Fiona Staples is a Canadian

comic book A comic book, comic-magazine, or simply comic is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panel (comics), panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are often accompanied by descriptive prose and wri ...

artist known for her work on books such as ''North 40'', '' DV8: Gods and Monsters'', ''

T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents is a fictional team of superheroes that appeared in comic books originally published by Tower Comics in the 1960s. They were an arm of the United Nations and were notable for their depiction of the heroes as everyday people ...

'', ''

Archie Archie or Archy is a given name, almost exclusively masculine, and a diminutive of Archibald, which is derived from the Germanic ''ercan'', meaning “ genuine”, and ''bald'', meaning “ bold.” It has been in use as an independent given nam ...

'', and ''

Saga Sagas are prose stories and histories, composed in Iceland and to a lesser extent elsewhere in Scandinavia. The most famous saga-genre is the (sagas concerning Icelanders), which feature Viking voyages, migration to Iceland, and feuds between ...

''. She has been described as one of the best artists working in the industry today.Salvatore, Brian (July 20, 2012)
"Review: Saga #5"
. Multiversity Comics. She has won multiple Eisner and

Harvey Awards The Harvey Awards are given for achievement in comic books. Named for writer-artist Harvey Kurtzman, the Harvey Awards were founded by Gary Groth in 1988, president of the publisher Fantagraphics, to be a successor to the Kirby Awards, which wer ...

Early life

Staples was born in

Calgary Calgary () is a major city in the Canadian province of Alberta. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806 making it the third-largest city and fifth-largest metropolitan area in C ...

Alberta Alberta is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Canada. It is a part of Western Canada and is one of the three Canadian Prairies, prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to its west, Saskatchewan to its east, t ...

. She attended the Alberta College of Art and Design. Books that have had a seminal impact upon Staples include ''

The Princess and the Goblin ''The Princess and the Goblin'' is a children's fantasy novel by George MacDonald. It was published in 1872 by Strahan & Co., with black-and-white illustrations by Arthur Hughes. Strahan had published the story and illustrations as a seria ...

'' by

George MacDonald George MacDonald (10 December 1824 – 18 September 1905) was a Scottish author, poet and Christian Congregational minister. He became a pioneering figure in the field of modern fantasy literature and the mentor of fellow-writer Lewis Carrol ...

, ''

Dragon of the Lost Sea A dragon is a magical legendary creature that appears in the folklore of multiple cultures worldwide. Beliefs about dragons vary considerably through regions, but dragons in Western cultures since the High Middle Ages have often been depict ...

'' series by

Laurence Yep Laurence Michael Yep ( zh, t=葉祥添, s=叶祥添, p=Yè Xiángtiān, j=Jip6 Coeng4 Tim1; born June 14, 1948) is an American writer. He is known for his children's books, having won the Newbery Honor twice for his ''Golden Mountain'' series. I ...

, the ''

Redwall ''Redwall'' is a series of children's fantasy novels by British writer Brian Jacques, published from 1986 to 2011. It is also the title of the first book of the series, published in 1986, as well as the name of the abbey featured in the book, ...

'' series by

Brian Jacques James Brian Jacques (, as in "Jakes"; 15 June 1939 – 5 February 2011), known professionally as Brian Jacques, was an English author known for his ''Redwall'' series of children's fantasy novels and ''Castaways of the Flying Dutchman'' series. ...

, and ''

The Chronicles of Narnia ''The Chronicles of Narnia'' is a series of seven portal fantasy novels by British author C. S. Lewis. Illustrated by Pauline Baynes and originally published between 1950 and 1956, the series is set in the fictional realm of Narnia (wor ...

'' books by

C. S. Lewis Clive Staples Lewis (29 November 1898 – 22 November 1963) was a British writer, literary scholar and Anglican lay theologian. He held academic positions in English literature at both Magdalen College, Oxford (1925–1954), and Magdalen ...

.Uzumeri, David (March 14, 2012)
"'Saga': Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples Bring a Stellar Sci-Fi Comic Into the World"
.

