Spotlight On Portsmouth Comic Con: Ben Templesmith

Templesmith is an Australian comic artist and writer who began his career working on Todd McFarlane’s Hellspawn for Image Comics back in 2002.

Since then, he has worked for IDW, Dark Horse and DC. He is perhaps best known for co-creating IDW’s hit comic 30 Days of Night with writer Steve Niles and drawing Warren Ellis’s Fell, which was published by Image.

He has always enjoyed drawing horror as he revealed in an interview back in 2014 with Diabolique: “I just like drawing horrible things, or making people think horrible things. I like the dark. I tend to think the horrible things that happen in life define and shape us far more than the good things, on balance.” Diabolique Ben Templesmith Interview 2014

He also drew DC’s Gotham by Midnight back in 2014. Most recently he has been funding a number of projects via kickstarter including Blood Songs.

He sees social media as playing a key role in comics these days as he said in a chat with cinemaspartan back in 2016:”I’d say social media is crucial to the connection with an audience, either old or new, especially considering whatever “new” comics in a store (except for the really good ones!) are very beholden to the direct market distribution system. The sheer amount of new and interesting things online will always beat that gateway. And success online often eventually translates to the other anyway. For me, it’s all about being an actual human online. I’m not there to do anything but be myself first. And if folks like my work on top of that and look me up enough to buy something off me, then even better. Comics folks were the trail blazers of the current internet.” Cinemaspartan Ben Templesmith interview

He is a regular visitor to the UK but he is always a great addition to any show as his distinctive style has won him a loyal following around the world.

Ben Templesmit Portsmouth www.tripwiremagazine.co.uk