Hardboiled

Better quality version on my website: http://johnnydombrowski.com/illustration/hardboiled/

Hardboiled fiction- mostly concerning crime- is a literary style that tends to have an "unsentimental portrayal of violence and sex." Shooting a man face to face was just another day on the job. I've been reading who knows how much of Raymond Chandler and he's quickly becoming my favorite author. On top of that, I've been watching a bunch of movies like The Maltese Falcon and, maybe one of my favorite movies, In A Lonely Place. All of that detective fiction and film noir, definitely helped spark the piece.

Since I had so much fun drawing smoke in some other illustrations, I wanted to rework it as an aesthetic instead of working as a big part of the storytelling. And one thing they did do, was smoke. That's all those movies were made out of, anyway. Shadows and smoke.
Taking a little break from my Homo Ferus ideas, I wanted to illustrated a moment that could be considered either raunchy or violent. And most importantly, him not caring either way. Characters like Marlowe could be beaten within an inch of their lives and yet still manage at being a smart ass. Whether they can get themselves out of trouble is another story.

I may be posting some detail shots soon. Depends. Also, I've been thinking about blogging on more than just new artwork. It's a blog, after all. Why not use it to its full potential? Hope all is well.
-Johnny.