro Transformers prints beautifully illustrated by Dan Khanna. As it turns out Dan has worked on Transformers for some time, and is a frequent guest at comic book conventions who can often be found in artist alley. Dan is one of the artists that I refer to as “hoofing it”, because he’s always on the road with a sketchbook in hand and another booth to set up. I honestly don’t know how he manages to live in NYC, travel as much as he does, and draw so beautifully. So awesome! Thanks to his busy travel schedule, I did manage to catch up with Dan the following year at C2E2 and enjoyed a “geek out” moment.

According to the Transformers Wiki (Life goals!), Dan started out as a fan artist before he was hired to work on the official line. This, right here, is a testament to what I keep preaching: fans become pros all the damn time. There’s no such thing as “just a fan”, and I’m very happy that Dan’s talent continues to be recognized and appreciated.

Known primarily for his work with Transformers, Dan has also worked as a colorist/illustrator on comics for IDW and Titan UK; he has also designed packaging for Hasbro toys as well. In fact, you could say that Dan is…more than meets the eye. (Insert groan here.) I’m hoping someone will tap his creativity for the sequel to Pacific Rim. Can you imagine Dan illustrating big, giant Jaegers beating the crap out of each other for a second time? Yes, yes I can.

For more about Dan and his work, you can visit www.dantheartguy.com or Dan the Art Guy on Deviant Art page.

Mood

Caffeinated Beverages Consumed

Work-Out Minutes Logged Yesterday

In My Ears

Game Last Played

Final Fantasy X-2

Book Last Read

Aurora

Movie/TV Show Last Viewed

ONCE: Upon a Time

Latest Artistic Project

Make Art Not War 2017 Challenge and Rules

Latest Releases

In Volo’s Wake

Dungeons & Dragons 5th Edition

Dark Ears Companion

Kobold Guide to Gamemastering

Current State of Projects

project update

Creative Prompt: Make Your Own Survival Guide!

I discovered artist Colin Matthes after reading an article about his work. He’s a community-based artist whose survivalist-based pieces have been featured in the Wisconsin Triennial at the Madison Museum of Contemporary Art. Colin is obsessed with survivalism, and his illustrations answer a question about how to survive in extreme conditions like urban warfare. He also runs a workshop that invites participants to channel their essential knowledge, to illustrate what they know in a survival guide.

I love Matthes’ awesome idea! As a creative prompt, creating a survival guide is easy enough to apply across most mediums. Take the expert knowledge you have learned and record that information for posterity’s sake! You might know how to operate an espresso machine (which is clearly needed in times of duress), or you might know how to knit a hat when you don’t have any needles, or survive if you’re stranded in the cold, rain, or hot conditions.

Your knowledge could be relayed by:

Drawing a comic
Embroidering panels
Creating a storyboard
Writing a catchy tune
Filming a how-to commercial

For writers, this prompt can also help you learn word conservation(1) to help tidy up your prose. To do that, pick an area of expertise you have and write down each step. Then, put that first draft away for a couple of days. When you revisit it, read it out loud. Did you get everything? Then, pare down any unnecessary or overly complicated words and phrases. Set it aside, then revise again.

This exercise is, as Colin intended, also great for groups and community organizations, because there’s a lot of value in critiquing and getting feedback in this environment. If you are thinking of a group activity, I encourage you to reach out to Colin Matthes, the artist who inspired this creative prompt.

(1) Apparently, this is a phrase I’ve concocted per Google, so let me define it. Word conservation is a technique used to write prose using as few words as possible while retaining the meaning. Often, but not always, this means the vocabulary is at the high school reading level, too.