IDW Artist Showcase: Jay Fosgitt

This was originally going to be a "Top 5" of my favorite artists for the MLP comics (loosely inspired by Guildmaster Grovyle's own Top 10 Worst IDW Stinkers, my own list of which I will probably make eventually). But after picking up the art book My Little Pony: Art is Magic!, I decided to push the envelope a little and do an "artist showcase" for some of my favorite IDW artists. No longer a "Top 5", but still a way to share my appreciation for the art that IDW Publishing has put out since The Return of Queen Chrysalis.

Full disclosure: This is an art appreciation series only; the quality of the stories that these art styles are drawn around have no bearing. Also, while my familiarity with the scope of these artists' work and repertoire is limited mostly to MLP, I will try to take some of their non-MLP-related work into consideration.

And who better to kick off this series with than a fairly new artist to the MLP comics whose style is pretty love-it-or-hate-it: Jay Fosgitt.

http://i.imgur.com/Rz5Ft5m.jpg

Fosgitt's first contribution to the MLP comics was Friends Forever Issue 11 -- Rainbow Dash and Spitfire -- and on first impressions, I thought his art style was very cute (if a little crude). It struck me a lot as "Looney Tunes meets Calvin and Hobbes" (which is fitting since Chuck Jones is one of Fosgitt's artistic influences): exaggerated proportions, very expressive facial expressions, etc. One thing I really like about Fosgitt's comic work is his use of dynamic paneling.

http://i.imgur.com/MHRi8BM.jpg

Friends Forever Issue 11 page 15.

I love when comic artists break away from the rigid rectangular paneling style that's typical of comics and comic strips and get creative with the panel bordering.

Common complaints I hear about Fosgitt's style are that his pony models have proportions inconsistent to those of the series (large heads, thin necks) and that he tends to draw four-legged characters standing on two legs. Fair complaints to have, but I like the caricaturistic style -- it's different from what the comics had to offer thus far, and I think it's a nice and cute kind of different. Plus, there's a bit of controversy surrounding his use of clip art in Friends Forever Issue 22 and the Greta/Grampa Gruff fiasco in Friends Forever Issue 24.

http://i.imgur.com/a21SqRZ.jpg

Left: Greta in The Lost Treasure of Griffonstone. Right: Greta in Friends Forever Issue 24.

Personally, while these were regrettable, they don't affect my overall opinion of Fosgitt's art, which I really enjoy. Were there more communication and coordination between him and the comic writer, all the better.

Favorite comic drawn by this artist: Friends Forever Issue 18

Other comics drawn by this artist:

Some of my favorite art pieces by this artist:

Let me know in the comments what you think of Fosgitt's art style -- and if you'd be interested in reading more of these artist showcases. ImperfectXIII, out!