ALEX ROSS

Nelson Alexander "Alex" Ross (born January 22, 1970) is an American comic book painter, illustrator, and plotter. He is praised for his realistic, human depictions of classic comic book characters. Since the 1990s he has done work for Marvel Comics and DC Comics (e.g. Marvels and Kingdom Come, respectively), as well as being involved in creating independent works featuring superheroes (e.g. Astro City and Project Superpowers). Because his painting style is time-consuming, he primarily serves as a plotter and/or cover artist. Comics Buyer's Guide Senior Editor Maggie Thompson, commenting on that publication's retirement of the Favourite Painter award from their CBG Fan Awards due to Ross' domination of that category, stated in 2010, "Ross may simply be the field's Favourite Painter, period. That's despite the fact that many outstanding painters are at work in today's comic books."

Ross' rendering style, his attention to detail, and the perceived tendency of his characters to be depicted staring off into the distance has been satirized in Mad magazine.

Alex Ross firstly felt in love with superheroes as a child, when he saw Spider-Man on the children's TV series The Electric Company. Many of the trademarks of his art style were learned from his mother, a commercial artist. He studied Illustration at Chicago's American Academy of Art.