Nelson DeCastro
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Nelson Faro DeCastro,"Our Faculty: Nelson Faro DeCastro"
School of Visual Arts The School of Visual Arts New York City (SVA NYC) is a private for-profit art school in New York City. It was founded in 1947 and is a member of the Association of Independent Colleges of Art and Design. History This school was started by ...
. Retrieved October 2, 2012.
known professionally as Nelson (born February 17, 1969), is an American
comic book artist A cartoonist is a visual artist who specializes in both drawing and writing cartoons (individual images) or comics (sequential images). Cartoonists differ from comics writers or comic book illustrators in that they produce both the literary and ...
known for his airbrushed cover art, and his interior penciling, inking and coloring work. He is also a writer and teacher. Nelson's career began in the early 1990s, doing cover work and publishing his creator-owned work for
Dark Horse Comics Dark Horse Comics is an American comic book, graphic novel, and manga publisher founded in Milwaukie, Oregon by Mike Richardson in 1986. The company was created using funds earned from Richardson's chain of Portland, Oregon comic book shops known ...
, before becoming a frequent artist for both
Marvel Comics Marvel Comics is an American comic book publishing, publisher and the flagship property of Marvel Entertainment, a divsion of The Walt Disney Company since September 1, 2009. Evolving from Timely Comics in 1939, ''Magazine Management/Atlas Co ...
and
DC Comics DC Comics, Inc. (doing business as DC) is an American comic book publisher and the flagship unit of DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. DC Comics is one of the largest and oldest American comic book companies, with thei ...
.


Early life

Nelson Faro DeCastro was born February 17, 1969. His earliest memory of reading comics is of a ''
Spider-Man Spider-Man is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer-editor Stan Lee and artist Steve Ditko, he first appeared in the anthology comic book '' Amazing Fantasy'' #15 (August 1962) in the ...
'' book featuring the
Gibbon Gibbons () are apes in the family Hylobatidae (). The family historically contained one genus, but now is split into four extant genera and 20 species. Gibbons live in subtropical and tropical rainforest from eastern Bangladesh to Northeast India ...
, illustrated by
John Romita Sr. John V. Romita (; born January 24, 1930) is an American comic book artist best known for his work on Marvel Comics' ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' and for co-creating characters including the Punisher and Wolverine. He was inducted into the Will Eis ...
, whom he cites as his primary artistic influence. Other influences he names include
Caravaggio Michelangelo Merisi (Michele Angelo Merigi or Amerighi) da Caravaggio, known as simply Caravaggio (, , ; 29 September 1571 – 18 July 1610), was an Italian painter active in Rome for most of his artistic life. During the final four years of hi ...
,
Joe Jusko Joe Jusko (; born September 1, 1959) is an American artist known for his realistic, highly detailed painted fantasy, pin-up, and cover illustrations, mainly in the comic book industry. Jusko painted the 1992 Marvel Masterpieces trading cards, the ...
,
Frank Frazetta Frank Frazetta (born Frank Frazzetta ; February 9, 1928 – May 10, 2010) was an American fantasy and science fiction artist, noted for comic books, paperback book covers, paintings, posters, LP record album covers, and other media. He is ...
, and
Simon Bisley Simon Bisley is a British comic book artist best known for his 1990s work on ''ABC Warriors'', '' Lobo'' and '' Sláine''. Early life Simon Bisley began drawing when he was six years old. He is self-taught, with only a short one-year stay at a ...
. Nelson studied art at the
School of Visual Arts The School of Visual Arts New York City (SVA NYC) is a private for-profit art school in New York City. It was founded in 1947 and is a member of the Association of Independent Colleges of Art and Design. History This school was started by ...
in
Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...
.


