Showcase: Lucas Durham, Illustrators of the Future Winner

During my first week of college, I was gifted with one of Frank Frazetta’s published sketchbooks. I was amazed and inspired by the raw ideas and energetic gesture lines that leapt off every page. Since then, I’ve continued to be intrigued by other artists’ sketchbooks, because they’re a glimpse into someone else’s thought process. You can see how they study the world around them; how they muddle through a problem; how they take seeds of an idea all the way through to a final painting. There’s a vulnerability shared in the pages that you don’t normally find in finished work.

With that in mind, this year I’m releasing my first published sketchbook. Throughout recent years, I’ve built up a portfolio of visual artifacts: images originating from a variety of planned projects, studies, and art challenges. It includes some of my favorite drawing series, including a series of drawings pulled from abstract graphite blots, and portraits of women with fey traits. There’s also whimsical doodles, portrait studies, and of course, fan art from various media. The sketchbook demonstrates my artistic process as well as a glimpse into my everyday life—an intimate collection of who I am.

His book was recently launched on his Etsy Storefront and is available for purchase there as well as at conventions where he is showcased, including GenCon in Indianapolis, August 2-5, 2018.

Lucas is an Illustrators of the Future winner published in Writers of the Future Volume 29. Find out more about him at www.LucasDurham.com