More lantern interviews than you can shake a stick at! First we gave you a huge interview with the upcoming Green Lantern writer Robert Venditti. Then Van Jensen spoke on Green Lantern Corps and now Jensen’s artist on the book, Bernard Chang spoke with ComicVine about his departure from Venditti’s Demon Knights, how he’s approaching GLC and drawing new Green Lanterns. Read some highlights below.

 

Chang on the creative process for GLC:

The creative process is very much the same as the other projects. After getting the script, I’ll do an initial read thru, sit on it for a day to see if anything in particular jumps out, then do a round of layouts on the computer, the next day then another pass when I’m roughing out pencils on the actual boards. Adding an additional step in the process does take a little bit longer, but bottom line, it gives me another opportunity to pick the right shot and angle, as well as controlling the tempo and pacing of the story.

 

With the colors, I’ve developed a great connection with Marcelo Maiolo, whom I worked with in DK and specifically requested he move onto GLC with me. Marcelo brings the final work up another level, and has a great eye for mood and settings. My work has always been very open, so certain colors can make or break a drawing. I’m very fortunate to have worked with many talented people throughout my career, and Marcelo is amongst the top.

The differences in drawing, between Demon Knights and Green Lantern Corps:

For the most part, I want to portray a bit more sleekness with GLC. Towards the end of DK, things got very gritty with the horde of vampires, collected from various regions of Europe, so I made an effort to reflect that in the lineart. I’m still looking to find that exact “fine line” with GLC, and reflecting on my previous single guest issue in EMERALD WARRIORS a couple years ago as my foundation. With each project, I try to find a particular line quality to suit the story.

 

There’s also the aspect of storytelling that often gets overshadowed by drawing “pretty” pictures. For me, being able to tell a story, building an emotional connection with the reader, and having my unique storyteller’s voice is the most important aspect of being a comic book artist. You can give the same script to five different artists, but you will get five different books. Not only drawn differently, but told differently with varied sensibilities. Imagine giving the same script to Quentin Tarantino, JJ Abrams, Ang Lee, Steven Spielberg, and Judd Apatow.

Chang talks about designing alien technology/backgrounds for GLC:

Usually when jumping on a new book, it takes an issue or two to really get a good grasp on the characters. So right now, I’m trying to draw and sketch the Lanterns as much as possible to help mitigate that learning curve. Fortunately, there are some new characters in the story arc as well, so I get to start from scratch there. The main difference between DK and GLC is obviously the sic-fi component. With DK, the only time I used a ruler was to draw the panel boarders, but with GLC, because things are high tech and sleeker, a lot more time is spent on designing and developing unique and futuristic technology and architecture. While the core of GLC stories have a humanistic resonance, the settings are all of different alien worlds, and part of that wonder can be translated in design.