Daniel Acuña
Encyclopedia
Biography
In collegeUniversity
A university is an institution of higher education and research, which grants academic degrees in a variety of subjects. A university is an organisation that provides both undergraduate education and postgraduate education...
, Acuña studied in painting
Painting
Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a surface . The application of the medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush but other objects can be used. In art, the term painting describes both the act and the result of the action. However, painting is...
and graduated with a degree in Fine Art
Fine art
Fine art or the fine arts encompass art forms developed primarily for aesthetics and/or concept rather than practical application. Art is often a synonym for fine art, as employed in the term "art gallery"....
s. He cites his early influences as Jack Kirby
Jack Kirby
Jack Kirby , born Jacob Kurtzberg, was an American comic book artist, writer and editor regarded by historians and fans as one of the major innovators and most influential creators in the comic book medium....
, the JohnRomitas, Will Eisner
Will Eisner
William Erwin "Will" Eisner was an American comics writer, artist and entrepreneur. He is considered one of the most important contributors to the development of the medium and is known for the cartooning studio he founded; for his highly influential series The Spirit; for his use of comics as an...
, Simon Bisley
Simon Bisley
Simon Bisley is a British comics artist best known for his 1990s work on ABC Warriors, Lobo and Sláine. His style, reliant on paints, acrylics, inks and multiple-mediums, is strongly influenced by Frank Frazetta, Bill Sienkiewicz, Gustav Klimt, Salvador Dalí, Egon Schiele, and Richard Corben...
, Kevin Nowlan
Kevin Nowlan
Kevin Nowlan is an American comic-book artist who works as penciler, inker, colorist and letterer.He has been called "one of the few artists who can be called 'artists's artist'", a master of the various disciplines of comic production, from "design to draftsmanship to dramatics".-Biography:Kevin...
, Hal Foster, and his favorite, Richard Corben
Richard Corben
Richard Corben is an American illustrator and comic book artist best known for his comics featured in Heavy Metal magazine...
, along with fine art
Fine art
Fine art or the fine arts encompass art forms developed primarily for aesthetics and/or concept rather than practical application. Art is often a synonym for fine art, as employed in the term "art gallery"....
ists such as Edward Hopper
Edward Hopper
Edward Hopper was a prominent American realist painter and printmaker. While most popularly known for his oil paintings, he was equally proficient as a watercolorist and printmaker in etching...
, Alfons Mucha
Alfons Mucha
Alfons Maria Mucha , known in English as Alphonse Mucha, was a Czech Art Nouveau painter and decorative artist, known best for his distinct style. He produced many paintings, illustrations, advertisements, postcards, and designs.-Early years:...
, and Drew Struzan
Drew Struzan
Drew Struzan is an American artist known for his more than 150 movie posters, which include all the films in the Indiana Jones, Back to the Future and Star Wars film series. He has also painted album covers, collectibles, and book covers.- Early life and education :Drew Struzan was born in Oregon...
.
His first published work was a 22-page project, Claus & Simon in Hollywood, with fellow artist Santi Arcas, which was bought by Spanish publisher La Cupula when Acuña was 22. This work was followed by Claus & Simon: Freakshow, and Claus & Simon: Disaster Box. The "Claus & Simon" series is about the adventures of two men, one a clown, and the other pained like a dinosaur
Dinosaur
Dinosaurs are a diverse group of animals of the clade and superorder Dinosauria. They were the dominant terrestrial vertebrates for over 160 million years, from the late Triassic period until the end of the Cretaceous , when the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event led to the extinction of...
. The stories were reprinted by French publisher Éditions Albin Michel
Éditions Albin Michel
Éditions Albin Michel is a French publisher. It was founded in 1911 by Albin Michel.-External links:*...
and popular American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
magazine Heavy Metal
Heavy Metal (magazine)
Heavy Metal is an American science fiction and fantasy comics magazine, known primarily for its blend of dark fantasy/science fiction and erotica. In the mid-1970s, while publisher Leonard Mogel was in Paris to jump-start the French edition of National Lampoon, he discovered the French...
(under the title Claus & Simon: Kings of Escape).
Claus & Simon increased Acuña's profile in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, and he received work painting the European paperback covers to Alan Moore
Alan Moore
Alan Oswald Moore is an English writer primarily known for his work in comic books, a medium where he has produced a number of critically acclaimed and popular series, including Watchmen, V for Vendetta, and From Hell...
