Monster Sketch

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After a Saturday morning television viewing of ABBOTT & COSTELLO MEET FRANKENSTEIN at the age of five, Frank Dietz became hooked on horror films. This eventually led to his career in the film industry as a writer, producer, director, actor and animator. He has found success as one of the new wave of classic monster illustrators. Inspired by the work of artists like Basil Gogos, Frank Frazetta and Mort Drucker, Frank pays tribute to the movie monster world through oils, charcoal, pastel and pencil.
Frank grew up on Long Island, N.Y., and then attended the State University at Oswego, where he majored in theatre and art. He starred in a series of now-cult low-budget horror films like ZOMBIE NIGHTMARE, ROCK N' ROLL NIGHTMARE, BLACK ROSES and THE JITTERS. Bitten by the film bug, Frank then moved to Los Angeles, where his screenwriting career began. He wrote the scripts for many independent features, including NAKED SOULS, COLD HARVEST and the MAGIC IN THE MIRROR series.
In 1996, Frank returned to his artistic roots and joined Walt Disney Feature Animation as a traditional animation artist. He contributed to such films as HERCULES, MULAN, TARZAN, FANTASIA 2000, ATLANTIS - THE LOST EMPIRE, TREASURE PLANET and HOME ON THE RANGE.
During this period Frank created the SKETCHY THINGS series of classic monster sketchbooks, which became extremely popular with genre fans. This lead to years of commissions for horror and fantasy books, magazines and convention appearances.
Frank resides in Burbank, California and continues to appear at sci-fi and horror conventions across the country, speaking to fans about art, movies and monsters.
Artist Statement:
I was about five years old when I saw my first horror movie. The film was 1945’s ABBOTT & COSTELLO MEET FRANKENSTEIN, but I saw it in the 1960’s on a small black & white television set. The images of the characters…Dracula, the Wolf Man and the Frankenstein Monster…were permanently seared into my tiny brain, and engaged a lifelong infatuation with all things fun and frightening.
My other obsession was with drawing. I sketched constantly as a child, on everything from plain paper to schoolroom desks. Naturally these two interests were bound to collide, so when they did I had found my calling. Fueled by magazines like FAMOUS MONSTERS OF FILMLAND and artists such as Basil Gogos, Bernie Wrightson and William Stout, my interest in monster artwork flourished.
Years later, while working as an animator for Disney, I embarked on my first solo project…a collection of monster caricatures called THINGS ARE A BIT SKETCHY. The book was so popular with classic creature fans, it lead to five additional volumes and invitations to appear at horror conventions across the country. I was asked to contribute to magazines like MONSTERS FROM THE VAULT, CASTLE OF FRANKENSTEIN, MONSTER BASH, MAKEUP ARTIST and many more. I found myself a member of a community I had admired my entire life, and those artists whose work I had emulated were now my friends.
In the past few years, I started branching out from my signature pencil style and began experimenting with oils, charcoal and pastels. The medium may change, but the subject remains the same. It is my hope that by paying tribute to these classic characters and actors, I contribute to keeping their legacies alive and kicking for many years to come…and perhaps inspire younger “monster kids” to pursue their own talents and dreams.