For a moment, it felt like we had stepped into a comic book movie. A message arrived from someone named Peter Parker, and given the subject matter, it was impossible not to appreciate the coincidence. Whether the name is real or simply an amusing coincidence, we will leave that mystery unsolved. We did, however, briefly wonder whether Spider-Man had decided to take a break from saving New York and venture into the art world.
While this Peter Parker is not the artist behind the work, he does play an important role in the story. As a supporter and sponsor of artist Pete “PG” Garcia, he helps bring these paintings to more art lovers and comic book enthusiasts. It is a role that often remains behind the scenes, yet it can make all the difference.
The connection feels especially fitting. Garcia’s paintings celebrate the rich visual history of American comic books, drawing inspiration from the Golden, Silver, and Bronze Ages. Through bold colors, dramatic compositions, and iconic characters, his work captures the energy, excitement, and imagination that have made comics a lasting part of popular culture.
In this interview, Pete PG Garcia reflects on his artistic journey, his lifelong fascination with comic books, and how he transforms beloved characters and classic covers into paintings that honor the art form that first inspired him.
What first sparked your interest in creating artwork based on comic books and superheroes?
My name is Pedro Garcia (aka Pete PG Garcia). During my childhood in Peru, I read superhero comics translated into Spanish and thus began my interest in drawing. I studied anatomy and fine art with private instructors but focused on practicing my pencilling, inking and lettering skills. This was all pre the digital age. When I came to the United States, and in my late teens, I got a chance to join a couple of independent comic book publishers where I honed my trade. Sadly, the deadlines took their toll and I became burnt out to the point where a blank page would cause anxiety attacks. Fast forward 30 years, at one of the lowest points in my life, I came across a youtube video of a man making comic book re-creations and I thought “this is something I can do, and do well”. Not only would I be privileged to emulate my favorite artists of the 90’s, pay homage to them, If you will, but I would also continue to paint and improve over the coloring printing techniques of the time. As I gained followers, mostly comic book collectors, I was introduced to pre code comics, early Marvel and all the wonderful art of that era.
Which superhero character do you enjoy depicting the most, and what makes that character special to you?
There is not a favorite character that I enjoy painting. Excluding commissions, I make decisions on which cover or page to recreate based on how iconic it is, how challenging it will be to paint, meaning, will I learn something from the process, and If I can bring something new to it in design or color. I have the good fortune of having Peter Parker as a patron that encourages my choices from any era of comics and understands these things are important for a painting to be unique and successful. Too many times when painting a commission, the artist can fall into a “paint by numbers” rut. I seek to avoid that.
What aspects of comic book art do you find most enjoyable to capture in your artwork?
Some aspects that I find enjoyable when recreating a cover include: figuring out the inking techniques used (such as Jack Kirby’s creative inking or Jerry Ordway’s crosshatching), the technical logistics of making titles, fonts and captions so that they look accurate but not pasted on, creating new color palettes, and giving depth to figures where flat colors were originally used.
Are there any characters or classic covers that you hope to feature in future pieces?
In the future, I’d love to recreate Marvel works by Moebius and other European artists, pulp fiction fully painted covers from the 50’s and 60’s, and more pre digital age 90’s covers.
