We’re proud to present the second Hot Mess Pinup: “SPRING DAY” by the incredible Ben Chamberlain. His striking work can be found on his homepage and more links to his work are below. I think “Spring Day” is a wistful look at a slightly older Anna – I’m wondering who she’s listening to in that moment…
NOTE: Pinup #1 is by our own Emily Chan, found here.
If you’re not familiar with his work, let me tell you a little bit about Ben. I read a ton of webcomics – probably more than is healthy. I love all genres and art styles, and every now and then I come across one that I believe is a perfect representative of what the art form can be: a perfect merger of style, substance, story and art.
Ben’s work is that representative. He’s got a distinct, dichotomous style that wholly serves the stories he tells. His framing and blocking are incredible, especially when you realize he’s conveying the action and emotion within, despite the minimal use of dialog – or in the case of how I was first introduced to him, absolutely no dialog.
I first discovered his series THE PRINCESS AND THE GIANT when he was advertising on a site that was advertising on Hot Mess, so he’s like a friend of a friend. I was immediately taken with the story and the way it was silently and stoically conveyed. Here a logo and a page example (you can click through the pics to go to the originals):
Ben is also a prolific logo designer - this is one of dozens for tP&tG
A mood-drenched page from The Princess and the Giant
Then I explored deeper into his oeuvre, and stumbled upon the galactic space opera A* (which is pronounced, “A Star” – a real world abbreviation for the supermassive black hole found at the center of the Milky Way galaxy). A* is an epic journey and updates very, very frequently. I’m a space nut, so I was more than willing to give it a try, and now that I’m into the story, it’s on my daily must list.
One of the many Logos Ben created for A*
A* Episode 11, Page 125
A* Episode 13, Page 17
A* Episode 13, Page 19
I was hooked… and I just had to have his take on Hot Mess. When I reached out to him, he was gracious enough to agree to doing a Pinup, so I gave him free reign. I couldn’t be happier with the results. So please to click through the pics when you get a chance and see what Mr. Chamberlain is up to on both The Princess and the Giant and A* – I don’t think you’ll regret it.
