IMAGE CREDITS & CAPTIONS:
New Deadford, Prologue, Johnson House
© Fitzcarmel LaMarre
Pictured here is a preview of the painting to be used for the graphic novel’s cover.
The illustration shows Lee Blake, President of the New Bedford Historical Society and contemporary activist and educator, who is responsible for making an empty city lot, across from where Frederick Douglass first lived in New Bedford, into Abolition Row Park.
LaMarre uses a combination of photography, drawing, acrylic painting, and digital design to create his graphic novels. He begins by taking photographs of the actual people and places included the narrative. Using a light table or projector, he then sketches the photos on canvas to begin painting. Then, working in Adobe Photoshop and Indesign, he lays out the imagery, adjusts design elements and colors, creates custom type settings, and finalizes everything into a digital book for printing.