Career


1990s

Before his comic book career began, DeCastro created artwork for the band
Mucky Pup Mucky Pup were an American hardcore and crossover thrash band formed in Bergenfield, New Jersey, United States, in 1986, when brothers Chris (vocals) and John (drums) Milnes joined up with Scott Dottino (bass) and Dan Nastasi (guitar) as the cov ...
, with whom he was friends. He provided the interior art for their 1987 album '' Can't You Take a Joke?'', and the cover art for their 1989 album, ''
A Boy In A Man's World ''A Boy in a Man's World'' is the second studio album by Mucky Pup. The album was recorded at Nevessa Productions and released in 1989 through Torrid Records and Roadrunner Records. The album features a re-recorded version of "U-Stink-But-I-♥ ...
''. Nelson broke into the American comic book industry in 1992 doing airbrushed cover work for various
Dark Horse Comics Dark Horse Comics is an American comic book, graphic novel, and manga publisher founded in Milwaukie, Oregon by Mike Richardson in 1986. The company was created using funds earned from Richardson's chain of Portland, Oregon comic book shops known ...
series, including ''Insider'' vol. 2, #6, and the four-issue
limited series Limited series may refer to: *Limited series, individual storylines within an anthology series *Limited series, a particular run of collectables, usually individually numbered *Limited series (comics), a comics series with a predetermined number of ...
''
RoboCop ''RoboCop'' is a 1987 American science fiction action film directed by Paul Verhoeven and written by Edward Neumeier and Michael Miner. The film stars Peter Weller, Nancy Allen, Daniel O'Herlihy, Ronny Cox, Kurtwood Smith, and Miguel Ferre ...
: Prime Suspect''. In 1993 he wrote and illustrated his own creator-owned horror character, Eudaemon, in the
anthology In book publishing, an anthology is a collection of literary works chosen by the compiler; it may be a collection of plays, poems, short stories, songs or excerpts by different authors. In genre fiction, the term ''anthology'' typically categ ...
''
Dark Horse Presents ''Dark Horse Presents'' was a comic book published by American company Dark Horse Comics from 1986. Their first published series, it was their flagship title until its September 2000 cancellation. The second incarnation was published on MySpace, r ...
'' #72-74, for which he provided the first issue's cover. He would later publish through Dark Horse a three-issue ''Eudaemon'' series, which he wrote, pencilled, and inked, and for which he provided airbrush-painted covers. His first work for
Marvel Comics Marvel Comics is an American comic book publishing, publisher and the flagship property of Marvel Entertainment, a divsion of The Walt Disney Company since September 1, 2009. Evolving from Timely Comics in 1939, ''Magazine Management/Atlas Co ...
was a six-page story he penciled and inked for the company's Custom Comic division. He would also provide the publisher with a painted cover for ''
Ghost Rider Ghost Rider is the name of multiple antiheroes and superheroes appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Marvel had previously used the name for a Western character whose name was later changed to Phantom Rider. The first s ...
'' #18 in 1993. His first work for
DC Comics DC Comics, Inc. (doing business as DC) is an American comic book publisher and the flagship unit of DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. DC Comics is one of the largest and oldest American comic book companies, with thei ...
was interior art for ''Team
Superman Superman is a superhero who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster, and debuted in the comic book ''Action Comics'' #1 (cover-dated June 1938 and publi ...
Secret Files and Origins'' #1, which was published in 1998. Other DC work during the 1990s includes ''
Birds of Prey Birds of prey or predatory birds, also known as raptors, are hypercarnivorous bird species that actively hunt and feed on other vertebrates (mainly mammals, reptiles and other smaller birds). In addition to speed and strength, these predators ...
: The Ravens'' #1. In 1999, Nelson worked for Marvel Comics, beginning with a painted cover and the interior art for ''X-Men: The
Magneto A magneto is an electrical generator that uses permanent magnets to produce periodic pulses of alternating current. Unlike a dynamo, a magneto does not contain a commutator to produce direct current. It is categorized as a form of alternator, ...
War'' #1. His other Marvel work that year included issues of ''
Generation X Generation X (or Gen X for short) is the Western world, Western demographic Cohort (statistics), cohort following the baby boomers and preceding the millennials. Researchers and popular media use the mid-to-late 1960s as starting birth years a ...
'', ''
Black Panther A black panther is the melanistic colour variant of the leopard (''Panthera pardus'') and the jaguar (''Panthera onca''). Black panthers of both species have excess black pigments, but their typical rosettes are also present. They have been d ...
'' and ''
X-Force X-Force is a fictional team of superheroes appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, most commonly in association with the X-Men. Conceived by writer/illustrator Rob Liefeld, the team first appeared in ''New Mutants#New Muta ...
''.


