Paolo Rivera has quickly become one of my favorite artists working in comics, today. I was introduced to his work with the earlier issues of Mark Waid’s critically acclaimed Daredevil run(Volume 3, 2011). Paolo was part of a “dream team” of artists that worked on Daredevil, including Marcos Martin, Javier Rodriguez, and Chris Samnee.
Paolo’s father, Joe Rivera, also deserves a mention here. He’s been Paolo’s inker for some time now and his ability to render every little detail of Paolo’s drawings so cleanly is truly impressive!
Paolo Rivera received his Bachelor of Fine Arts in 2003 from Rhode Island School of Design. Marvel Comics obviously recognized what a great talent they had in Paolo, signing him to an exclusive contract in 2008.
Paolo uses models(including himself) as reference. He draws several versions of each piece(by hand & digitally) before he executes the final draft. He’s also an accomplished painter, working in oils, acrylic, water-color, and gouache. He’s actually hand-painted whole comics! The Mythos 1-shots(2006-08) with writer Paul Jenkins is one example.
Lately, Paolo has been working hard on artwork for The Valiant, The Book of Death, and this week’s variant cover for Howard the Duck. Upcoming, he has Hellboy and the BPRD: 1953, a 3-issue mini-series with Mike Mignola, Chris Roberson, and Dave Stewart.
You can see more of Paolo Rivera’s work and art process(which is arduous)on his blog here.
For more comics related art, you can follow me on my website comicstavern.com – Andy Yates
ILLUSTRATION AGE 
Thoughts?