Rafael Albuquerque is a Brazilian based artist, who has worked in American comics since 2005. He is a Eisner, Harvey, and Inkpot award winner. He has been a favorite of mine since I discovered his art on American Vampire, one of my favorite series. From there he went on to work on Animal Man and Batgirl for DC Comics. I talked with him recently and decided, with the announcement of his and Mark Millar's new series Prodigy, today would be the perfect to post this interview.
1. Growing up, what would you say drew you to comic books?
I’ve always liked drawing and was surrounded by art since i was little. My father used to have a small Ad company back in the 80's, a time where the art used to be done all traditionally. I used to look at those art books all the time, and see many different illustrators at his office. So I believe the idea of working with art has been in my mind since I can remember. Just later, though, when i was a teenager, due to the success of Brazilian artists such as Marc Campos, Roger Cruz, Luke Ross, in American comics, I figured out that it was possible to actually have a career doing it and that became my goal, since then.
2. I think you have a really unique art style, it's really energetic, do you think inking your own pencils and sometimes coloring also helps really define your style?
Thank you. It’s really hard for me to separate the drawing stage to the inking stage. For me it’s all the same. I usually do a rough sketch and ink over it, so absolutely its what defines my style.
3. American Vampire is one of my favorite series, do you and Scott Snyder have any plans to return to the book?
Glad you like it. Yes. A few days ago we were talking about how its gonna be this next (and final) arc. We had a lot of problems with schedules and that’s the main reason of such a long break. Seems like the planets are aligning and we should get back to it next year. I’m not sure yet when the book will come out. That’s still up to Vertigo, but we should get back on it as soon as we finish our current projects.
4. What project have you worked on would you say is your favorite?
It’s hard to pick a favorite. Each one is special for different reasons. I'm particularly happy with Study in Emerald, though. The book came out great.
5. Is there any book you haven't worked on that would be your "dream" book?
Not really. I'm really looking for cool projects. Cool collaborations. Something to have fun at.
6. Who are you favorite writers to collaborate with?
Again, this is very hard to say. I’ve been lucky to collaborate with some of the best writers in the business. I like to work with them all for different reasons.
7. Can you talk about any upcoming books that you're currently working on?
Right now I'm wrapping my Hitgirl in Rome arc, which is been a lot of fun. It’s a story I wrote alongside Rafael Scavone (who’s doing the scripts). I have a new mini-series on the way, but I cannot comment about it yet.
Here's the cover to issue 1 of the just announced series Prodigy. Coming soon.
