Copper: 8 Questions with the Artist

Welcome back to Wednesdays with Gin. Every Wednesday I share a new post on Smiles and Spanks. This week’s post features my 8 question interview with Copper. His artwork has been part of the spanking art world for decades, and he is someone whose work I have admired for a long time, as Copper is my absolute favorite spanking artist.

1. Your artwork has such a distinctive style that a person can easily recognize a Copper drawing, whether it was created in the 1990s or much more recently. When you look at your own work across the decades, what do you think has remained consistent enough to give your artwork its distinct character and make it unmistakably yours?

I’m tempted to say it’s the only way I know how to draw. And to a certain point, that’s the truth, although in the course of my art-lifetime, I feel that I have improved on my techniques, and occasionally tried to change mediums and styles, but certain traits always seem to sneak back into the drawings. While I was an art major in college, I specialized in Advertising Design, since it had a better guarantee that I could find work upon graduation. A lot of my training in illustration was designed for print media including newspapers, that require strong line work that will easily print on cheap paper. But while my instructors tried to teach me to minimize detail, that’s one thing that has always been inbred into my drawing style.

My mother recalled that when I was in the first grade, she was summoned to the principal’s office, where I had been sent for drawing an anatomically correct picture of a cowboy. Upon looking at the drawing, she explained to the administrator that what they thought was male genitalia, was my unsuccessful attempt to draw a zipper on the cowboy’s blue jeans. Even in the first grade, I was very detail oriented (Although looking back, maybe it was actually my failed attempt to draw a penis?). So, most of the time, my illustrations will include an unnecessary amount of detail. And unlike some artists who concentrate on the butt (after all, it is about spanking) I always try to capture some emotion in the faces and postures of both the spanker and spankee.

When it comes to enduring distinctive styles, I think the same could be said about most of the artists who drew male spanking scenes in that era. Jonathan, C of Sweden, The Hun and others all maintained a unique and consistent style that stayed with them over the years. Even Franco, who now creates a lot of computer photo manipulations, still has very recognizable traits that easily identify his art.

2. On the podcast Dudes Spankin' Dudes, you talked about deliberately capturing emotion and anticipation in your drawings. How much of what we see in your artwork comes from instinct, and how much comes from consciously thinking through the details after so many years of drawing spanking art?

I think it’s primarily instinctive, although I have studied facial expressions that convey fear, remorse, shame, regret and, of course, pain. I used to keep a file of expressive faces to use as models for my drawings, but it’s now pretty ingrained and automatic.

Years ago, I toured the Walt Disney studios in Burbank, and noticed that many of the animators kept a mirror on their drawing tables, so that they could make exaggerated expressions when drawing characters, and I have also used that technique when looking to capture specific details.

3. Your work began in the black-and-white era of spanking magazines, when color printing was still rather expensive, and your artwork later evolved into color. How did working in color change what you were able to express in your drawings?

Most of my early drawings were for Red Tails or Hot Bottoms magazines, which were both printed in black-and-white. Some artists, like Franco, used to send in full color drawings and the editors would have a print shop create black-and-white half-tones, greatly reducing the sharpness of the drawings when printed. But it also meant that we had to use black ink to simulate a reddened behind – either with fine cross-hatching or stippling – which obviously isn’t optimal.

When Red Tails Magazine began publishing on-line, I could finally colorize my drawings, and it radically changed my ability to really show a well-spanked bottom. The vast majority of my drawings were still done with a pen-and-ink sketch, but then I could then use watercolors, colored pencils or inks to fill in the drawings and add graduated shading that I had never been able to use before. I think that all of us who illustrated spanking stories in black-and-white for years, celebrated the ability to finally express ourselves in living color.

4. In the introduction to The Art of Spanking, you described seeing a periodical with a cover drawing of one man spanking another in an adult bookstore and feeling as though “a whole new world opened up before me.” How do you think that discovery changed not only your understanding of yourself, but also the kind of artist you would become? What was it about that moment that made you want to create spanking art yourself?

Prior to discovering my first copy of Hot Bottoms, I had probably done a half-dozen spanking drawings, strictly for my own pleasure and satisfaction. I never shared them with anybody, and I think only one of them still exists. But once I found an outlet that actually wanted such artwork, it totally changed my life. I couldn’t wait to get home from work to sit and work till late at night on my drawings. The magazines began sending me stories that needed illustrations and I would read them, trying to imagine scenes and plotting angles that would best capture the action.

At the present time, I have produced 1,469 erotic drawings, with 1,417 of them having been published. And that doesn’t include the half-dozen I did before seeing that first magazine.