ComicsAlliance ComicsAlliance is an American website dedicated to covering the comic book industry as well as comic-related media, and is owned by Townsquare Media. The site has been nominated for multiple awards including a 2015 Eisner Award win in the categ ...

Career

Staples's first published work was "Amphibious Nightmare", a

24-hour comic A 24-hour comic is a 24-page comic book written, drawn, and completed in 24 hours. Cartoonist Scott McCloud came up with the challenge in 1990 as a creative exercise for himself and fellow comics artist Stephen R. Bissette. Beginning in 2004, wri ...

included in the

About Comics About Comics is a publisher of comics and comics-related material founded in 1998 by Nat Gertler. According to Gertler, it is intended to be " eithera mainstream comics publisher, nor an alternative comics publisher". The company has published ...

anthology ''24 Hour Comics Day Highlights 2005''. Her first series assignment was 2006's ''Done to Death'', working with writer Andrew Foley for

Markosia Markosia is a British comic book publishing company. History Markosia was founded by Harry Markos in 2004. He employed Richard Emms (previously of APC) as the Editor-in-chief as well as lead designer. in 2005. Markosia had already published Ha ...

. She was one of the illustrators of

WildStorm Wildstorm Productions (stylized as WildStorm) is an American comic book imprint. Originally founded as an independent company established by Jim Lee and Brandon Choi to publish through Image Comics, Wildstorm became a publishing imprint of DC C ...

's ''

Trick 'r Treat ''Trick 'r Treat'' is a 2007 American anthology horror film written and directed by Michael Dougherty (in his directorial debut) and produced by Bryan Singer. The film stars Dylan Baker, Rochelle Aytes, Anna Paquin, and Brian Cox. It relates ...

'' graphic novel, an adaptation of the

Michael Dougherty Michael Patrick Dougherty (born October 28, 1974) is an American writer, director, animator, and producer known for his work in a variety of genre films, both big and small. Beginning his career as an animator and illustrator, Dougherty’s a ...

film. She was the penciller and inker of '' The Secret History of the Authority: Hawksmoor,'' written by

Mike Costa Mike Costa is an American comic book and television writer. His first published work was 2008's '' The Secret History of the Authority: Hawksmoor'' with artist Fiona Staples for WildStorm. He also wrote '' Resistance'', a comic book series based o ...

. She also coloured

Frazer Irving Frazer Irving (born 1970) is a British comic book artist known for the series '' Necronauts'', published by the British magazine '' 2000 AD''. After breaking into the American market he has worked on a number of superhero titles, including a s ...

's art for the '' 2000 AD'' story '' Button Man''.

In March 2012

Image Comics Image Comics is an independent American American comic book, comic book publisher and is the third largest direct market comic book and graphic novel publisher in the industry by market share. Its best-known publications include ''Spawn (comics) ...

published the first issue of ''

'', an ongoing series conceived by writer Brian K. Vaughan. Staples was introduced to Vaughan by their mutual friend, writer

Steve Niles Steve Niles (born June 21, 1965) is an American comic book author and novelist, known for works such as '' 30 Days of Night'', '' Criminal Macabre: A Cal McDonald Mystery'', '' Simon Dark'', ''Mystery Society'', '' Batman: Gotham County Line'', '' ...

, with whom Staples worked on ''Mystery Society''. Vaughan, who had not met Staples in person until just before their panel at the 2011

San Diego Comic-Con San Diego Comic-Con is a comic book convention and multi-genre entertainment event held annually in San Diego, California, at the San Diego Convention Center. Founded in 1970, originally showcasing primarily comic books and science fiction/fant ...

, explained his selection of Staples by describing his reaction upon first seeing her work, saying, "Her artwork is incredible. tdoesn't look like anyone else. She is very unique. When I opened up this file I was like, 'This is going to work! Staples is co-owner of ''Saga'',Lewis, Shane (February 26, 2012)
"IMAGE EXPO: Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples' "Saga" Panel"
Comic Book Resources. and designed the cast,

Wolk, Douglas Douglas Wolk (born 1970) is a Portland, Oregon-based author and critic. He has written about comics and popular music for publications including ''The New York Times'', ''Rolling Stone'', ''The Washington Post'', ''The Nation'', ''The New Republi ...

