Posted in: Comics | Tagged: afua richardson, Jason Pearson

Jason Pearson Says Afua Richardson Gets Work Because She's Beautiful

Afua Richardson was posting some of her recent sketches on Facebook. At which point Body Bags artist Jason Pearson, apropos of nothing, replied in her thread talking about how awful new artists like Afua were, compared her work to his own work on X-Men which he posted, and said that such artists as Afua were getting success without having paid their dues. And not being "vetted".

Thar message and followups have been deleted, with Jason preferring to post the following on his own Facebook page.

Jason Pearson: Gospel! (Long rant)
I'm tired of wannabe outsiders joining up in my comic book industry, without earning it. Never being through the ups and downs. The ins and outs.
Claiming they are one of us because comic book movies are popular nowadays.
Please- Puh-Leeze!… I go back to the days when comic books weren't popular and I had to fight boys and be ridiculed by girls, because I still had comic books in my backpack.
When one had to put his or her rage down on paper, pencils, inks, lettering, markers, and/or computers, in the early days to settle themselves down- while everyone else was laughing at you.
Ain't scaring you off, newcomers. Don't be scared. Join the club if you're true to storytelling and not because of popularity. I'm a nobody in the pop culture of comics but Earn yours through sincerity before you claim you're better.
Song for my family long gone and my inner child still here.
"He'll Understand and He'll Say Well Done" by Rev. James Cleveland (listen to the lyrics).

Which led to a war of words between the two, with a few others joining in.

Afua Richardson: Well i aint new. It's really cute of you to come on my page and telling me what i didnt earn when i know After falling down the stairs and I couldn't afford to go to the hospital finished my hulk cover. I use to respect you man but something is off in your mind and maybe you just need to make art instead of worrying about what other people are doing. We pave ways for the future not condemn them.

Jason Pearson: From my pov- You are new to my industry. I Joined in 1990 when I was 19. I'm 32 years in this Game. You? How Long?

Afua Richardson: so what. You're old. I couldn't be IN the industry in 1990 because i was 10 and in classical music. This industry isn't YOURS. It's everyone's and maybe you're just salty. 17 years aint 7 days. Neal Adams, David Mack, Cully Hamner, Sanford Green. Alberto Ruiz, THOSE people 'vetted' me. Just because i didnt go thru you doesn't mean i didnt pay dues. What exactly do you think I did to draw all these covers? Shake my ass? Bat my eye lashes? Well when Marvel did their indigenous voices run with Native American artist doing Native American characters maybe they just forgot your name… Why am i wasting my time with you. I have things to draw

Jason Pearson: Sure kid… if you say so. I was vetted by Neal Adams and much better for my actual artwork and storytelling. But go ahead and keep claiming that it was your artwork and not your beauty that got the thumbs up. Yes I'm old man. This industry is mine. I truly earned it. Read the post on my page.

It was about at this point that  my eyebrows raised higher than my forehead could accomodate.

Afua Richardson: ooooooh so that's what it is. You think I prettied my way into it just because you're trashing a convention sketch. I see i see. Well. You're entitled to your opinions narcissist but naw. I actually drew alot. Dressed like a tom boy at these shows and didn't really come in cosplay until a few years ago. But keep thinking you're important enough to know who i am and what ive done or suffered thru to do what i do.

Jason Pearson: I'll agree with that. But you haven't paid the dues like most of us have. You're just cashing in on the popularity

Afua Richardson: and how exactly would you know that? That's the bullshit. You don't know my work. Google.

Jason then just posted a follow up Facebook post.

Jason Pearson: Well.. I spoke my mind about this industry and lost another friend.
All apologies to Afua Richardson. Sorry for the thunder Storms in my head about this game. Go ahead young lady. Make your own storms. I'm learning to shut the eff up but the calm waters are just so scary. I'm blaming it on Climate Change!

I'm not entirely sure it works like that. Afua Richardson is best known as an artist and cover artist on Black Panther, James Bond, Batman, X-Men, Hulk and Captain America, but I first encountered her in Top Cow's rather wonderful comic book Genius, with Marc Bernardin and Adam Freeman. Jason Pearson is a comic book and cover artist known for his work on Global Frequency, Tom Strong, ICE, Buffy The Vampire Slayer, Deadpool, X-Men, Stormwatch, The Loners, Xena, Legion, Robin, Batman, Penthouse Comix and Penthouse Men's Adventure Comix, but mostly for his creator-owned series Body Bags, which has had an unfulfilled Kickstarter crowdfunded on it from 2015, with promises that it will be published finally this year.

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