2000s

Nelson continued to work for Marvel Comics in the early 2000s, on such titles as ''
Iron Man Iron Man is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character was co-created by writer and editor Stan Lee, developed by scripter Larry Lieber, and designed by artists Don Heck and Jack Kirby. The charact ...
'', ''
Ant-Man Ant-Man is the name of several superheroes appearing in books published by Marvel Comics. Created by Stan Lee, Larry Lieber and Jack Kirby, Ant-Man's first appearance was in ''Tales to Astonish'' #27 (January 1962) but first appeared in costum ...
's Big Christmas'', ''Generation X'', ''
Marvel Knights Marvel Knights is an imprint of Marvel Comics that contained standalone material taking place inside the Marvel Universe ( Earth-616). The imprint originated in 1998 when Marvel outsourced four titles (''Black Panther'', ''Punisher'', '' Daredevil ...
'', '' Elektra'', and ''
Inhumans The Inhumans are a fictional superhuman race of superheroes appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The comic book series has usually focused more specifically on the adventures of the Inhuman Royal Family, and many peop ...
''. He also provided work for
DC Comics DC Comics, Inc. (doing business as DC) is an American comic book publisher and the flagship unit of DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. DC Comics is one of the largest and oldest American comic book companies, with thei ...
, on ''
Birds of Prey Birds of prey or predatory birds, also known as raptors, are hypercarnivorous bird species that actively hunt and feed on other vertebrates (mainly mammals, reptiles and other smaller birds). In addition to speed and strength, these predators ...
'' and 2004's ''The DC Comics Encyclopedia''. His other mid-2000s work for DC included doing inks for ''Superman: The Journey'' and inking over John Byrne's pencils and providing his first interior color work on ''
Action Comics ''Action Comics'' is an American comic book/Comic anthology, magazine series that introduced Superman, one of the first major superhero characters. The publisher was originally known as National Allied Publications, and later as National Comics ...
'' #831. Nelson branched out into educational comics with 2005's ''The Home Depot: Safety Heroes'', a giveaway from the
Home Depot The Home Depot, Inc., is an American multinational corporation, multinational home improvement retail corporation that sells tools, construction products, appliances, and services, including fuel and transportation rentals. Home Depot is the l ...
featuring several Marvel Comics characters, as well as into Marvel's mature readers imprint, MAX, with ''Doctor Spectrum'', two issues of which he inked, and Marvel's
Ultimate Ultimate or Ultimates may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music Albums * ''Ultimate'' (Jolin Tsai album) * ''Ultimate'' (Pet Shop Boys album) *''Ultimate!'', an album by The Yardbirds *''The Ultimate (Bryan Adams Album)'', a compilatio ...
line, providing interior inks for three issues of the miniseries ''
Ultimate Nightmare The ''Ultimate Galactus Trilogy'' is a collection of three comic book limited series published by Marvel Comics. All three series are set in the Ultimate Marvel universe and are written by Warren Ellis. The series showcase the arrival of the planet ...
'' and ''
Ultimate Galactus Trilogy The ''Ultimate Galactus Trilogy'' is a collection of three comic book limited series published by Marvel Comics. All three series are set in the Ultimate Marvel universe and are written by Warren Ellis. The series showcase the arrival of the planet ...
''. Although he mostly worked for Marvel Comics in the late 2000s, in 2008 Nelson provided the interior pencils and inks for DC's ''
Green Lantern Corps Green Lantern Corps is the name of a fictional intergalactic law enforcement organization appearing in comics published by DC Comics. They patrol the farthest reaches of the DC Universe at the behest of the Guardians, a race of immortals residin ...
'' #21-22. 2009 marked Nelson's first foray into writing for The Big Two publishers, with the story "The Strange Bonds of Strange People", which appeared in ''Astonishing Tales: The Thing'' #1 by Marvel Digital Comics. He also provided inks for ''
War of Kings "War of Kings" is a comic book Fictional crossover, crossover storyline written by Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning, published by Marvel Comics, and set in Marvel's main shared universe, shared Marvel Universe, universe. The six-issue limited series w ...
: Savage World of
Skaar Skaar may refer to: *Skaar (comics), a fictional character from Marvel Comics *Skaar Ridge, a ridge on the southeast side of Mount Augusta in Queen Alexandra Range *Bryn Christopher or Skaar, British singer People with the surname *Andrew O. Skaar ...
'', for which he was credited on the cover as "DeCastro", and not "Nelson", as he is typically credited. That year he also inked issues of ''
Incredible Hercules ''The Incredible Hercules'' was an ongoing series, ongoing comic book series written by Greg Pak and Fred Van Lente and published by Marvel Comics. The series starred the mythological superhero Hercules (Marvel Comics), Hercules, his sidekick Amad ...
'', and penciled and inked ''Iron Man: Iron Protocols''.