's Supreme
Supreme (comics)
Supreme is a fictional superhero created by Rob Liefeld and first published by Image Comics, then Maximum Press, and later by Awesome Entertainment...
, which led to Acuña's decision to try to break into the American market while still remaining active in the European comics industry.
Acuña's first work in the American comics industry was for Marvel Comics
Marvel Comics
Marvel Worldwide, Inc., commonly referred to as Marvel Comics and formerly Marvel Publishing, Inc. and Marvel Comics Group, is an American company that publishes comic books and related media...
, on a miniseries
Miniseries
A miniseries , in a serial storytelling medium, is a television show production which tells a story in a limited number of episodes. The exact number is open to interpretation; however, they are usually limited to fewer than a whole season. The term "miniseries" is generally a North American term...
for Axel Alonso
Axel Alonso
Axel Alonso is American comic book creator, known primarily as an editor at DC Comics from 1994–2000, and at Marvel Comics from 2000 to the present. At DC, he edited a number of books published under their Vertigo line, such as Doom Patrol, Animal Man, Hellblazer, Preacher and 100 Bullets...
that was never completed or published. DC Comics
DC Comics
DC Comics, Inc. is one of the largest and most successful companies operating in the market for American comic books and related media. It is the publishing unit of DC Entertainment a company of Warner Bros. Entertainment, which itself is owned by Time Warner...
editor Eddie Berganza
Eddie Berganza
Eddie Berganza is the Executive Editor for DC Comics.Berganza was born in Guatemala and moved to New York City at seven years old. He learned to speak English by watching reruns of the Adventures of Superman television series starring George Reeves, often shouting 'Look, up in the sky!' without...
later hired him to paint pictures of Ravager
Ravager (comics)
Ravager is the name of five fictional comic book characters in the DC Universe. All five are villains, and four have appeared in series featuring the Titans and have a connection the villain Deathstroke, Slade Wilson.-Grant Wilson:...
and Blackfire
Blackfire
Blackfire is a supervillain that appears in the fictional DC Universe. She is the older sister of the Titans member Starfire and Omega Men member Ryand'r. The character first appears in New Teen Titans #22, and was created by Marv Wolfman and George Pérez.-Fictional character biography:Komand'r...
for Teen Titans/Outsiders
Outsiders (comics)
The Outsiders are a fictional DC Comics superhero team. As its name suggests, the team consists of superheroes who allegedly do not fit the norms of the mainstream superhero community, namely the Justice League....
Secret Files. This work got Acuña noticed by Mark Chiarello
Mark Chiarello
Mark Chiarello is an American painter, art director and comic book editor.-Biography:As a painter, Chiarello has worked on such projects as the Batman story Batman/Houdini: The Devil's Workshop and Clive Barker's Hellraiser...
, who suggested him to editors Mike Carlin and Joan Hilty as a cover artist for the Justice League of America
Justice League
The Justice League, also called the Justice League of America or JLA, is a fictional superhero team that appears in comic books published by DC Comics....
and Outsiders
Outsiders (comics)
The Outsiders are a fictional DC Comics superhero team. As its name suggests, the team consists of superheroes who allegedly do not fit the norms of the mainstream superhero community, namely the Justice League....
series.
Although only doing American-market covers up until this point, Acuña made the move to interior art with Uncle Sam & the Freedom Fighters, on which he did the covers, pencils
Penciller
A penciller is an artist who works in the creation of comic books, graphic novels, and similar visual art forms.The penciller is the first step in rendering the story in visual form and may require several steps of feedback with the writer. These artists are concerned with layout to showcase...
, inks
Inker
The inker is one of the two line artists in a traditional comic book or graphic novel. After a pencilled drawing is given to the inker, the inker uses black ink to produce refined outlines over the pencil lines...
, graytones and even character design, working with European colorist
Colorist
In comics, a colorist is responsible for adding color to black-and-white line art. For most of the 20th century this was done using brushes and dyes which were then used as guides to produce the printing plates...
Javi Montes.
In late 2005, it was announced that Acuña had signed a two-year exclusive contract with DC Comics
DC Comics
DC Comics, Inc. is one of the largest and most successful companies operating in the market for American comic books and related media. It is the publishing unit of DC Entertainment a company of Warner Bros. Entertainment, which itself is owned by Time Warner...