(August 5, 2013). "Masters of the Universe. The space story ''Saga'' is the comic world's big hit". ''

Time Time is the continuous progression of existence that occurs in an apparently irreversible process, irreversible succession from the past, through the present, and into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequ ...

''. p. 54. the ships, and the alien races in the story. She also provides painted covers, and hand-letters the narration (using her own handwriting), which is the final work she does after finishing the artwork on a page.Kepler, Adam W. (October 26, 2012)
"Graphic Books Best Sellers: Fiona Staples Talks About 'Saga'"
''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

''. In 2015, Staples and writer

Mark Waid Mark Waid (; born March 21, 1962) is an American comic book writer best known for his work on DC Comics titles ''The Flash'', '' Kingdom Come'' and '' Superman: Birthright'' as well as his work on ''Captain America'', ''Fantastic Four'' and '' Da ...

became the creative team for the opening three-issue story arc of

Archie Comics Archie Comic Publications, Inc. (often referred to simply as Archie Comics) is an American comic book publisher headquartered in the village of Pelham, New York. The company's many titles feature the fictional teenagers Archie Andrews, Jug ...

' relaunched ''

'', in celebration of the character's 75th anniversary. Staples, who had previously provided variant covers for the publisher, contributed her distinctive drawing style, rather than Archie's house style, and designed "a new look and an edgier tone" for the ''Archie'' comic book, whose storylines will portray the character in darker, more complicated situations, though not necessarily for a strictly adult audience.

Technique and materials

Fiona staples signing another dimension comics calgary alberta 2012

At the beginning of her career, Staples would scan traditional drawings in and edit them in

Adobe Photoshop Adobe Photoshop is a raster graphics editor developed and published by Adobe Inc., Adobe for Microsoft Windows, Windows and macOS. It was created in 1987 by Thomas Knoll, Thomas and John Knoll. It is the most used tool for professional digital ...

later. Staples began creating her artwork entirely digitally several years before she began work on ''Saga'', though her process for that series is different from previous ones, for which she characterizes it as "one intense, ongoing experiment." She begins with thumbnails, roughly drawn on printed paper templates. During this stage Staples gives copious thought to the layouts and staging, making it, in her words, the most important part of the process. After scanning the thumbnails, she enlarges them and uses them as rudimentary pencils, and "inks" over them in

Manga Studio Clip Studio Paint (previously marketed as Manga Studio in North America), informally known in Japan as ,A clipping of the Japanese pronunciation of its name, ''Kurippu Sutajio Peinto''. is a family of software applications developed by Japane ...

. She has said that her art distributor is "perpetually disappointed in her," as fans would pay high prices for inks and pencils. One of the advantages Staples sees in working digitally is the ability to dispense with tight pencils in favor of making corrections in an ad hoc manner, as she finds that penciling in great detail, and re-drawing such artwork a second time in ink, to be boring. In ''Saga'', Staples inks only the figures in pen-and-ink, using a lot of self-shot photo references to finalize the poses, which she does not use in the thumbnail stage. She then imports the art into

Photoshop Adobe Photoshop is a raster graphics editor developed and published by Adobe for Windows and macOS. It was created in 1987 by Thomas and John Knoll. It is the most used tool for professional digital art, especially in raster graphics editin ...

, which she uses to paint the backgrounds entirely in colour, to achieve a look inspired by video games and

Japanese animation is a Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, , in Japan and in Ja ...

. At the 2012 Image Expo, Staples described the process by which she produces the art as harkening back to

animation cel A cel, short for ''celluloid'', is a transparent sheet on which objects are drawn or painted for traditional, hand-drawn animation. Actual celluloid (consisting of cellulose nitrate and camphor) was used during the first half of the 20th century ...

