What is noticeable first hand are the aspects of realism mixed with the purely cartoon inspired hunks that Patrick brings to life. In his work for Boytoons, his comic characters from Storms of Arun, Deimos, Ghost Boy and Hot Chocolate such as Torbus Jecks exude a masculine sexuality to be proud of complete with a torso to die for and a posing pouch to worship at.
Like a modern day Tom of Finland, Patrick brings us the exaggerate male body, strong line work contours every muscle from pectorals to abs and beyond. From smiling winged Eros to a hot, well endowed Prince of Eternia, his work is entirely irresistible. Patrick took time out of his new project (mention it) to chat to Japanreviewer.
Japanreviewer: If I looked at your portfolio of work, what unusual art
would I find?
Patrick Fillion: I love all things superhero, fantasy and science fiction blended with envelope-pushing male erotica. So my portfolio contains a lot of art that combines those elements. You'd also find a lot of artwork that features my own personal character creations like Zahn, Camili-Cat, Deimos, Naked Justice, Space Cadet etc...
Japanreviewer:Boytoons has been established for a while. What inspired
you to create it?
Patrick Fillion: I wanted a place where I could talk about my work and comics as well as the work of my fellow creators of male erotic art. A Blog dedicated to that very subject seemed like the perfect thing to create.
Japanreviewer: Talking of inspiration, we all have artists who
encourage us to create our own artwork in our own style. Who are
yours?
Patrick Fillion: I've had a lot of wonderful people and artists encourage me throughout the years. Glen Hanson who's an amazing artist was one of the first professionals to give me the push to get my work out there. Thanks in large part to him, I worked up the courage to seek publication.
But of course there have been other amazing and creative people in my life that have always been there to support and encourage me in my art. From Family, friends and Teachers to other professionals such as the legendary Ray Schultz. I feel very blessed by all of them.
Japanreviewer: Gay comics used to be an unheard of genre, yet there
are a few who have sprouted up over the years; Martin Eden's Spandex
being one of them. When do you think it will become mainstream?
Patrick Fillion: Gay Comics have been around for a long time, but for years were considered quite “underground”. I think we're seeing more and more Gay Comics now because our society is finally reaching a point of larger awareness and acceptance of gay people in general. I think now Gay Comics Creators feel they can put their work out in a broader capacity without fearing persecution and ridicule. It's great to see.
But there's still a long way to go before the mainstream fully accepts the genre. I'm happy to be able to work toward furthering that goal along with all the other artists and writers currently in the genre.
Japanreviewer: Is there a story behind some of your artwork?
Patrick Fillion: There's a story behind most of my artwork since I primarily focus on drawing my own characters. I love telling their stories and depicting their adventures. So almost all of the artwork I create is specifically done in order to do this.
Japanreviewer: From concept to finished piece, how long does it take
to complete your pin-up artwork?
Patrick Fillion: That can vary greatly from piece to piece. If I do all the pencils/inks/colors, it can take a day or two, but I also work with colorists on occasion who do a wonderful job of coloring my inks.
But in general, drawing and inking a pin-up, depending on how complex it is can take anywhere from 2 to 6 hours or so. And like I said, if I color, you can add maybe another 6 hours on top of that... give or take.
Japanreviewer:If you could create a dragon, what would it look like
and what colours would you use?
Patrick Fillion: I don't know much about dragons in general, but I like the idea of a dragon made completely of living ice, and I guess I would use a lot of blues and greens since those are my favorite colors. HA! HA! HA!
Japanreviewer: You are well-known for drawing single character erotic
male pin-ups, have you ever composed multiple character ones for a
poster or do you prefer the single ones?
Patrick Fillion: I love drawing single male pin-ups because they allow me to place all the focus on that particular character and emphasize his beauty as much as possible. But I also do love drawing multiple character illustrations, I just don't do it quite as often.
What's nice about the single pin-ups is that they can be used for promotional and advertising purposes very easily. That sort of thing is very important when you not only create your own comic books, but you also have to play the role of the publisher and advertiser.
Japanreviewer: What is the strangest commission you have ever been asked to do?
Patrick Fillion: I don't often do commissions because I'm always so busy with my work for Class Comics, but I've done a few over the years, and while none of them have been especially “strange” (mostly because I won't accept commissions that I find personally unappealing to work on), some have been unusual.
One of my favorite clients once asked me to draw a nun giving a sexy black superhero a blow job. I really enjoyed that one.
Japanreviewer: Have any of your friends featured in your art?
Patrick Fillion: When I was a teenager, I would draw some of my friends as super heroes. I don't do that anymore. I prefer to draw the characters that I've created purely in my imagination. There are less restrictions that way... and maybe even less unwanted pressure to please someone else with something that is meant to represent them. I prefer to play by my own rules. HA! HA! HA!
Japanreviewer:What's the future of gay art?
Patrick Fillion: I think Gay Art is becoming more and more respected and that Gay Comics will continue to gain visibility. More people are seeing the value in Gay Art and realizing that it's a worthwhile and important form of expression.
I really believe that this will continue. I'd like to think that the future of Gay Art is very bright and exciting.
Japanreviewer: Most of us have grown up with comics and all have our
favourites, what are yours?
Patrick Fillion: As a kid I loved the X-Men, the Avengers, Power-Man and Iron Fist, the Defenders and Alpha Flight. I still love and re-read my old issues of those amazing comic books today.
Storm of the X-Men is my all-time favorite comic book character... She has been ever since I was a little kid. I read everything she appeared in back then and I still tend to read almost everything she appears in today.
Japanreviewer: Do you have any helpful advice for budding gay artists?
Patrick Fillion: Find your voice and don't be afraid to put your work out there – that's the advice that was given to me and it really did change the direction of my life.
Japanreviewer:These are just a few extras I thought up:
Favourite gay artists:
Patrick Fillion: There are so many, and I'm not listing them in any particular order... but I love the works of Ray Schultz, Jacob Mott, Logan, Gengoroh Tagame, David Cantero, Anthony Gonzales, Leon de Leon... and the list goes on and on and on... I couldn't possibly list them all here.
Hobbies/Interests:
Patrick Fillion: Reading books (mostly Horror – I love Brian Keene), Reading comics, Playing Video Games (I'm a HUGE Resident Evil fan), Movies (mostly horror and sci-fi), Music (Annie Lennox/Eurythmics are my absolute favorite) and toy collecting... I have a huge collection of action figures... it's actually kinda scary! I also love to bake when I'm not drawing dirty comics, because I love sweets! HA! HA! HA! And of course, spending time with my husband and business partner, Fraser. He makes me so happy! :D
Favourite quote:
Patrick Fillion: “Would it help if I got out and pushed?” – Princess Leia, Empire Strikes Back
Favourite word:
Patrick Fillion: Not just one in particular... but I like a whole lot of swear words... yeah, I like WAY TOO MANY of those! HA! HA! HA!
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