Amanda Conner

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Amanda Conner
Conner at the
San Diego Comic Con 2018 WB party
NationalityAmerican
Area(s)Writer, Penciller, Inker
Notable works
Harley Quinn
Power Girl
Gatecrasher
Spouse(s)Jimmy Palmiotti
https://paperfilms.com/amanda-conner/

Amanda Conner is an American

Atlee
.

Her other published work includes illustrations for

A&E
's Biography magazine.

Early life

Amanda Conner studied at

Frank Miller for his pacing and his ability to create tension and intense action and reactions.[2]

Career

Gatecrasher: Ring Of Fire #4 (June 2000). Cover art by Amanda Conner (penciler), Jimmy Palmiotti (inker)

Conner worked at a color separation company, which handled comics coloring prior to the industry adoption of computer programs such as

Yellowjacket back-up story in Solo Avengers #12 (November 1988).[2][4]

Her other early work includes

pencils
.

From 1993 to 1994 she penciled issues #1–10 of

Crusade Comics. She also returned to Vampirella with Harris' Vampirella Lives #1–3, which teamed her with writer Warren Ellis.[4]

In 1997 she illustrated the

Conner returned to Painkiller Jane with a #0 issue, which recounted the character's origin.

Her other comic book credits include

Blade comic to go with the special DVD edition.[4]

Her art has appeared on ABC'S

Arm & Hammer, Playskool, and Nickelodeon.[7] Nike, Inc. commissioned Conner and fellow comics artist Jan Duursema to design the Make Yourself: A Super Power advertising campaign in 2011.[8]

Conner did modeling/art reference work for the Marvel miniseries Elektra: Assassin in the 1980s, and for artist Joe Jusko's Punisher / Painkiller Jane in 2000.

Conner, Palmiotti, and writer Justin Gray work together via their multimedia entertainment company PaperFilms. They collaborated on the

Batgirl. IDW Publishing released The Art of Amanda Conner in April 2012[13][14] while DC Comics published DC Comics: The Sequential Art of Amanda Conner the following November.[15][16]

In 2012–2013, Conner drew the Before Watchmen: Silk Spectre limited series which she co-wrote with Darwyn Cooke. Cooke had insisted on having Conner as a collaborator on the series, stating that "I knew I had something to say about Laurie, and I needed somebody to collaborate with who could help realize it. The only person I know alive that could do that was Amanda. So I kind of made it a fuck-or-walk situation, you know? [Laughs.] 'We get Amanda, or I can’t do this.' So that made it incumbent upon [DC co-publisher] Dan [DiDio] to bring Amanda into it."[17] Conner and Palmiotti launched a Harley Quinn ongoing series in November 2013.[18][19]

She provided the design concepts for the DC Universe streaming Harley Quinn animated series.[20] Many of the story line ideas and dialog have been used for source material on the episodes. These concepts have also been launching points for both the Birds of Prey and Suicide Squad feature movies.[21]

Conner's art was featured in "

Stuart Bloom asks the women for ideas on how to attract more women to his shop, and Amy Farrah Fowler (Mayim Bialik) points out that an illustration hanging on one of the shop's walls, "Girl on a Leash", may not be conducive to attracting female customers. The image, which was illustrated by Conner and colored by Paul Mounts, depicts a scantily-clad woman being held on a chain leash by a muscular, whip-wielding masked man.[22] The piece was custom-drawn for the show by Conner.[23]

In 2015, Conner was voted as the #2 top female comics artist of all time.[24]

On May 18, 2019, at the Comic Con Revolution event in Ontario, California, Conner was named the 2019 recipient of the Joe Kubert Distinguished Storyteller Award, which is given to "outstanding comic book creators who exemplify both Joe Kubert's artistic talent and his commitment to nurturing the comic book community."[25]

Technique and materials

Power Girl, from JSA Classified #1 (Sept. 2005). Art by Amanda Conner.

