| Ed Benes | |
|---|---|
| Born | José Edilbenes Bezerra 1972 Limoeiro do Norte, Ceara Brazil |
| Nationality | Brazilian |
| Area(s) | Penciller, Inker |
| Notable works | Birds of Prey Justice League of America, vol. 2 Supergirl, vol. 3 Superman, vol. 2 WildC.A.T.S. |
| Official website | |
José Edilbenes Bezerra (born 1972 in Alto Santo, Ceara Brazil) is a Brazilian comic book artist, better known by his pen name of Ed Benes. He was highly regarded since his work at DC Comics on such titles as Birds of Prey, Supergirl, Superman, and Justice League of America where he was the artist named to take over the series relaunch.
Contents |
Ed Benes began drawing on his own in 1989, referencing the artwork from his brother's comic books.[1] His debut into comic books was Samuree, for Continuity Comics in 1993. That opportunity happened when Benes was sending test drawings for a portfolio and was discovered by Neal Adams.[2] In the 1990s Benes began to work for Marvel where he did art for multiple comic book titles, including a Captain Marvel 6-part miniseries.
He became familiarized by his drawings of superhero pin-up girls, but matured significantly as an artist, as he moved to DC where continued penciling more work for titles such as Gen¹³, Birds of Prey, Supergirl (vol. 3), and Superman (vol. 2). In 2006 Benes (along with the writer Brad Meltzer) was assigned to provide art to a new Justice League of America series, which he drew until 2009. After some sporadic contributions in Batman and Birds of Prey (vol. 2) titles, Benes is currently working on Steel new on-going series.
Because his primary language is Portuguese, Benes works almost exclusively through translators in order for him to effectively communicate with his American co-workers. Brad Meltzer made special note of this in the first hardcover collection of Justice League of America, fearing that a key scene wouldn't be illustrated correctly because of Meltzer's specific details. Fortunately, DC's translator Joe Prado translated every word of Meltzer's instructions, and Meltzer praised both men by saying "every detail is in there..."
Ed Benes has also begun a studio for aspiring comic book artists who want to learn from a professional on how to find work in the comic industry. The Ed Benes Studio currently offers several courses on illustration and the art and technique of sequential storytelling. In addition, the Studio also hosts a wide range of lectures and workshops specifically designed to help improve an artist’s core skill sets that are essential for an artist to be able to succeed and adapt in today’s ever-expanding comics art and illustration market.[3]
Comics work (interior pencil art) includes:
| Preceded by Leonard Kirk |
Supergirl artist 2002–2003 |
Succeeded by Ian Churchill |
| Preceded by Casey Jones |
Birds of Prey artist 2003–2005 |
Succeeded by Joe Bennett |
| Preceded by Jim Lee |
Superman artist 2005–2006 |
Succeeded by Carlos Pacheco |
| Preceded by none |
Justice League of America artist 2006–2009 |
Succeeded by Mark Bagley |
| Preceded by Claude St. Aubin |
Birds of Prey artist 2010 |
Succeeded by Adrian Syaf |