RIDING WITH JONAH HEX: GIUSEPPE CAMUNCOLI

[MattBrady]

We’re kicking off a series of talks with the artists of DC’s Jonah Hex this month, spotlighting the artist of #26, Giuseppe (“Cammo”) Camuncoli. A native of Italy, he’s been bouncing around the U.S. comics for a few years now, and is known mostly for his work in the WildStorm Universe at DC.

The solicitation for this week’s issue reads: Featuring art by Giuseppe Camuncoli (CAPTAIN ATOM: ARMAGEDDON)! The trail of a quartet of criminals lands Hex in the middle of a family that will defy the imagination and turn the stomach!

Without any more ado…here’s Cammo…

Newsarama: First off, tell us a little about yourself, where you grew up, and first break into comics and so on.

Giuseppe Camuncoli: I was born in 1975 in Reggio Emilia, Italy, where I grew up, live and work. I started out with comics in 1997, with the self-published comic book Bonerest, which has also been released in the US thru Image a few years ago. I attended my first San Diego Comic Con in 1998, and I started to show my stuff around.

Being a big Vertigo fan, I was shocked when, in the year 2000, Heidi MacDonald, then editor of Swamp Thing, offered me a fill-in on the series, that was being written by Brian K. Vaughan, and that is definitely how I broke into comics in the US. I ended up staying on the series till the end, and since then I never stopped working for the American market, a real dream come true for me.

Over the years, I worked mostly for DC (on such titles as Hellblazer, Vertigo Pop: Bangkok, Robin, Batman, The Intimates, Captain Atom: Armageddon, 52), but also for Marvel (on Spider-Man’s Tangled Web, Ms. Marvel Special and Heralds of Galactus) and Dynamic (doing covers for Red Sonja, Army Of Darkness, Highlander and Battlestar Galactica). More recently, I’ve been working for the European market, on three different graphic novels that I hope one day will make it to the US. I managed to work on the Jonah Jex issue while pausing on one of those projects, and it was really cool to be able to do it this is gonna be my first painted book, and I’m thrilled.

Oh, and on top of it all, I also got married on the 9th of June. Luckily enough, I managed not to bring any work with me on our honeymoon!

NRAMA: How is working on a Western different than working on superhero comics, and what is the appeal of this type of material for you?

GC: It is indeed really different than superheroes, so I purposely used a different style, thicker and more nervous, with a massive use of blacks, to make it even darker, scarier... The beauty of Jonah Hex is that it’s a Western with a horror twist, and these two genres really mix well with each other, at least in Jimmy and Justin’s hands.

NRAMA: Have you been a fan of Jonah Hex, or is this a new character to you?

GC: I became familiar with the character with the Vertigo miniseries by Lansdale & Truman, and then I became aware of the old stories thru reprints, since we never got (or so I believe) those translated in Italian. I’ve liked Hex since day one, both visually and as a character.

NRAMA: Let’s hit this issue in particular. It’s a particularly gruesome and disturbing story of survival – as you said, equal parts horror and Western. Is it personally disturbing to draw the kind of violence Justin and Jimmy were looking for in this story and how much did you add to it visually?

GC: It is disturbing, in some way, although it’s not like I never drew horror stories. Sometimes, though, the more ‘possible’ a horror scene is, the more difficult it is to work on visualizing it. Cutting a tongue in some ways could be more delicate to draw for me than a horde of demons raping the damned in the pits of hell, because it’s something real. But at the same time, after massive doses of A Clockwork Orange, Reservoir Dogs and other similar movies seen over the years, it was smoother than I thought.

NRAMA: What is it about Jonah that you can relate to in this story?

GC: Almost nothing, apart being horny when facing a beautiful lady trying to seduce you. Hex is so extreme, even when he works his way with his sense of justice, that there’s really small things I would’ve said and done the same if I were in his shoes. But then, being a non violent person, I would’ve never ended up killing people to collect bounties!

NRAMA: Are you a fan of the Western genre and have you worked on a Westerns before or was this simply an opportunity for you to illustrate something different?

GC: I’ve never worked on a Western comic book before, although I began reading comic books when I was a kid with Tex, a famous and superpopular character created in Italy in 1948 and still published with great success today by Sergio Bonelli Editore, with hundreds and hundreds of thousands copies sold monthly only in Italy.