While reading each page of a script, Conner does tiny thumbnail sketches with stick figures corresponding to the story indicated on each page, in order to help her design the page's layout. She then does tighter, more elaborate sketches, though still fairly small compared with the finished artwork,

light-box it onto Bristol board, if she intends to have it inked by her husband and collaborator, Jimmy Palmiotti, but will do the pencils "lighter and looser" if she intends to ink it herself, as she already knows how she wants the artwork rendered.[3]

Conner has created her own paper stock and blue line format on her drawing paper, because, she explains, she likes having those configurations pre-printed on the page, and feels that "sometimes the rough is too toothy and the smooth is too slick." The stock she uses is the 10 in × 15 in (250 mm × 380 mm) Strathmore 500 series, but she also orders a custom 8 in × 12 in (200 mm × 300 mm) stock because she sometimes finds those dimensions more comfortable and easier to work on more quickly. She also finds the Strathmore 300 series "pretty good", in that she appreciates its texture and greater affordability, but says that she must occasionally contend with getting a "bleedy batch".[2]

Conner uses mechanical pencils with .03 lead because she finds it easier to use than regular pencils that require her to stop and sharpen them frequently.[2] When working on one of her own projects, such as The Pro, she prefers to letter the art herself, before the inking stage, as she appreciates the handmade, organic look and feel of hand lettering, in contrast to the computer lettering with which most books are currently produced.[3] To ink her own artwork, she uses Staedtler .03, .01 and .005 technical pen, and will sometimes use a Copic .005 for extremely fine work, as these implements feel better in her hands than crowquills and brushes.[2] As her artwork is open and lacks much shading, Conner feels that Paul Mounts is a compatible colorist for her work, as he achieves "the right amount of bounciness or moodiness, depending on what's needed." Conner has stated that her favorite things to draw are facial expressions and body language.[3]

Personal life

Conner has lived in Los Angeles; Jacksonville, Florida; and Connecticut.[3] She and her husband and frequent collaborator Jimmy Palmiotti[26][27] lived in Brooklyn, New York City but as of 2010 live in Florida,[3] which Palmiotti referred to in an interview as the "sixth borough of New York."[28]

Awards

Bibliography

Archie Comics

Black Bull Entertainment

  • Gatecrasher #1-6 (2000–2001)
  • Gatecrasher: Ring of Fire #1-4 (2000)

Claypool Comics

DC Comics

Event Comics

  • Kid Death & Fluffy Spring Break Special #1 (1996)
  • Legends of Kid Death & Fluffy #1 (1997)
  • Painkiller Jane #0 (1999)
  • Painkiller Jane/Darkchylde #1
  • Painkiller Jane vs. The Darkness: "Stripper" #1 (1997)

Harris Comics

  • Vampirella Death and Destruction #1-3 (1996)
  • Vampirella: Halloween Trick & Treat #1 (2004)
  • Vampirella Lives #1–3 (1996–1997)
  • Vampirella Monthly #1–3 ("Ascending Evil") and #7–9 ("Queen's Gambit," (with Billy
    SHI
    )) (1997)
  • Vampirella 25th anniversary special (1996)
  • Vengeance of Vampirella (1996) Wizard #55 supplemental mini-comic
  • Vengeance of Vampirella (1996) #25

