ARTIST SPOTLIGHT: Nick Brokenshire

Sketchbooks and Scratchpads Exclusive Interview

The High Republic Adventures Phase III has brought so many artists on board for covers and interiors alike. As many comic creators will tell you, collaboration i

s the best part of the creative process, so today we are highlighting the masterful artist responsible for the lush flashbacks of THRA Issues #2 and #3: Nick Brokenshire.

SKETCHBOOKS & SCRATCHPADS: Hey Nick! Thanks so much for chatting with us. We are huge fans of your work here at Sketchbooks & Scratchpads. For those who haven’t had the pleasure of knowing you yet, how about you introduce yourself?

NICK: Hello! I’m Nick Brokenshire, the artist for many things such as Dead Seas (written by Cavan Scott), Cold Iron (written by Andy Diggle), The Once And Future Queen (written by Adam P Knave and DJ Kirkbride), a bunch of 2000AD yarns and a whole bunch of Star Wars stories! I’m from Aberdeen, Scotland. I live in Manchester, England. I was raised in a half British, half Latin family. I used to be a high school art teacher and before that I worked on farms, in shops, cleaned windows, tended gardens, cleaned school toilets. Lots of things… I play music in a geek party band called BLUES HARVEST as well as perform my own music in my band BROK.

S&S: Wow! You are quite the multi-hyphenate! Here at S&S, we also dabble in multiple creative mediums—creating comics definitely requires that skill! If you could describe your art style in one sentence, how would you put it?

NICK: I’d say it’s a mixture of old-school 2000AD style and modern comics techniques with a heavy dose of alternative comics vibes… Does that make any sense?!!

S&S: Totally! Your art is so unique, and that heavy dose of alternative comics vibe spectacularly blends with a classic comic feeling. What made you want to get into illustrating comics?

NICK: It’s something I always wanted to do since I was a kid. I was always drawing my own things but only really pursued it professionally later in life - at least compared to many other artists in the field. I grew up reading all the classic British comics, from the Bean to 2000AD and Eagle as well as all the American comics I could find. I discovered European comics when I was 16 and fell in love with a lot of alternative comics in my late teens. My favourite comic of all time is LOVE AND ROCKETS… I always wanted to to do something like that. I’m still working towards that.

S&S: What piqued your interest in signing on to THRA specifically?

NICK: I was already drawing STAR WARS comics when I was first asked to do some HIGH REPUBLIC strips. I’m a massive SW fan and was invested in the whole Project Luminous thing anyway! Once the actual High Republic started I was on board as a fan - still am! So, it was a huge thrill to be asked to get involved. I feel very blessed to be able to play in the SW universe. I think my first High Republic strip was written by Daniel, actually. I think I might be the first to depict the GAZE ELECTRIC in comic form, if I’m not mistaken. Maybe even the first to draw Marchion's face in a comic… I may be wrong about that but that’s what I tell everyone! Ha!

S&S: It’s so cool that you were a fan before hopping on board! The love you have for the series definitely peaks through in your art. So, tell me about your artistic process. How do you get from the script to the final product?