SDCC 2016: A Chat With Camilla d’Errico

A convention staple, Camilla d’Errico’s booth at San Diego Comic-Con had a seemingly nonstop crowd of fans. Her distinct art style certainly left impression on me that first time I saw it. SDCC 2016 also celebrated the launch of Camilla’s most recent project: an adult coloring book.

How did you get started in the industry?

I got started in 1998 when I did my very first Comic-Con, like San Diego Comic-Con. Now that I think about it, it’s been 18 years since I’ve been coming so it’s half of my life that I’ve been coming here. I got started by going up to where they do portfolio reviews in the Sails Pavilion. I would wait and talk to editors and have them critique my work. One particular editor took a liking to me and saw what potential I had. I started my first comic book in 1999 with Committed Comics. They took a chance on me and I really appreciated that.

What are the inspirations for your work?

I am inspired by so many things. I take a lot of inspiration from nature and the beauty of color. If I could eat color, I would. But you can’t, trust me; I’ve tried. I’m inspired by a lot of juxtapositions, too. A lot of times my art work is described as “cute and creepy” because I like that balance. I like that little bit of a twist and a surprise. To me, one of the most I interesting and inspiring things is that as humans, we are not just one thing; We are a mix of things. One of my favorite characters that inspired me growing up was Scully from The X-Files  because she was a scientist. She was very rigid. She didn’t believe in all of those things but she believed in God, who science can’t prove exists. She was a devout Christian. I love that contrast and I think that ever since then, I have wanted to have that in my artwork.

You are also known in the designer toy community for your figures, both original and customized. Is there any piece that you are particularly fond of?

I think my fondest figure was the figure I did with Dark Horse. It was a bust of my painting, “No Ordinary Love.” I think I am the proudest of that because it was the very first time that a company created a statue out of my painting. It brought it to life in a three-dimensional way, which was so cool! It took the longest to develop and it was a real collaborative effort.

What can you tell me about your Pop Manga Coloring Book?

I am really excited about my coloring book because it is the first adult coloring book that I’ve done. I had a really good time and a challenging time, too, to take my artwork and create it so that was patterned as well. Half of the book is new art. It was created specifically for the book so it very, very detailed. It was a challenge to get that much detail into it. The other part was older pieces that I took and created them into works that had patterns in them. It was a reinvention of my artwork. It was really neat and I am excited to see what people can do with my art. For some of these pieces, I have never imagined them in color. So going to see people coloring them, I have to give up of that ownership of it and just accept that is a collaboration between me and the public.

You can check out Camilla’s work at her website. Her Pop Manga Coloring Book is available now, priced at $15.99.