High Five Southeast Asian Comic Book Artists

High Five Southeast Asian Comic Book Artists
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The world of comic books is vast, vibrant and varied. With artists making a name for themselves by illustrating larger than life characters, it can be said that comic books are the playground of giants, where these characters come alive from the point of the pen to the pages on our hands.  And like other industries, the comic book industry is also a place where Southeast Asians excel. From iconic superheroes, to classic cartoon characters, to uniquely original creations—Southeast Asian comic book artists have proven time and again that they have what it takes to take over the global stage.

If you’re a comic book fan, then you may already recognize some of these names, but if you’re new to comics, then here are High Five Southeast Asian comic book artists that we want to shine a spotlight on to help you discover new works in your comic book journey.

Leinil Yu (Philippines)

Art by Leinil Yu | Images from Marvel Comics

Art by Leinil Yu | Images from Marvel Comics

Starting off as a fan of comic books, Leinil Yu had his big break when he entered and won a drawing contest for Wizard Magazine, one of the biggest monthly magazines about comic books in the US. After seeing his work, Whilce Protacio, another Filipino comic book legend, hired Yu for Wildstorm Comics to work on his first comic book project. As luck would have it, Yu’s project in Wildstorm unfortunately fell through, but his story doesn’t end there.

Then came the second big break in his career. Protacio sent some of Yu’s work samples to Marvel Comics, who liked the work and hired Yu to become the long-running penciller for Wolverine from 1997 to 1999, and the rest was history.

Yu calls his art style dynamic pseudo-realism, where he projects realism through his mastery of anatomy, while exaggerating certain features through dynamic poses and movements.

Yu is most known for being an artist for Wolverine and the X-Men, and co-creating Wave, the first Filipino superhero from Marvel. Most recently, he is the long-running artist of the Uncanny X-Men relaunch from 2018 to 2019.

Alan Quah (Malaysia)

Art by Alan Quah | Images from Marvel Comics and DC Comics

Art by Alan Quah | Images from Marvel Comics and DC Comics

Alan Quah began his career as a comic book artist in 1984 for the APAzine fanzine from Berita Publishing. After pursuing an Advertising degree until 1992 and opening a design shop in 1997, Quah returned to illustration, resulting in a long career working for multiple comic book and entertainment companies. He then founded Komikaki Studio in 2007, a comic art and coloring company, which handled projects for DC Comics, MTVN, Top Cow, Capstone, Heroverse, DDP, Webtoon and Titan Comics.

Quah’s hyper-detailed style lends itself well to superhero comics, showing the idiosyncrasies of living in a chaotic comic book universe. From muscle bound heroes to grimy city streets, Quah captures all the details in his works that reflect the messiness of living in a world where the forces of good and evil regularly battle for the fate of mankind.

Quah is known for his cover art, providing pencils for Star Wars, The Marvels, Wolverine, Nightwing, Green Lantern, Doom Patrol, Batman, among others. He has also worked on properties outside of superhero comics such as The Vampire Diaries, Godzilla: Awakening, Evil Dead 2 and Orphan Black.

Pop Mhan (Thailand)

Art by Pop Mhan | Images from DC Comics

Art by Pop Mhan | Images from DC Comics

Born in Thailand, Pop Mhan immigrated to the US with his family at the age of three. Another alumnus from Wildstorm, Mhan started drawing comics under the tutelage of Jim Lee, working on comics such as Stormwatch and Union. He then worked as the penciller on Spyboy for Dark Horse Comics and several other properties such as Blank for Tokypop, Batgirl for DC Comics, and a World of Warcraft one-shot.

Mhan is known for drawing sleek figures and imbibing a modern sensibility to his characters. He contrasts intricate linework and flowing movement with simple renderings of facial expressions, bringing out a playful and cartoony vibe while foregrounding dynamic actions.

Mhan is a cult favorite among fans for his run as a penciler on Bionicle and He-Man, while his most recent work comprises of variant cover art for DC Comics’ Wonder Woman, Aquaman, and The Vigil.

Dustin Nguyen (Vietnam)

Art by Dustin Nguyen | Images from DC Comics and Image Comics

Art by Dustin Nguyen | Images from DC Comics and Image Comics

Dustin Nguyen broke through the industry with his work in DC Comics. Starting off with a few pages on an anthology issue of Gen-Active, Nguyen worked his way as a penciler for series like Jet, The Authority and Wildcats, eventually penciling heavy hitting properties such as Superman / Batman and Detective Comics.

Nguyen is known for a detailed and stylistic approach to art, focusing on fine line work and watercolors. His stylistic rendering of superheroes caught the attention of the public, especially with his take on Batman and his extended family of heroes, which resulted in two more runs as penciler for the acclaimed Batman: Li’l Gotham and Batman: Streets of Gotham series.

Aside from drawing superheroes, Nguyen’s creator-owned space opera Descender and Ascender with Jeff Lemire earned him an Eisner Award for Best Painter/Multimedia Artist in 2016 and 2019.

Sonny Liew (Singapore)

Art by Sonny Liew | Images from Vertigo and Lavieri

Art by Sonny Liew | Images from Vertigo and Lavieri

Sonny Liew started drawing for comics locally with a Singaporean tabloid called “The New Paper,” where he contributed to the Frankie and Poo comic strip in 1995. After studying illustration at the Rhode Island School of Design, Liew had his first foray into American comics in 2004 when he worked on Vertigo Comics’ My Faith in Frankie with Marc Hempel. 

Liew’s cartoony style incorporates chibi-like inspiration from anime and manga, and contrasts with his highly detailed backgrounds and outfits, making for interesting pieces of art. His work also recalls cartoon physics, making for more flexible characters that can move and pose in more interesting ways.

With his background in illustration and editing anthology series, Liew created the Malinky Robot in 2001 and wrote various stories and graphic novels around the concept, eventually earning him the Xeric Award in 2004, the “Prix de la Meilleure BD” (Comic Album of the Year) at the Utopiales International SF Festival in Nantes in 2009, and Singapore’s Young Artist Award in 2010.

This just goes to show the different styles of Southeast Asian artists, even just within the comic book industry. With the right push, a bit of luck, a whole lot of talent, and their own unique flair, these five artists were able to make it to the global stage and represent Southeast Asia through their timeless art.

Which Southeast Asian comic book artist do you admire the most? Tell us who it is and why in the comments section!

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