Eli Moody - A brief history

My name is Eli and I’m a visual artist. I’ve been drawing since an early
age, and have remained an avid sketcher/inker/painter ever since.
I currently draw a web comic called Search and Research along
with my buddy Jason Watts, create artwork for the library in
which I work, and do various commissioned projects when
the opportunity comes my way.

I am mostly self-taught, having had almost no formal
training. Early on I found inspiration from books about
animals, as well as the art of children’s illustrator
Trina Schart Hyman. To this day her illustrations for
Saint George and the Dragon remain my favorite of any
children’s book. Since discovering comic books in my
teenage years, that art style has been a guiding force in
my development. I am inspired by many comic book
artists, including: Jim Lee, Todd McFarlane, Marc Silvestri, Michael
Turner, Mark Schultz, Arthur Adams, and J. Scott Campbell. In recent years
I’ve begun to draw inspiration from earlier illustrators such as Franklin Booth,
Arthur Rackham, Joseph Clement Coll, and other artists including Frank
Frazetta, William Stout and Alphonse Mucha. I enjoy drawing a wide range of
subjects using a wide array of media. I am primarily a sketcher; I feel most
comfortable using a pencil, and then moving to pen and ink for final renderings.
I sometimes finish my work with watercolors, sometimes adding colored pencils
for final effects, but I am getting better at using markers for colors, as well
coloring artwork digitally. I am also starting to become comfortable painting
with acrylic paints.

Although I was born in California, I’ve spent most of my life in Tennessee, and
currently live in the city of Nashville. In 2001 I married Gypsy, who, aside from
being an awesome wife and my best friend, is my biggest fan, most insightful art
critic, and a constant source of inspiration. We have three cats who really enjoy
playing in my art supplies and walking all over any paper I happened to leave
out, but they come sit on my chest and purr when I’m not feeling well, so I
keep them around.