Profile
My name is Howard Simpson. I was born in Newark, NJ. My mom says I started drawing when I was two years old. I remember in fifth grade, when we took art for the first time, that the other students went “Oooo” over my drawings. I especially liked the attention from girls. Sorry fellas, I'm not available. In the years between both of those events I found some old, discarded comic books in the basement. Upon reading these four-color treasures I decided on my life's course. I would become a storyteller. And with all of my artwork I'm endeavoring to tell a story. Sometimes it's a personal story, the client's story and others it is the character's story. I have never been married to any style. I create the art as the story demands to be told. When the client has a particular style in mind, then I can draw in any style to suit their needs. I will never abandon the pencil and brush, yet I am using more digital tools such as a Wacom tablet and stylus. Usually using software such as ArtRage, Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop. I'm always including more in the mix, such as Sketchbook, Clip Studio Paint, Procreate, Medibang Paint Pro, Mischief and Krita. I am a natural born storyteller and have been drawing for major publishers and animation studios. I have knowledge of the cinematic language and understand the principles of acting, displaying emotions and showing motion. I have the ability to analyze written scene and translate them into a visual form. Among other illustration assignments began drawing storyboards for Action-News & Accu-Weather while attending Temple University's Tyler School of Art. Graduated with Bachelor of Fine Arts in Graphic Design with Minor in Communications - Radio, TV and Film. Started drawing for DC Comics and freelance jobs began to include more comic book publishers - Marvel, Dark Horse and Valiant. Clients include various advertising agencies, Bantam Doubleday Dell, Simon & Schuster, Random House, HBO, Disney, Nickelodeon and Sony among others. I am creating my own future now with my creator owned web comics which can be viewed on Tapas at https://tapas.io/abbastudios Currently I am working on two personal projects, which are creator owned graphic novels. Outside of that I am doing freelance work for ad agencies, entertainment and publishing companies. You may find me online at my blog at https://www.justcreate.net/ and Instagram @abbastudios
Style/Techniques
Black & White, Caricature, Cartoon, Design, Digital, Graphic, Logo Design, Realism, Stylized, Whimsical, Concept Art, Film/Entertainment, Vector
Subject/Specialties
Humor, Action, Adventure, Book Covers, Celebrities, Character Development, Children, Children's Books, Children's Products, Comic Book, Computers, Editorial, Education, Family, Futuristic, Historical, Licensing, Mystery, Packaging, People, Portrait, Posters, Product, Scientific, Sci-Fi, Sports, Toys & Games, Transportation, Travel, Food/Beverage, Lifestyle, Vintage / Retro, Feminine, Masculine, Youth, Ethnic, Edgy, Urban