Other work

As of 2010, Nelson teaches a Drawing for Cartoonists course at
Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...
's
School of Visual Arts The School of Visual Arts New York City (SVA NYC) is a private for-profit art school in New York City. It was founded in 1947 and is a member of the Association of Independent Colleges of Art and Design. History This school was started by ...
, where he himself once studied. DeCastro has illustrated cards for the ''
Magic: The Gathering ''Magic: The Gathering'' (colloquially known as ''Magic'' or ''MTG'') is a Tabletop game, tabletop and Digital collectible card game, digital Collectible card game, collectable card game created by Richard Garfield. Released in 1993 by Wizards ...
'' collectible card game."Paintings - Acrylic (39) "
SpiderWebArt. Retrieved October 2, 2012.


Personal life

DeCastro is an avid
guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected stri ...
player, and expressed a desire to try
sculpture Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable sc ...
, though he laments that he has trouble finding the time.


Bibliography


Writer

*''Astonishing Tales: The Thing'' (2009) *''Eudaemon'' #1-3 (1993)


Penciller

*''Astonishing Tales: The Thing'' *''
Birds of Prey Birds of prey or predatory birds, also known as raptors, are hypercarnivorous bird species that actively hunt and feed on other vertebrates (mainly mammals, reptiles and other smaller birds). In addition to speed and strength, these predators ...
: The Ravens'' *''The DC Comics Encyclopedia'' (2004) *''
Generation X Generation X (or Gen X for short) is the Western world, Western demographic Cohort (statistics), cohort following the baby boomers and preceding the millennials. Researchers and popular media use the mid-to-late 1960s as starting birth years a ...
'' *''
Iron Man Iron Man is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character was co-created by writer and editor Stan Lee, developed by scripter Larry Lieber, and designed by artists Don Heck and Jack Kirby. The charact ...
: Iron Protocols'' (2009) *''Team Superman Secret Files and Origins'' #1 (1998) *''
X-Force X-Force is a fictional team of superheroes appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, most commonly in association with the X-Men. Conceived by writer/illustrator Rob Liefeld, the team first appeared in ''New Mutants#New Muta ...
'' #95 *''Eudaemon'' #1-3 (1993)


