Cover to Steampunk #8 (2001) by Bachalo Chris Bachalo (born 1965) is an American comic book illustrator known for his quirky, cartoon-like style. He became well-know for stints on DC Comics and various Death series. He also illustrayed several of Marvel Comics X-Men-related series, including Uncanny X-Men, Ultimate X-Men, and Generation X, which he helped to create. He is currently illustrating the creator-owned series Steampunk.
Biography
Bachalo was born in Canada but was raised in Southern California. He has told interviewers that, as a child, he wanted to be a carpenter until he discovered he was allergic to dust. He attended the University of California at Long Beach, where he majored in graphic art and illustrated a few underground comics.
After graduation, Bachalo sought work in the mainstream comic book industry. His first published assignment was The Sandman #12 (1989) for DC Comics. DC soon after hired as the regular artist for , an older property revived as an adult-orientated series by writer Peter Milligan.
Bachalos early work shows strong influence from Sam Kieth, Bill Sienkiewicz and Michael Golden. As his style developed, however, Bachalos work became more idiosyncratic. His early 1990s style is minimalist with strong, thick lines, quirky characters and little concern for realism. Bachalo did not shy away from detailed landscapes but showed a rare penchant for pages with many small panels.
Artwork from Death: The High Cost of Living #1 (1993) In 1993, Bachalo teamed-up with writer Neil Gaiman for the Sandman miniseries Death: The High Cost of Living, staring the Sandmans older sister. At the time, Sandman was one of the most popular and acclaimed series in the industry and the miniseries helped boost Bachalos visibility.
Cover of Generation X #2 (1994) Cover of Generation X #28 (1997). Note the sharp differences from and above cover In 1994, Bachalo ended his stint on Shade and began working for Marvel Comics. He first illustrated Ghost Rider 2099, one of in a line of series reinventing popular Marvel characters in the year 2099.
However, he was soon assigned to create a new junior team of X-Men with Uncanny X-Men writer Scott Lobdell. The group Lobdell and Bachalo created, Generation X, was purposefully bizarre and idiosyncratic because the two wanted to avoid the recent trend in superhero teams, where each team member represented a recognizable stock character.
Generation X became a hit with the series namesake due to Lobdells realistically cynical and emotionally immature teen characters and Bachalos atypical artwortk. Bachalo illustrated the series through much of its first three years, taking an break in late 1995 and early 1996 to illustrate the second Death miniseries, Death: The Time of Your Life.
During his time on Generation X, Bachalos artwork underwent a pivotal change. His characters became more cartoony and manga-like, with larger eyes, heads and hands. He gravitated towards extremes in anatomy, drawing characters that were previously portrayed as bulky, short, or thin as even more so.
In 1997, Bachalo left Generation X for Uncanny X-Men, arguably the comic book industrys most popular title, remaining until the end of 1998.
In 2000, Bachalo launched Steampunk, a comic book series inspired by the genre of fiction of the same name, which emulates early science fiction and in an alternate version of the early 1900s. The series is written by Joe Kelly and is part of DC Comics imprint for creator-owned series, Cliffhanger.
In the early 2000s, Bachalo completed occasional work on various X-Men series, including the acclaimed Ultimate X-Men and New X-Men.
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