My father used to collect them and he read them to me, while I was absorbing information from the panels, so that’s basically where it all started for me, although I’ve always preferred drawing robots and superheroes than horses and cowboys. It is appealing though because it’s raw stuff, wild and dark and dangerous, and it really gives you the feeling that a man’s life could end in any moment, with a simple gunshot.

I’ve always been a fan of western movies since I saw Sergio Leone and Clint Eastwood’s legendary pieces, so it was great to try and convey those atmospheres, and shots, and settings in a comic book. Plus, it’s a good chance to try something different from what I’ve done so far, I love ‘going the distance’ with new stuff.

NRAMA: What, if anything, do you consistently draw inspiration from?

GC: Hmm... I don’t know, that’s a tough question. It depends on what I’m working on at the moment. On an already established character, I usually base my work on what has come before me, usually making a selection of the stuff I prefer. On Jonah Hex, it was artists like Luke Ross, Tony DeZuniga and the awesome Jordi Bernet: from their unique renditions, I take what I can and go in my own direction, trying to make it resonate with what’s been done before, rather than doing something completely different. On a more general level, though, I draw random inspiration from everything I think can fit in my pages, depending on the story I’m working on: movies, videos, paintings, faces I see on the street, advertising... It’s not a very conscious process, there’s always a grey area from which I pick up stuff that I really don’t know that well myself. It just comes to me and if I feel it’s right, then I use it.

NRAMA: In what ways do you stretch yourself to make your work grow and did this issue of Jonah Hex contribute to your growth?

GC: As I said, I don’t really have that much control on this creative flux. I always try to outdo myself with every new work (and sometimes it’s not so difficult) – but usually I can’t afford the luxury to spend too much time focusing on how to make my work grow. Normally, after the book is printed I can judge my work on a more impersonal basis, and see if the choice I made at the moment worked out fine or not. On this specific case, I worked on layouts only, and my friend Stefano Landini provided beautiful finshes over my raw linework. We already worked together on Heralds of Galactus, and we really feel like we get better and better as a team with every new page. I really loved how spontaneous the whole process was for me, meaning that I felt no need to work on thumbnails – I went directly with the layouts on the page. It felt great seeing that it all flew pretty well from the beginning, thanks also to a fantastic script!

NRAMA: What is your biggest challenge personally as it pertains to making comics?

GC: Focusing on the storytelling, and have it follow the script loyally (unless something in it doesn’t work), to create something balanced, in which the art doesn’t prevail on the story and vice versa. A good comic to me is always the one the reader can go through without feeling that an element is dissonant with another, with as few flaws as possible. What interests me is that the whole process of reading is fluid, dynamic and homogeneous.

NRAMA: How was it working from the script? Is it detailed or does it loosely sketch out scenes and ideas?

GC: It was fantastic, not loose at all but at the same time not too over-detailed, which left me a lot of freedom of storytelling. In fact, as I said, I went straight for the final page, I had already the layout figured, clearly, in my mind as I was going through the script. It had a real cinematic flavor, it made my job easy and fun.

NRAMA: Have you ever gotten to a point where you feel like you're cranking out work or do you tend to work in a way that leaves room for chance, and possibly, failure?

GC: One of the reason I’m working in comics is that it allows me to express my style in possibly infinite variations and evolutions. I’ve always adapted my style to the tone of the story I was working on, and once that is set, then I follow that ‘trail’ to obtain something coherent till the end, even for a short story. I’d rather risk and follow my instinct with something new or unexpected, and accept the possible failure of that ‘test’, than going with the cranking out – unless there’s an emergency with deadlines and I can’t afford to play with lines and forms.

Jonah Hex #26 is in stores this week. Click here (and scroll down) for more preview pages.

[Jed Saxon]

Cammo on "Jonah Hex"? Whoooo!!! Can't wait for the trade. Maybe I'll even switch to single issues as long as Cammo is drawing.
Great artist and very nice and funny guy.

[Godfather]

Originally Posted by Jed Saxon

Cammo on "Jonah Hex"? Whoooo!!! Can't wait for the trade.

Sales are dismal on this title. Help it out by picking up the monthlies.

[Sean Walsh]

Originally Posted by Godfather

Sales are dismal on this title. Help it out by picking up the monthlies.

While sales in America aren't that great, I understand that sales in Europe are INSANELY good (which is why so many European artists - like Cammo and Jordi Bernet - are part of this series so often, I think) and that the trades sell very well too. So far its int'l presence is enough to justify continued publication, and I hope it keeps going because it's damned good.

