About the Art

During his time studying and building his portfolio for Marc Brunet’s ART School, Chris focused on developing original characters for a potential comic book concept. The result was a spunky cyborg lead named Helena Björnsdóttir and her mechanical counterpart, the robotic bombshell designated ASTRID.

Since then, Chris has built a complete universe for them to inhabit. He is currently writing the novel Nomad Star, which features Helena as the protagonist and ASTRID as a primary supporting character. The lore is expanding with a roster of secondary characters—including Helena’s father, Captain Björn Erikson—and a complex landscape of competing factions, rogue elements, and diverse locales.

For this first batch of artwork, Chris utilizes a high-contrast black-and-white line art style. It draws heavily from the "Power Style" of 1990s made famous by comic legends like Jim Lee, J. Scott Campbell, and Frank Miller, fused with the cyber-noir and manga aesthetics of Masamune Shirow, creator of the iconic Appleseed and Ghost in the Shell manga titles. By weaving in these cyberpunk influences, Chris introduces a layer of industrial grit—focusing on the complex intersection of humanity and high-tech machinery that defines the Nomad Star universe.

A Note on the Narrative: While these inital pieces are set deep within the Nomad Star universe, they are intended as Expanded Universe explorations. These illustrations capture the raw energy and "Power Style" of the characters in situations that may not appear in the final prose. Think of these prints as visual companions—standalone snapshots designed to explore the characters' prowess and design outside the constraints of the main timeline.