Thorneater Comics
Thorneater Comics is Will. I had the pleasure of meeting with him at his home in the Catskills two winters ago. At the time he was at the end of his first winter in a beautiful cabin that he built. Just beyond a tree line into the woods, overlooking a hill with a stream beneath it. We drank coffee and talked comics by his fireplace. I was just starting to formulate my own comic projects at the time so this meeting was truly inspirational. It was the first time Mars and I got to show another illustrator the first parts of Shquirat. We took a look at Will’s studio along with some illustrations he was working on.
I was in the Catskills for three weeks. Besides being a royal pain in the butt to Mars (eternally sorry for that.) I got to see some of Will’s earlier work during my stay. I was recently thinking about a comic called “Me and Sadie Down by the Railyard”. In which a young adult is walking on railroad tracks with his love interest. Suddenly after being hit hit by a bolt of lightning, he spills into a loving yet existential monologue. This earlier work had a more classic, full-color, comic-zine layout. In a lot of ways it hinted toward the direction Will would be going in comics.
Thorneater Comics released “Motherhood” earlier this month, which consists of Will’s beautifully intricate nature landscapes and characters. Regardless of the intensity of the illustrations I believe Will is a true minimalist in form. “Motherhood” displays brief text which creates a narrative that feels like poetry alongside his rich illustrations. He says a lot with very little text which is heightened by the tone and vastness of his drawings.
Thorneater comics is a stunning solo project that most certainly comes directly from the heart. There are plenty more comics that you’ll want to see on his Facebook and Tumblr.
Written by Kyle J. Osborne. Oct. 2016.