. However in 2007 it was announced that Acuña had signed an exclusive contract with Marvel Comics
Marvel Comics
Marvel Worldwide, Inc., commonly referred to as Marvel Comics and formerly Marvel Publishing, Inc. and Marvel Comics Group, is an American company that publishes comic books and related media...
, to start in 2008, and would be leaving DC Comics
DC Comics
DC Comics, Inc. is one of the largest and most successful companies operating in the market for American comic books and related media. It is the publishing unit of DC Entertainment a company of Warner Bros. Entertainment, which itself is owned by Time Warner...
. Acuña has previously only done covers for Marvel; his first interior work for the publisher will be The Eternals
Eternals (comics)
The Eternals are a fictional race of superhumans in the Marvel Comics universe. They are described as an offshoot of the evolutionary process that created sentient life on Earth. The original instigators of this process, the alien Celestials, intended the Eternals to be the defenders of Earth which...
, starting in June 2008.
Acuña is currently based out of Águilas
Águilas
Águilas is a municipality and seaport of southeastern Spain, in the province of Murcia. It is situated at the southern end of Murcia's Mediterranean coastline, otherwise known as the Costa Cálida, near the border with the Province of Almería....
, Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
.
Acuña has recently been announced to be the new regular artist for X-Men: Legacy.
DC
- All-Flash #1 (among other artists) (2007)
- Flash, vol. 2, #231-232 (2007)
- Uncle Sam and the Freedom FightersFreedom Fighters (comics)Freedom Fighters is a DC Comics comic book superhero team made up of characters acquired from the defunct company Quality Comics. Although the characters were created by Quality, they never were gathered in a group before acquired by DC...
, miniseries, #1-8 (2006–07) - Green LanternGreen Lantern (comic book)Green Lantern is an ongoing comic book series featuring the DC Comics heroes of the same name. The character's first incarnation, Alan Scott, appeared in All-American Comics #16, and was later spun off into the first volume of Green Lantern in 1941. That series was canceled in 1949 after 39 issues...
#18-20 (2007)
Marvel
- Black Widow #1-5 (2010)
- Dark ReignDark Reign (comics)"Dark Reign" is a 2008–2009 crossover comic book storyline published by Marvel Comics. It deals with the aftermath of the "Secret Invasion" storyline, which led to a shift of power in the Marvel Universe toward Norman Osborn. The title "Dark Reign" refers to Osborn's rise to national power and the...
: The Cabal (Emma FrostEmma FrostEmma Grace Frost is a fictional character that appears in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character first appeared in Uncanny X-Men #129 , and was created by writer Chris Claremont and artist/co-writer John Byrne....
) (2009) - The EternalsEternals (comics)The Eternals are a fictional race of superhumans in the Marvel Comics universe. They are described as an offshoot of the evolutionary process that created sentient life on Earth. The original instigators of this process, the alien Celestials, intended the Eternals to be the defenders of Earth which...
, miniseries, #1-6 (2008–09) - New Avengers #62 (along with Stuart ImmonenStuart ImmonenStuart Immonen is a Canadian comic book artist. He is best known for his work on Nextwave, Ultimate X-Men, The New Avengers and Ultimate Spider-Man...
) (2010) - Uncanny X-menUncanny X-MenUncanny X-Men, first published as The X-Men, is the flagship Marvel Comics comic book series for the X-Men franchise. It is the mainstream continuity featuring the adventures of the eponymous group of mutant superheroes...
Annual #2 (along with Mitch Breitweiser) (2008) - X-Men: Legacy #228-230 (2009–10)
- Young X-MenYoung X-MenYoung X-Men was a comic book series published by Marvel Comics. It lasted for 12 issues, from April 2008 through March 2009. The series was written by Marc Guggenheim.-Final Genesis :...
#11-12 (along with Rafa Sandoval) (2009)
Other publishers
- Anthem #1-2 (Hero Comics, 2006)
- 9-119-11 (comics)9-11 comics emerged following the terrorist attacks in New York City, Washington DC, and Pennsylvania on Tuesday, September 11, 2001, and cartoonists turned to art to express their grief and support...
#1 (among other artists) (Dark Horse, 2002)