Camilla D’Errico is one of the most talented and creative artists that I have ever come across. After her new Tanpopo
project was brought to my attention I knew I had to twist her arm to take a moment to answer a few our question and let me share her glorious artwork with all of you.
Q) How did you get your start in Art? What was your first professional work and how did you get it?
A- I first started my career in 1998 at Comic Con International. The first story i ever penciled was for Committed Comics and it was part of an anthology called Threads. It was the moment I got my foot in the door, and though the work I did
back then was not published to a great extent, it was my first published work and began my adventures in comics.
Q) You have a very unique style. How did you develop it? Was it a result of formal study or did you develop it whole cloth from your own talent?
A- Unfortunately I could never find a school or program that developed comics and styling, so my style is definitely cut from my own cloth of trial and error. If I think back to my first comics I cringe, styles evolve and change constantly, so what was fresh 5 years ago is something I want to bury in my closet now. There was a turning point however when I went from North America comic style to Asian Manga style. This change occurred a year and a half into my work on comics and i spent months on a creative hiatus to develop it.
Q) In your Tanpopo projects you combine art and classic poetry to create an exquisite eclectic mix. What inspired you to do that and why did you pick Faust and the Rhyme of the ancient mariner?
A- I’ve always been a fan of literature ever since high school. I had a very educational class, English Lit, and it really turned my head into the beauty and poetry of classic literature. And it was in that class that I created a five page comic story of Hamlet but modernized it (Hamlet was in the mafia and it was a hostile take over by the “family”). So I guess I was always trying to combine literature and visual expression. What I find so shocking is that it isn’t more widely common. We make literature into movies, into plays but not graphic novels.
I was so inspired after watching an opera of Faust in Vancouver that I immediately decided to explore the idea of literature and comics more seriously. I had previously self published a short story based on Mark Twain’s Mysterious Stranger, but it was one book and nothing more. With Tanpopo i saw a world of possibility, although initially I had intended it to be a one book
story about life and death, however as I read more books and poetry I began to collaborate with my sister AdaPia, also a huge lit buff. Now this project is something that has taken over my mind, and happily so. As for Ryhme of the Ancient Mariner, it had been one of my favorite poems since childhood, and its themes fit perfectly with the second issue of Tanpopo.
Q) Your work has been featured on many items and projects. Is there anything new that you would to do or an existing property that you might like to work on?
A- Well I’ve always wanted to work more in 3D, and recreate my characters as figures. Sometimes it takes years to develop these projects, so my patience will just have to hold out until one day I can release a series of my own figures and toys. Another project would be a cartoon, animation or movie of one of my stories or characters: BURN, Tanpopo, Kuro, Billy Boom Boom or even
Helmetgirls!
Q) If people would like to see more of your work will should they go?
A- My website is a landmine of information, www.camilladerrico.com. I keep it updated regularly with images and the blog lists current events such as gallery shows and comic conventions. For a more personal experience I have a Facebook Fanpage where I daily interact with people and put up lots of photos to share with everyone. http://www.facebook.com/camilla.derrico#!/camilladerricoart?ref=ts
Final four
Q) When the zombies take over the world where will you be?
A- With my boyfriend and his brothers heading to my parents place. They have the perfect strategic location with lots of food and animals and perfect vantage point.
Q) Jedi, Ninja, vampire, were-wolf, pirate, fairy or Spartan?
Ahhh its always a toss up between vampire and ninja…I’ll go with Vampire the non-glittering version.
Q) What one piece of art, be it music, book, film or picture, do you think people must experience before they die?
A-That’s a question that’s too hard to answer. Best I can say is watch Tekkonkinkreet while hanging a Mark Ryden painting, listening to The Dead Can Dance in your home after finishing The Diary of Adam and Eve by Mark Twain.
Q) Give one fact that most people would not
believe about you?
A- Oh my…..I horde packets of sugar.