s, in which emphasis is placed on figures and backgrounds.Allen, Todd (March 12, 2012)
"Advance Review: 'Saga' By Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples"
The Beat. The process, according to Staples, can be time-consuming, depending on the complexity of the environment. For outdoor environments, she begins by selecting a colour palette and initially blocking in the shapes roughly. She subsequently colours the figures, using flat colours both to make the process quicker and because she feels that painted figures in comics can often look "stiff" and difficult for the reader to "read" quickly. For pages that feature narration by the character Hazel, Staples writes the text using her own handwriting. Vaughan has stated that Staples's style has influenced the direction of the story. The organic forms of most of the series' technology, for example, such as the main characters' wooden rocket ship, is derived from Staples's dislike of drawing mechanical objects. To design the series' various planetary settings, Staples looks to the real world for inspiration and then exaggerates some elements of them. Some rooms on the planet Cleave, for example, were inspired by

Cambodian architecture Throughout Cambodia's long history, religion has been a major source of cultural inspiration. Over nearly two millennia, Cambodians have developed a unique Cambodians, Cambodian culture and belief system from the syncreticism of indigenous animi ...

Critical reception

Staples's work on ''Saga'' received wide acclaim from numerous reviewers,Richards, Ron (January 30, 2012)
"ADVANCE REVIEW: SAGA #1 (Spoiler Free)"
iFanboy. with

Ain't it Cool News Ain't It Cool News (AICN) is an entertainment news website founded by Harry Knowles and run by his sister Dannie Knowles since September 2017, dedicated to news, rumors, and reviews of upcoming and current films, television, and comic book proj ...

characterizing it as "glorious","AICN COMICS REVIEWS: Brian K. Vaughan’s SAGA! FAIREST! UNCANNY X-MEN! AKA! & MORE!!!"

. March 14, 2012. and P.S. Hayes of Geeks of Doom praising her art as "amazing", saying, "From the gorgeous painted cover all the way through the last page, she delivers in every way that’s artistically possible. It’s got to be tough to be handed a script like this one and try and figure out what to do, but she handles it beautifully. Everything looks like it belongs in the universe. Her backgrounds are elaborate, yet never distracting or too busy and they never take focus off the main characters."Hayes, P.S. (March 13, 2012)
"Comic Review: Saga #1"
Geeks of Doom. Alex Zalben of

MTV Geek MTV (an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable television television channel, channel and the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group sub-division of the Paramount Media Networks division of Paramount Global. Launched on ...

predicted readers would "fall head over heels in love" with it,Zalben, Alex (March 5, 2012)
"The 'Saga' Of Brian K. Vaughan: How He Went From Runaway Kids To Epic Fantasy"

. and Greg McElhatton of

Comic Book Resources ''CBR'', formerly ''Comic Book Resources'', is a news website primarily covering comic book news, comic book reviews, and comic book–related topics involving movies, television, anime, and video games. It is owned by Valnet, parent of publicat ...

positively compared it to that of

Leinil Francis Yu Leinil Francis Yu (born 1977) is a People of the Philippines, Filipino comic book artist, who began working for the United States, American market through Wildstorm Productions. Career Leinil Francis Yu was first recognized after winning the ...

, specifically her use of delicate lines to frame characters with large, bold figures, and her mixture of the familiar and the foreign together in her character designs to create a visually cohesive universe.McElhatton, Greg (March 13, 2012)
"Review: Saga #1"
Comic Book Resources. AICN singled out Staples's handling of grand, sweeping space shots and other genre trappings, as well as her mastery of facial expressions, which AICN felt was perfectly suited to Vaughan's subtle dialogue. In 2015, Staples was voted the #1 female comic book artist of all-time by readers of Comic Book Resources.

Awards and nominations

Bibliography

Interior art

* ''24 Hour Comics Day Highlights 2005'': "Amphibious Nightmare" (self-written,

, 2005) * '' Done to Death'' (with writer Andrew Foley, 6-issue limited series,

, July 2006-January 2009) * '' Button Man'': "Book IV: The Hitman's Daughter" (colours, with writer

John Wagner John Wagner (born 1949) is an American-born British comics writer. Alongside Pat Mills, he helped revitalise British comics in the 1970s, and continues to be active in the British comics industry, occasionally also working in American comics. ...

and artist

, in '' 2000 AD'' #1551-1566, 2007) * ''

Proof Proof most often refers to: * Proof (truth), argument or sufficient evidence for the truth of a proposition * Alcohol proof, a measure of an alcoholic drink's strength Proof may also refer to: Mathematics and formal logic * Formal proof, a co ...