Image Comics

Marvel Comics

References

  1. ^ Weldon, Glen (August 13, 2012). "Comics Legend Joe Kubert, 1926-2012: An Appreciation". NPR. p. 2. Archived from the original on December 23, 2013. Retrieved August 16, 2012. His Joe Kubert School of Cartoon and Graphic Art in New Jersey has produced several generations of comics creators (including his own sons, Andy and Adam Kubert) who have gone on to make their own, widely varied, contributions to the field: Amanda Conner, Rick Veitch, Eric Shanower, Steve Lieber, Scott Kolins, and many more.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h Creator-Owned Heroes #5 Image Comics. October 2012.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i Salavetz, Judith; Drate, Spencer. Creating Comics!, 2010, Rockport Publishers, pp, 34 and 35
  4. ^ a b c Amanda Conner at the Grand Comics Database
  5. ^ "Bayou Billy at Archie Comics". Archie Comics. Archived from the original on April 17, 1999.
  6. ^ a b c "Amanda Conner". Lambiek Comiclopedia. August 10, 2012. Archived from the original on July 28, 2012.
  7. ^ "Amanda Conner". PaperFilms.com. n.d. Archived from the original on June 9, 2013. Retrieved January 12, 2014. Amanda Conner started out in comics working on small projects for Marvel and Archie. She had been working as an illustrator for New York ad agencies Kornhauser and Calene and Kidvertisers. She worked on a number of launches and campaigns such as Arm & Hammer, PlaySkool and Nickelodeon, to name a few.
  8. ^ Johnston, Rich (October 6, 2011). "Amanda Conner and Jan Duursema Create Female Superheroes For Nike". Bleeding Cool. Archived from the original on January 18, 2012. Retrieved March 12, 2012.
  9. ^ Arrant, Chris (November 12, 2008). "All Things Amanda - Talking to Amanda Conner". Newsarama. Archived from the original on January 12, 2014.
  10. ISBN 978-0-7566-6742-9. Writers Justin Gray and Jimmy Palmiotti, together with artist Amanda Conner, emphasized the fun of Power Girl in her first ongoing series. {{cite book}}: |first2= has generic name (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link
    )
  11. ^ Arrant, Chris (November 4, 2008). "Amanda Conner: Putting the Pencil to Terra". Newsarama. Archived from the original on January 12, 2014.
  12. ^ Trecker, Jamie (August 20, 2009). "Wednesday Comics Thursday: Amanda Conner Brings The Cute". Newsarama. Archived from the original on January 12, 2014.
  13. ^ Arrant, Chris (April 24, 2012). "Silk Talkings: Artist Amanda Conner's Tell-All Art Book". Newsarama. Archived from the original on January 12, 2014.
  14. .
  15. ^ "The Sequential Art of Amanda Conner". DC Comics. November 7, 2012. Archived from the original on May 17, 2013.
  16. .
  17. ^ Sava, Oliver (July 12, 2012). "Writer/artist Darwyn Cooke talks Before Watchmen and creating strong heroines". The A.V. Club. Archived from the original on January 10, 2014. Retrieved February 9, 2022.
  18. ^ Ching, Albert (July 16, 2013). "Conner & Palmiotti Team on New Harley Quinn Ongoing Series". Newsarama. Archived from the original on August 21, 2013.
  19. ISBN 978-1465424563. Back in her own ongoing series, Harley Quinn's new lease on life was celebrated by writers Amanda Conner and Jimmy Palmiotti. {{cite book}}: |first2= has generic name (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link
    )
  20. ^ Shedeen, Jesse (July 21, 2019), Harley Quinn Series Premiere: "Pilot" Review - Comic Con 2019, IGN, retrieved May 12, 2022
  21. ^ "Comic Books To Read To Prepare For 2020's Superhero Movies". CINEMABLEND. 2019-11-22. Retrieved 2019-11-29.
  22. ^ Gallaway, Lauren (October 19, 2015). "Amanda Conner Art Featured on The Big Bang Theory". Comic Book Resources. Archived from the original on September 5, 2016.
  23. ^ Hoffer, Christian (September 6, 2017). "Amanda Conner Draws Steamy Piece of Artwork for This Week's Big Bang Theory". ComicBook.com. Archived from the original on March 2, 2021. Retrieved February 20, 2022.
  24. ^ Cronin, Brian (March 31, 2015). "Top 25 Female Comic Book Artists #3-1". Comic Book Resources. Archived from the original on June 10, 2017.
  25. ^ a b Arrant, Chris (May 18, 2019). "Amanda Conner Recognized with Joe Kubert Distinguished Storyteller Award". Newsarama. Archived from the original on May 19, 2019.
  26. ^ Davis, Lauren (April 5, 2010). "WC10: Amanda Conner & Jimmy Palmiotti". Comic Book Resources. Archived from the original on October 24, 2013. Retrieved February 9, 2022. Archive requires scrolldown
  27. ^ Rogers, Vaneta (December 7, 2009). "Amanda Conner's Power Girl Girl Power". Newsarama. Archived from the original on November 9, 2013.
  28. ^ McGinley, Brendan (June 3, 2014). "Mad Love: Amanda Conner & Jimmy Palmiotti". Man Cave Daily. Archived from the original on June 5, 2014. Retrieved February 26, 2016.
  29. ^ "2010 Inkwell Awards Winners"
  30. Comic-Con International: San Diego
    . October 15, 2014. Retrieved May 21, 2019.

External links