Every year there are some comic books from DC, Marvel, Image, BOOM! and more that stand out from the rest. These comics might feature classic or popular characters, explore multiverses in grand-scale crossovers, or tell heartfelt, meaningful stories. Beyond the characters and logos on their cover pages, these comics rise above the rest because of the creators involved. Writers and artists make comics what they are, and most of the success or praise should be attributed to their hard work.
Of course, some artists stand out from the crowd, whether it's due to the success of their recent series or the traction gained from their current or announced projects. As a result, there are some artists worth keeping an eye out for this year.
10 Jorge Jiménez Was Born To Draw Superhero Comics
Jorge Jiménez has worked for DC Comics for years, providing fantastic interiors for books like Earth 2: Society and Super Sons starring Jonathan Kent and Damian Wayne. Jiménez gained more well-earned recognition when he began working on two of DC's biggest comic titles: Justice League with Scott Snyder and Batman with James Tynion IV.
Jiménez's art is electric and dynamic, and he posts many pre-colored pieces on social media. Jiménez recently announced that he'll be returning to provide art for the Batman series based on scripts written by Chip Zdarsky.
9 Joëlle Jones Creates Clean Yet Detailed Art
Joëlle Jones signed a contract with DC Comics in the summer of 2016. Since then, she's provided tremendous artwork on series like Supergirl: Being Super, Tom King's Batman series, and Wonder Girl. Jones's line art is clean but incredibly detailed.
This is evident when reading her Catwoman series. Catwoman's costume is all black, but Jones's art gives it a sheen, latex look that produces an incredible amount of added detail. Fans can see Jones's latest work in the new Wonder Woman event, Trial of the Amazons.
8 Clay Mann Is A Master Of The Human Form
No one combines realism with superhero exaggeration quite like Clay Mann. Mann has been a prolific penciler for both DC and Marvel for over 15 years, working on incredible titles like X-Men: Legacy, Poison Ivy: Cycle of Life and Death, and more recently, Batman with writer Tom King.
Mann's incredibly realistic anatomy and facial expressions contributed to the critical acclaim of Heroes in Crisis – a story that relied heavily on the art and consequent expressions of its characters. Mann and King continue their partnership in the Batman/Catwoman miniseries, which ends this year.
7 Belén Ortega's Art Is Perfect For Superhero Comics
Belén Ortega is quickly becoming a well-known name in the comic community. She's provided cover art for series like Sensational Wonder Woman and Legends of the Dark Knight and has recently provided interior pages for series like Captain Marvel and Batman: Urban Legends.
Ortega's art style is perfect for comic books. Her linework is detailed with incredible shading, and her characters are expressive with slightly enlarged eyes and mouths. Her work on the Joker series (providing backup stories starring Punchline) highlight her style.
6 Simone Di Meo's Stylized Art Is Perfect For Sci-Fi Books
Simone Di Meo has produced cover art for DC Comics series like Robin and Future State: Gotham, and he's recently produced interior art for Future State: Harley Quinn and DC vs. Vampires. Di Meo's art looks like it's always in motion. He creates blurred effects that heighten every action sequence.
The black and white work-in-progress pictures he posts on social media confirm how incredibly detailed his work is, while his work truly shines in his own BOOM! Studios comic book series – We Only Find Them When They're Dead – that he created with Al Ewing. This epic sci-fi comic, which deals with unknown galaxies and giant alien gods, perfectly exemplifies his style.
5 Elsa Charretier Captures The Look Of Golden & Silver Age Comics
Elsa Charretier has worked for DC Comics, Marvel, and Image on acclaimed titles such as Infinite Loop, Harley Quinn, and GLAAD award-winning, Doctor Aphra. Everything about her art style, from anatomy to facial expressions to shading, is reminiscent of the Golden and Silver Age era of comic art. In other words, Charretier's art feels timeless.
Charretier is currently working on a romance comic series with writer Tom King titled Love Everlasting. The comic follows the story of lovers looking for everlasting love while facing the extreme challenges its pursuit offers.
4 Bilquis Evely Crafts Incredibly Detailed Art
Any art fan who appreciates intricate detailing should pick up one of the books Bilquis Evely has worked on. Evely posts many work-in-progress pictures on social media where fans can see how much effort she puts into her penciled line art.
Evely is definitely an artist to follow. She's recently worked on series like The Dreaming and The Sandman Universe, which are books that fall under Neil Gaiman's Sandman property. She's also recently wrapped up Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow with writer Tom King. The eighth and final issue is being released in April 2022.
3 Matteo Scalera Captures Heightened Expression & Action
Matteo Scalera is one of the best comic artists in the business. His work on Black Science, an Image comic written by Rick Remender, is amazing. His exaggerated faces and anatomy give his characters a wide range of emotions. In Black Science, scientists hop from one dimension to another, forcing Scalera to create entirely new alien worlds and species in nearly every issue.
He's also worked on White Knight Presents: Harley Quinn, a sequel to Sean Gordon Murphy's Batman: White Knight. His most recent work can be found in the pages of King of Spies, an Image comic written by Mark Millar about a secret agent on his last mission.
2 Laura Braga's Art Is Fun & Expressive
Laura Braga's art is fun and energetic, and the characters she draws are expressive and beautiful. Braga produced much of the interior art for DC's Bombshells series, which is a fantastic book that explores the DC universe in an alternate 1940s and 1950s era. Braga gave many popular heroes and villains retro redesigns with new costumes and wardrobes, which were made into a line of statues.
Braga recently provided art for Harley Quinn's solo book, Harley & Ivy Meet Betty & Veronica, which is a series that merges the worlds of DC and Archie Comics. Along with Joëlle Jones, Braga is working on the new Trial of the Amazons event book.
1 Dan Mora Can Draw Drama, Action, Horror & Anything In Between
Dan Mora's work speaks for itself. He can draw it all. Having illustrated for multiple comic book companies in series that span multiple genres, Mora crafted youthful, high-energy adventures in Go Go Power Rangers and created modified, horrific versions of legendary heroes and villains from King Arthur tales in Once & Future, which is a BOOM! series worthy of an onscreen adaptation.
Some of Mora's best work can be found in his run on Detective Comics, where he depicted Batman and Huntress in incredibly dynamic action scenes. Mora currently draws two of the world's most popular superheroes in Batman/Superman: World's Finest written by Mark Waid.