'' #6-8 (colours, with writer Alexander Grecian and art by

Riley Rossmo Riley Rossmo is a Canadians, Canadian comic book artist and illustrator, known for his work on various Image Comics titles, as well as Marvel Comics' ''Daken: Dark Wolverine''. Rossmo is an instructor at the Alberta College of Art and Design. Per ...

, Image Comics, March–May 2008) * '' The Secret History of the Authority: Hawksmoor'' (with writer

, 6-issue limited series, Wildstorm, June 2008 - March 2009) * ''

Tales from the Black Museum Tales may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Tales'' (album), a 1995 album by Marcus Miller * ''Tales'' (film), a 2014 Iranian film * ''Tales'' (TV series), an American television series * ''Tales'' (video game), a 2016 point-and-click adventure ...

'': "The Incredible Teatime Torture Show" (colours, with writer

Tony Lee Tony Lee is a British comics writer, screenwriter, audio playwright, and novelist. Early life Born in 1970, Tony Lee attended Hayes Manor School, now Rosedale College. Career A #1 ''New York Times'' bestselling writer, Lee has written for ...

and art by

Vince Locke Vincent Locke () is an American comic book artist known for his work on '' Deadworld'' and ''A History of Violence'' and for his ultraviolent album covers for death metal band Cannibal Corpse. Biography Locke began work in 1986 illustrating '' ...

, in ''

Judge Dredd Megazine ''Judge Dredd: The Megazine'' is a monthly British comic magazine, launched in September 1990. It is a sister publication to '' 2000 AD''. Its name is a play on words, formed from "magazine" and Judge Dredd's locale Mega-City One. Content L ...

'' #284, May 2009) * '' North 40'' (with writer Aaron Williams, 6-issue limited series,

Wildstorm Wildstorm Productions (stylized as WildStorm) is an American comic book imprint. Originally founded as an independent company established by Jim Lee and Brandon Choi to publish through Image Comics, Wildstorm became a publishing imprint of DC C ...

, September 2009 - February 2010) * ''

Northlanders ''Northlanders'' is an American comic book series published by DC Comics under their Vertigo imprint. The stories are fictional but set in and around historical events during the Viking Age. ''Northlanders'' is written by Brian Wood, illustrate ...

'': The Sea Road (with writer Brian Wood,

Vertigo Vertigo is a condition in which a person has the sensation that they are moving, or that objects around them are moving, when they are not. Often it feels like a spinning or swaying movement. It may be associated with nausea, vomiting, perspira ...

, One shot, June 2010) * '' Mystery Society'' (with writer

IDW Publishing IDW Publishing is an American publisher of comic books, graphic novels, art books, and comic strip collections. It was founded in 1999 as the publishing division of Idea and Design Works, LLC (IDW) and is recognized as the fifth-largest comic ...

, April 2010-ongoing) * ''

Jonah Hex Jonah Woodson Hex is a fictional antihero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by writer John Albano and artist Tony DeZuniga. Hex is a surly and cynical bounty hunter whose face is scarred on the r ...

'' #66 (with writer

Jimmy Palmiotti James Palmiotti (born August 14, 1961) is an American writer and inker of comic books, who also does writing for games, television and film. Early life Palmiotti attended the High School of Art and Design in New York City. Career Palmiotti star ...

DC Comics DC Comics (originally DC Comics, Inc., and also known simply as DC) is an American comic book publisher owned by DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. DC is an initialism for "Detective Comics", an American comic book seri ...

, One shot, April 2011) * ''

'' (with writer Brian K. Vaughan, Image Comics, ongoing, March 14, 2012 – present) * ''

'' (with writer

, Archie Comics, #1-3, 2015)

Cover work

* ''

Sheena Sheena may refer to: People *Ringo Sheena (born 1978), Japanese singer *Shenna Bellows (born 1975), American politician * Sheena Belarmino (born 2005), Filipino singer and dancer * Sheena Catacutan (born 2004), Filipino dancer and singer, member ...