Inker

*''
War of Kings "War of Kings" is a comic book Fictional crossover, crossover storyline written by Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning, published by Marvel Comics, and set in Marvel's main shared universe, shared Marvel Universe, universe. The six-issue limited series w ...
: Savage World of Skaar'' (2009) *''
Ultimate Galactus Trilogy The ''Ultimate Galactus Trilogy'' is a collection of three comic book limited series published by Marvel Comics. All three series are set in the Ultimate Marvel universe and are written by Warren Ellis. The series showcase the arrival of the planet ...
'' (2007) *''
Ant-Man Ant-Man is the name of several superheroes appearing in books published by Marvel Comics. Created by Stan Lee, Larry Lieber and Jack Kirby, Ant-Man's first appearance was in ''Tales to Astonish'' #27 (January 1962) but first appeared in costum ...
's Big Christmas'' #1 *''Astonishing Tales: The Thing'' #1 *''
Birds of Prey Birds of prey or predatory birds, also known as raptors, are hypercarnivorous bird species that actively hunt and feed on other vertebrates (mainly mammals, reptiles and other smaller birds). In addition to speed and strength, these predators ...
'' #44 & #46 *''
Black Panther A black panther is the melanistic colour variant of the leopard (''Panthera pardus'') and the jaguar (''Panthera onca''). Black panthers of both species have excess black pigments, but their typical rosettes are also present. They have been d ...
'' #11 & #12 *''
Captain America Captain America is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by cartoonists Joe Simon and Jack Kirby, the character First appearance, first appeared in ''#Golden Age, Captain America Comics'' #1 (cover ...
& the
Falcon Falcons () are birds of prey in the genus ''Falco'', which includes about 40 species. Falcons are widely distributed on all continents of the world except Antarctica, though closely related raptors did occur there in the Eocene. Adult falcons ...
'' *''
Doctor Spectrum Doctor Spectrum is the name of several fictional characters appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. There have been five versions of the character to date—three supervillains from the mainstream Marvel Universe belonging t ...
'' *'' Elektra'' *''
Generation X Generation X (or Gen X for short) is the Western world, Western demographic Cohort (statistics), cohort following the baby boomers and preceding the millennials. Researchers and popular media use the mid-to-late 1960s as starting birth years a ...
'' #51 *''
The Home Depot The Home Depot, Inc., is an American multinational home improvement retail corporation that sells tools, construction products, appliances, and services, including fuel and transportation rentals. Home Depot is the largest home improvement re ...
: Safety Heroes'' #1 *''
Incredible Hercules ''The Incredible Hercules'' was an ongoing series, ongoing comic book series written by Greg Pak and Fred Van Lente and published by Marvel Comics. The series starred the mythological superhero Hercules (Marvel Comics), Hercules, his sidekick Amad ...
'' #132, 134 & 136 *''
Inhumans The Inhumans are a fictional superhuman race of superheroes appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The comic book series has usually focused more specifically on the adventures of the Inhuman Royal Family, and many peop ...
'' #3, 4, 7 & 9 *''
Iron Man Iron Man is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character was co-created by writer and editor Stan Lee, developed by scripter Larry Lieber, and designed by artists Don Heck and Jack Kirby. The charact ...
'' #1/2 *''Iron Man: Iron Protocols'' *''
Marvel Knights Marvel Knights is an imprint of Marvel Comics that contained standalone material taking place inside the Marvel Universe ( Earth-616). The imprint originated in 1998 when Marvel outsourced four titles (''Black Panther'', ''Punisher'', '' Daredevil ...
'' #7 - 9 *''
Superman Superman is a superhero who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster, and debuted in the comic book ''Action Comics'' #1 (cover-dated June 1938 and publi ...
: The Journey'' *''Team Superman Secret Files and Origins'' (1998) *''
The Tomb of Dracula ''The Tomb of Dracula'' is an American horror comic book series published by Marvel Comics from April 1972 to August 1979. The 70-issue series featured a group of vampire hunters who fought Count Dracula and other supernatural menaces. On rare ...
'' #3 *''
Ultimate Nightmare The ''Ultimate Galactus Trilogy'' is a collection of three comic book limited series published by Marvel Comics. All three series are set in the Ultimate Marvel universe and are written by Warren Ellis. The series showcase the arrival of the planet ...
'' #2 - 5 (2004) *''
Wolverine The wolverine (), (''Gulo gulo''; ''Gulo'' is Latin for "gluttony, glutton"), also referred to as the glutton, carcajou, or quickhatch (from East Cree, ''kwiihkwahaacheew''), is the largest land-dwelling species of the family Mustelidae. It is ...
'' #17 *''Eudaemon'' #1-3 (1993)


Colorist

*''
Action Comics ''Action Comics'' is an American comic book/Comic anthology, magazine series that introduced Superman, one of the first major superhero characters. The publisher was originally known as National Allied Publications, and later as National Comics ...
'' #831


Cover artist

*''Astonishing Tales: The Thing'' (2009) *''X-Men: The Magneto War'' (1999) *''Eudaemon'' #1-3 (1993) *''
RoboCop ''RoboCop'' is a 1987 American science fiction action film directed by Paul Verhoeven and written by Edward Neumeier and Michael Miner. The film stars Peter Weller, Nancy Allen, Daniel O'Herlihy, Ronny Cox, Kurtwood Smith, and Miguel Ferre ...
: Prime Suspect'' #1-4 (1992–93) *''The Punisher: G-Force'' (1992) *''Insider'' Vol. 2 (1991)


References


External links


DeCastro's original scores
SoundCloud SoundCloud is an online audio distribution platform and music sharing website that enables its users to upload, promote, and share audio. Founded in 2007 by Alexander Ljung and Eric Wahlforss, SoundCloud is one of the largest music streaming se ...
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Decastro, Nelson 1969 births American educators Game artists Living people Place of birth missing (living people) School of Visual Arts alumni