Philip Cheaney
Philip Cheaney was born and raised in rural southeastern Missouri. He is the middle of five children and lived, for a time, on a farm with 16,000 chickens, 40 cats, two goats, a pet possum, and a rotating cast of misfit dogs. He attended school for illustration and graphic design at Missouri State University and later received his MFA in illustration at The School of Visual Arts in New York. In the summer of 2022 Philip attended the La Maison des Auteurs comic and graphic novel residency in Angoulême, France where he wrought into existence the bulk of the idea for his debut graphic novel, Fresh Kills. He lives in Brooklyn with his wife and works as a design director, but sneaks away to the country to go trout fishing when he can.
What do you love to do for fun?
I love trout fishing. It’s kind of like playing a slot machine, but you win fish.
What was your favorite book as a child?
Abel’s Island by William Steig
Awards and honors:
Mediums:
Brush pen with ink and digital
Creative Process:
While I dabble in a large variety of styles and mediums, my go-to medium is a combination of inking with a Pentel brush pen with Dr. Ph. Martin’s Matte Black Star ink or digital brushes with Procreate and then coloring digitally in Photoshop. I enjoy working with a rough, inky line that gives the work a gritty energy. I prefer to work with a limited color palette because of my tendency to become paralyzed with indecision. I always have to sketch and think out the solution on the page.
Location:
Brooklyn, NY
Visit Philip at:
Published books:
Forthcoming books:
Specialties:
Action-adventure, Advertising, Animals, Black & white, Book Covers, Branding, Character design, Coloring, Graphic novel interior art, Humor, Illustration, Indie comics, Inking, Lettering, Middle Grade, Packaging, Spot art, Typography, Writing, Young Adult
Available for School Visits:
In my presentations, I like to share my creative process and show how students can come up with their own ideas for crafting stories.
