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The comic book industry and its influence has gone far beyond the superhero genre paperbacks sold along a back wall of a specialty store or newsstand. With mega-hit video games, blockbuster films, toys, theme park attractions, it’s now a multi-billion dollar industry. Afua Richardson is one of the talents making a name for herself in the business. An award-winning illustrator, she has worked with industry heavyweights such as Marvel, DC, and Image comics. She is best known for her work on Top Cow’s Pilot Season winning comic book, Genius.
BlackEnterprise.com spoke with the 33-year-old Atlanta resident about her past, her work and the underside of the comic book industry.
Black Enterprise: Tell me about your journey to becoming an artist.
Afua Richardson: I started out as a musician . I’ve played the flute since I was 9 years old and I thought I’d be a classical musician. I wanted to have a double major in both music and art but I chose to study music. Drawing was something I’d always found myself doing. My father is an oil painter and a physicist, but he didn’t directly show me how to draw. He gave me the tools and left me to my own devices. I went out and got my first comic and I was 9 or 10 years old and never looked back. Â Even when I was pursuing a career in music, art was something that I was always in love with. When I was older, I hopped from part time desk job-to-job and taught myself how to use Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator. My hobbies soon became my professional passions . I’d ask my friends who where working artist for critique and advice and took on an art alias to post and receive blind critique in online forums.
You’re actually a double minority in the industry as an African-American female. Does that surprise people to learn that you’re African American?
Well, with a name like Afua, I sounds very “ethnic.”At comic conventions some people assume that I’m just displaying my boyfriend’s art, or I’m there to draw people to the table. I literally have to bring out my sketchpad, and start working on pieces for people to understand that I’m the artist. I think  the most fulfilling part of attending cons are meeting and connecting with people, especially little girls who love comics and Sci-fi and have sometimes never seen a female artist before. The awe at the possibility of being the one to sit behind the table. Sometimes people need mirrors to imagine themselves doing the things they’ve wanted to do. Hopefully I can provide that mirror for them as others have for me.
Why don’t see more African Americans in your field?
From what I’ve seen, there are some amazing black male artists in the industry — there’s Brian Stelfreeze, Nelson Blake, Sanford green, Keron Grant–they’re there. What I think ends up happening is a lot of aspiring black creators often make these kind of cliché comics. They make comics about the hood or about Egypt and they don’t push the perimeters of what being black can be defined as. Perhaps they think that because there’s not a lot of black protagonists, people should support them ,regardless of the quality of their work. They’re almost like, “Well, we’re not accepted, we’re not represented in comics
properly so just accept this current effort.† The problem I have with that, is they’re expecting Marvel and DC to tell their story instead of telling it themselves . being black is not a handicap. You can’t expect someone else to tell your story and get it correctly. I would hope they’d aspire to be a universal creator. Put your culture in your work, but also tell a good story. Make it, so that anyone can receive this and understand. If you create something for a niche market, understand the limitations of that niche. Beyond popular belief, Black people are not a niche market. The concepts, the stories, the things that blacks as a whole have contributed to humanity go beyond hip-hop and the streets.
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There are some who aren’t in that mold though, no?
Comics have defiantly changed. There is a lot more progressive thinking and comics catered to adults which can give more realistic social and cultural scenarios . We’re watching medium evolve. I think things like Milestone Comics and others are changing that. A lot of stereotypes occur when people have a gap in knowledge. They fill in what they don’t know with a media rendition of it.
Changes are occurring as more people of color are entering these different arenas of media ,but I think it’s really going to take people doing that extra research. To really understanding the integral contributions blacks to humanity beyond what we’re fed during black history month. Also, you’re seeing an uprising of independently funded and created books. While Marvel and DC has been around awhile, they are reinventing many of the same characters they’ve had for decades. They’re retelling Superman or Batman or Spider-Man for a new generation, but you can only expand on those archetypes so many times.
Who would you point to as a black character that has been done right?
I think the one who has been done most consistent is Storm [from Marvel Comics’ X-Men franchise]. But unfortunately, and I think Dwayne McDuffie himself pointed this out, Storm doesn’t really have a personality because a lot of black characters have to represent all of black people in themselves. When you think of Wolverine you think of a loner, rough around the edges, will get in a bar fight. You can see him in his head and hear the things he would or wouldn’t say. But Storm, she’s a leader, she’s majestic and regal but she’s a little stoic. You’d never say, “Oh yeah, Storm would say that.†So you can’t really think any distinguishing characteristics about her other than her hair is white and she can throw a hurricane at you.
Which comic or character would you most like to work on?
I’m a big X-men fan. I have been for a long time. I think the Avengers, although they’re a really popular group, are separate characters unto themselves who’ve been thrust together in a scenario. Â Whereas the X-men actually need each other, where one lacks, the other picks up. It feels more like a family or a community of people who are dealing with social persecution. They take in people from all over and try to help them understand what they are give them a place to learn about their capabilities. That’s always something that appealed to me, especially when there was a time when I had no place to go, but my friends gave me community and understand my own powers.
What would you tell a young artist looking to follow your footsteps?
First, I would tell any aspiring artist to always carry a sketchbook and draw in it daily. Draw what you see in front of you and draw what you like. Because you’ll get hired to draw what you like; it shows in the work when you truly enjoy it.  You you may attend an art school and learn techniques , and basically get tutorials recited to you. But editors and project managers don’t want to see standard issue work. People who hire artists don’t want to see their own tutorials regurgitated back to them. They want innovation. And to be innovative, you have to go outside of what you’ve been instructed  and incorporate your life’s experiences in your work. Second, I’d learn the business of art, because you have these right-brained people who don’t know anything about business and think it’s not real work because it’s fun. ‘If you enjoy what you’re doing you never work a day in your life.’ That’s not exactly true. If you love what you do, you work every day of your life. Third; learn to present yourself. Create a website, get business cards and flyers with examples of your work to put in people’s hands easily.
There are so many ways to create blogs and websites for free. Its important to constantly create content. The more you create the more experience you have. The more experience you have the easier it is to make tangible your dreams, visions and emotions in a way that other people extract from your work, exactly what you’re trying to communicate. Lastly, take critique but enjoy the process. Know that as much skill that you have, there are always new ways to actualize the intricacies of human thought.