'' #2 Variant Cover (2007) #5 (2008) * ''

War Machine War Machine (Col. James Rupert "Rhodey" Rhodes) is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by David Michelinie, John Byrne, and Bob Layton as a supporting character for Iron Man, he first appeared i ...

'' #5 (2009) * '' DV8: Gods and Monsters'' #1-8 (2010) * ''Magus'' #1 (2010) * ''

Superman/Batman ''Superman/Batman'' is a monthly American comic book series published by DC Comics that features the publisher's two most popular superheroes: Superman and Batman. ''Superman/Batman'' premiered in August 2003, an update of the previous series, ' ...

'' #79-80 (2010) * ''

'' #7-10 (2011) * ''

30 Days of Night ''30 Days of Night'' is a three-issue vampire comic book miniseries written by Steve Niles, illustrated by Ben Templesmith, and published by American company IDW Publishing in 2002. All three parties co-own the property. The series takes place ...

'' #1 Variant Cover (2011) * ''

Criminal Macabre ''Criminal Macabre: A Cal McDonald Mystery'' is a comic book series starring Cal McDonald, an antihero American comic book character created in 1990 in comics, 1990 by writer Steve Niles. The character's adventures have been published by Dark Hors ...

The Goon ''The Goon'' is a comic book series written and drawn by Eric Powell. The series mixes both a comical and violent atmosphere with a supernatural slant, which pit the titular character against undead creatures/zombies, ghosts, ghouls, mutants, sk ...

'': When Freaks Collide'' One shot (2011) * ''

Dark Horse Presents ''Dark Horse Presents'' was a comic book published by Dark Horse Comics from 1986 in comics, 1986. Their first published series, it was their flagship title until its September 2000 in comics, 2000 cancellation. The second incarnation was publishe ...

'' #10 (2012) * '' National Comics: Madame X'' #1 (2012) * ''

Rat Queens ''Rat Queens'' is an American fantasy comic book series created by Kurtis J. Wiebe and Roc Upchurch, published by Image Comics. The series was written by Wiebe until Ryan Ferrier took over in mid 2019. The original 2013–2016 run was drawn by Roc ...

'' #1 Variant Cover (2013) * ''

Fire and Stone ''Fire and Stone'' is a comic book series crossover set in the fictional universe of the '' Alien vs. Predator'' franchise. It was first published by Dark Horse Comics in the fall of 2014 and continued until 2015 and was followed by the crossov ...

'' #1 Variant Cover (2014) * ''

Chrononauts Chrononaut (' time traveller') or chrononauts may refer to: * ''Chrononauts'' (game), a family of card games based on time travelling * ''Chrononauts'' (comics), a comic book series based on time travelling * Chrononauts, time travellers in TV ...

'' #1 Variant Cover (2015) * ''

The Wicked + The Divine ''The Wicked + The Divine'' is a contemporary fantasy comic book series created by Kieron Gillen and Jamie McKelvie, and published by Image Comics. The series is largely influenced by pop music and various mythological deities, and includes the ...

'' #11 Variant Cover (2015) * ''Archie'' #650 * ''

Sex Criminals ''Sex Criminals'' is a comic book series published by American company Image Comics. It is written by Matt Fraction and illustrated by Chip Zdarsky, set in the Image Universe. The first issue was published on September 25, 2013, and the last issue ...

#16'' XXX Variant cover (2017) * '' Labyrinth: Coronation'' #1–12 (2018-2019) * '' Nemesis: Reloaded'' #1–5 (Image, 2023)

References

External links

* *
Fiona Staples
at 2000 AD online * {{DEFAULTSORT:Staples, Fiona Artists from Calgary Canadian comics artists Eisner Award winners for Best Painter/Multimedia Artist (Interior) Eisner Award winners for Best Penciller/Inker or Penciller/Inker Team Eisner Award winners for Best Cover Artist Harvey Award winners for Best Artist or Penciller Harvey Award winners for Best Colorist Hugo Award–winning artists Canadian female comics artists Living people Year of birth missing (living people)