Richard Sala, the creator of “Delphine,” “Cat Burglar Black,” and “Evil Eye,” has passed away at the age of 61.
He was known for his uniquely surreal and stylistic art across a swathe of horror-centric, evergreen titles.
According to his professional profile, Sala grew up in Chicago with “a fascination for musty old museums, dusty old libraries, cluttered antique shops, narrow alleyways, hidden truths, double meanings, sinister secrets and spooky old houses.” He published his first comic, “Night Drive,” in 1984 at age 25, after doing his Masters on Fine Art in painting at Mills College. This garnered him the attention of Art Spiegelman, for whom he contributed to the anthology “RAW.”
Sala also worked in television and animation, beginning with the animated short Invisible Hands for Colossal Pictures. This was later expanded on and developed by Sala and director Denis Morella, appearing as a serialised series of two-minute episodes on the show Liquid Television.
In his later years, Sala began working on an assortment of webcomics including “Super-Enigmatix” and “The Bloody Cardinal.” He had begun the webcomic “Carlotta Havoc Versus Everyone,” which was set for an April release before his death.
“We are still processing, and will say more soon,” said Fantagraphics. “But our hearts are with his close friends and family who are grieving this insurmountable loss.”