Copper, Corporal Cartoons %22A History of Comics in Red Tails Magazine%22_1.jpeg

Copper, Corporal Cartoons %22A History of Comics in Red Tails Magazine%22_2.jpeg

Copper, Corporal Cartoons %22A History of Comics in Red Tails Magazine%22_3.jpeg

Copper, Corporal Cartoons %22A History of Comics in Red Tails Magazine%22_4.jpeg

Copper, Corporal Cartoons %22A History of Comics in Red Tails Magazine%22_5.jpeg

Copper, Corporal Cartoons %22A History of Comics in Red Tails Magazine%22_6.jpeg

Copper, Corporal Cartoons %22A History of Comics in Red Tails Magazine%22_7.jpeg

Copper, Corporal Cartoons %22A History of Comics in Red Tails Magazine%22_8.jpeg

5. When you discovered Man’s Hand Films at the Folsom Street Fair and created that illustration of their spanking booth, you could hardly have known that it would lead to a creative relationship that would last for decades. How important do you think that moment was in shaping the artist and body of work that followed?

When I first met the folks at Man’s Hand Films in September of 1993, I had already been doing cover art and illustrated stories for Hot Bottoms Magazine, but their management had recently changed and the new owners really didn’t appreciate the spanking fetish.

Discovering a new outlet that was being published on schedule was an exciting proposition. Of course, when Man’s Hand offered me an opportunity to be a regular contributor, I had no idea just how much work it would eventually entail. And while the workload and deadlines were bothersome at the time, now that it’s gone, I really miss the regular need to create new images and concepts on a regular basis.

Obviously, there is no market for printed erotica anymore, and the on-line outlets are filled with an endless supply of free content, so when actual opportunities arise to create new illustrations, I anxiously jump on them.

6. Camp Red Tails has been part of the male spanking community for more than 30 years, and your artwork has become part of that experience through pieces you have created specifically for the camp. I am curious: when you are at Camp Red Tails, surrounded by the campers and the atmosphere of the camp, what goes through your mind creatively when you are physically immersed in the world you have spent so many years drawing? Does being there bring out something different in you creatively than drawing privately at home?

Honestly, my experience at Camp Red Tails has radically changed over the years. When I first began attending Camp in 1996, I took drawing supplies and spent time everyday jotting notes and making sketches. Later, when I became more involved with the company and camp operations, I actually used campers to pose for upcoming magazine cover art and even a new logo for the event. Over the years, as the owner developed dementia, I took on more responsibilities and really didn’t have time to engage in drawing during the event. And now that the camp is under new management, I have relearned to enjoy Camp Red Tails simply as a participant, and I spend my days relaxing and spanking without any thoughts of drawing. Perhaps if there were still outlets for my artwork, I would be more inspired to take advantage of the unique surroundings, but I am quite satisfied to simply enjoy them in the moment.

7. You have described yourself as a “spankaholic” and your growing fascination with spanking as a transition from being a “casual user” to a “full-fledged addict.” More than three decades later, how do you understand that intense period of creativity now, and does that same spark to create still feel familiar to you today?

The Art of Spanking was published by Man’s Hand Films, simply because in the first several years of our working together, I created far more artwork and stories than they could possibly publish in their quarterly magazine. I was admittedly obsessed with it, taking time off from my drawing to go to work every day. It basically released a spark that I had been suppressing for years, and I was finally able to share my efforts with a community of people that I never knew it existed. Having an audience made it worth the time and effort, to the point that I allowed it to consume most of my free time.

8. After everything you have experienced and created along the way, is there still something you would really love to do that you haven't had the opportunity to do yet, whether it's another book, a particular project, an event, or something completely different?

There is nothing gnawing at me like it used to. Occasionally I will see a photograph that inspires me to sit for a few evenings and interpret it, but then it just gets tucked away in an album on a bookshelf in my office.

Opportunities occasionally arise, like last year when the organizers of the Bad Ass Weekend event in Georgia contacted me with a request to create a new logo for their 15th anniversary. It was fun having a project to work on, and I ended up creating four variations of the design.

That being said, I am not actively looking for commissions. Back in the 90’s, I tried creating a few custom pieces for guys who wanted to see my interpretation of their specific fantasies. I soon discovered that I could never capture another person’s dream scenario, and I swore off ever trying to do it again. I still have a couple letters from Jonathan in England who shared similar experiences, with even more drastic results.

And while I haven’t been actively creating new spanking artwork, that doesn’t mean that I haven’t been spending hours at my drawing table nearly every day. I am currently finishing up the illustrations for a friend’s new book that will be published next year, and over the past 12- months I have completed 36 of 48 oil paintings that will be used as architectural elements in a new building project, scheduled to open in about 2-years.

The one spanking related project that I have been pursuing recently, is the donation of my spanking art and ephemera to the “Male Spanking Community Collection” at the Leather Archives and Museum. The authors of Bad Lads and Strict Sirs, Justin and Trevor, curated an exhibition on the history of the male-spanking fetish last year, and I contributed about 90 pieces at that time. Flying out to Chicago for the opening, seeing the facility and meeting the staff, assured me that there is now a permanent repository where our personal collections of male-spanking history, publications, and community can find a home in which they will be preserved, protected and appreciated for future generations. And having spent half of my life involved in spanking activities, that pleases me…a lot!

I cannot thank Copper enough for taking the time to answer my questions and for sharing so much about his artwork and creative history. I hope you all enjoyed the interview and getting a closer look at the work and the artist who has contributed so much to the world of spanking art.