[Hawkangel]

I love this title and look forward to each issue.
This artist's work looks great as well.
I was always into Super-hero comics and if 10 years ago someone told me that I'd be looking forward to a western comic each month, I would've told them they we insane.
I'm glad I jumped on board.
I'd encourage anyone who was mildly interested in Jonah Hex to check out the title.
Great work, DC.

[coldwarmyth]

Don't like the art...too cartoony for me.

And the writing...well, I've aired my grievances in the past. I've lost any feeling I had for the character with the writing done during this run. Of the 18 issues I read, only issue #12 was any good.

[Floyd Lawton]

Originally Posted by coldwarmyth

Don't like the art...too cartoony for me.

And the writing...well, I've aired my grievances in the past. I've lost any feeling I had for the character with the writing done during this run. Of the 18 issues I read, only issue #12 was any good.

And what Hex stories do you like? These have all been in the same vein as the older stories.

[grphxkindaguy]

Originally Posted by coldwarmyth

Don't like the art...too cartoony for me.

And the writing...well, I've aired my grievances in the past. I've lost any feeling I had for the character with the writing done during this run. Of the 18 issues I read, only issue #12 was any good.

the constant barrage of single-issue stories is what did me in and made me drop the book. The artistic musical chairs didn't help matters...

[Meglos]

Originally Posted by grphxkindaguy

the constant barrage of single-issue stories is what did me in and made me drop the book. The artistic musical chairs didn't help matters...

Strange. That's what's kept me on the book.

That being said, I still miss Luke Ross. How about an issue drawn by him every once in awhile.

[grphxkindaguy]

Originally Posted by Meglos

Strange. That's what's kept me on the book.

That being said, I still miss Luke Ross. How about an issue drawn by him every once in awhile.

one-shot issues that don't continue (at least) some sort of subplot, furthering the history of the character along, are a waste IMO. I'll go back and read Archie comics if I want that...

the "jump the shark" moment for me on this book was when Ross left.

[HexMan]

Part of the reason why Jonah Hex isn't written like most others is due to the fact that Jonah has an expiration date of 1904. It's well documented. Kinda loses the point to "further the history" of a character that you already know how and when he dies.

True, that doesn't help out NEW readers of Jonah Hex.....but I think most of the people who were fans of the original series don't have a problem with the Gray/Palmiotti one.

[grphxkindaguy]

Originally Posted by HexMan

Part of the reason why Jonah Hex isn't written like most others is due to the fact that Jonah has an expiration date of 1904. It's well documented. Kinda loses the point to "further the history" of a character that you already know how and when he dies.

True, that doesn't help out NEW readers of Jonah Hex.....but I think most of the people who were fans of the original series don't have a problem with the Gray/Palmiotti one.

Yeah, I know how Hex dies. Perhaps I should've used the phrases "growing character development" or "develop continuity" instead?

[blokhed]

I actually like that art a lot. If he were a regular penciler, I'd be happy. I'm always anxious about getting the new Hex trades because the art is hit and miss. I liked Luke Ross's, I didn't care for Phil Noto's (he can't draw guns or people holding them correctly). This stuff looks good.

[Floyd Lawton]

Ross was perfect. I really like Jordi's stuff too. Id like to see some more Russ Heath. Joe Kubert would be sweet. I like the rotating artists though.

[dwf]

I love this book. I had never read a Jonah Hex story before this run started, and it's become my favorite comic! I think there is a good mix of single issue stories, multi-part arcs, and callbacks to previous events.

[tyopot]

i love this series because it gets to showcase a lot of rotating artists, and the stories are really good. some art i'd like to see in future arcs are : Brian Bolland interiors, Kevin 'O Neill art, Bernie Wrightson stuff, Richard Corben, Ryan Sook interiors etc.

[PatrickWedge]

I like the fact it has rotating artists (with some returns) because it helps the book ship on time, it allows the one and done stories to be told without burdening the artist to pick up a thread from a previous story and the artists that drop in can work on the book with their schedule in mind. Having the single story issues also makes it easier for people to try the book without being bogged down by continuity. Still one of my top 5 books each month.

[SAIDESTROYER]

i havent read any hex stuff before this book. maybe ill buy those showcase presents trades. anyone wanna recommend 'em??