Duncan MacKenzie and Ryan Peter Miller drive up to the Dunn Museum in Libertyville, IL to talk with legendary comics painter Alex Ross. Known for Marvels, Kingdom Come, and decades of redefining superhero realism, Ross reflects on his career trajectory, his education at the American Academy of Art, his influences (from Neal Adams to Dave McKean), his early breaks with Now Comics and Leo Burnett storyboarding, and his transition into large-scale mural projects for Marvel and DC. The conversation ranges from comics history, realism in superhero depictions, variant cover economics, the physicality of superheroes, to America's appetite for dystopian narratives versus a return to the "pure Superman." Ross is candid, funny, and deeply reflective about the comics medium, painting, and storytelling. Name-Drop List Artists & Writers Alex Ross — https://www.alexrossart.com/ | @alexrossart Neal Adams – https://nealadams.com/ George Pérez – https://www.tcj.com/george-perez-1954-2022/ Jack Kirby – https://kirbymuseum.org/ Dave McKean – https://www.davemckean.com/ Neil Gaiman — neilgaiman.com | @neilhimself Chris Ware – https://art21.org/artist/chris-ware/ Jim Lee — https://www.dc.com/talent/jim-lee @jimlee Todd McFarlane — https://mcfarlane.com/ @toddmcfarlane Erik Larsen — https://imagecomics.com/creators/erik-larsen @eriklarsen1138 John Tobias (Mortal Kombat) – https://www.mobygames.com/person/3326/john-tobias/ Tim Bradstreet — https://www.splashpageart.com/artistgalleryroom.asp?artistid=83 @timbradstreet Frank Casey (Ross's Superman model) – chrome-extension://efaidnbmnnnibpcajpcglclefindmkaj/https://news.wttw.com/sites/default/files/article/file-attachments/The%20process_Ross%20at%20work.pdf Institutions & Companies Dunn Museum (Libertyville, IL) — https://www.lcfpd.org/museum/ @lcfpd Marvel Comics — marvel.com | @marvel DC Comics — dc.com | @dccomics American Academy of Art (Chicago) — Leo Burnett (advertising) – https://dev.leoburnett.com/ Now Comics (Chicago, defunct) Eclipse Comics (defunct) FASA (publisher of Shadowrun, BattleTech) – https://shop.fasagames.com/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=68 Mortal Kombat franchise — https://www.mortalkombat.com/en-us @mortalkombat Pop Culture References Kingdom Come (DC) – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kingdom_Come_(comics) Marvels (Marvel) – https://tv.apple.com/us/movie/the-marvels/umc.cmc.6nb1ii3n99o7rewjyq8whcsuu Shadowrun RPG – https://store.catalystgamelabs.com/collections/shadowrun Vampire: The Masquerade (White Wolf) – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vampire:_The_Masquerade The Boys (Amazon Prime) – https://www.primevideo.com/detail/The-Boys/0KRGHGZCHKS920ZQGY5LBRF7MA Invincible (Image Comics / Amazon) – https://www.amazon.com/INVINCIBLE-SEASON-1/dp/B08WJN83XZ Peacemaker (HBO) – https://www.hbomax.com/shows/peacemaker-2022/a939d96b-7ffb-4481-96f6-472838d104ca Brightburn (film) – https://tv.apple.com/us/movie/brightburn/umc.cmc.4pkvqa1b6mf30wtx66vor37fq Image: John Weinstein

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