Steven Bejma of Warren specializes in oil paintings of classic horror movie monsters. His artwork has appeared on DVD covers. He regularly showcases his work at horror and comic cons. (Photo courtesy of Steven Bejma)
When he was 5, Steven Bejma watched 1931’s “Frankenstein” starring horror legend Boris Karloff with his dad, which got him hooked on horror movies.
When he was 7, Bejma’s aunt gave him a stack of old horror comics, which only reinforced his addiction.
“I thought they were cool and they always had these amazing painted covers that I used to stare at and study, so my introduction to painting was trying to copy the covers that I saw,” recalled Bejma of Warren. “My aunt was the one who gave me all the horror comics, which made me realize this was an actual job.”
After working at Armada Printwear for 20 years and later as a freelance graphic designer for 30 years, Bejma recently retired to pursue painting full-time. He specializes in the horror and science-fiction genres. It was around 20 years ago when he put a serious effort into making a living as a painter, giving himself a five-year window. Toward the end of that self-imposed deadline, he got his first magazine cover for Scarlet: The Film Magazine, which covers horror. It’s been steady ever since.
“I’m a sucker for anything old and black and white. I mostly specialize in classic horror movies like the original ‘Frankenstein’ and (1931’s) ‘Dracula’ (starring Bela Lugosi). I really enjoy the more gothic style of movies. Give me an old castle, forest and fog,” Bejma said. “I’d have to say my favorite is Karloff; he played such a wide range of characters (in the horror genre) to choose from.”
The Armada High School alumnus is self-taught. His artwork has appeared on DVD covers for Synapse Films in Romulus, which acquires the rights to old horror movies, restoring the picture, cleaning up the soundtrack, and adding special features. He also takes private commissions.
Bejma appears regularly at horror and comic cons. In fact, he is a regular at the Great Lakes Comic Con in Warren and the Motor City Comic Con in Novi.
“Steve Bejma has been appearing at the (GLCC) for years,” said GLCC owner Mike DeSantis. “He is very talented. His style of painting and his take on classic monsters is just amazing.”
A typical day for Bejma begins at 7 a.m., where he paints for several hours. Around 11 a.m. to noon, he’ll break for lunch, do the laundry, take out the dog, catch up on email — “all the boring stuff.” He’ll paint in the afternoon, have dinner, then paint for several more hours before retiring for the night.
“My wife, Lisa, puts up with all the ups and downs of me having such an unconventional occupation,” he said. “I couldn’t do it without her support.”
He gave his advice for aspiring artists.
“It depends on how driven and stubborn you are, how badly you want to be an artist and make a career of it,” Bejma said. “It certainly isn’t for all the money and fortune and fame, that’s for sure.”
For Bejma, the best part of being an artist is meeting fans, both old and new.
“When I go to cons, I get to meet people. I don’t have much of a presence on social media, so I prefer to talk to people in person. I know — I’m old!” he said, laughing. “Deciding what to paint next is always hardest for me. It’s the balance between doing what I want to paint next or the reality that I have a deadline on a DVD cover or a commission project.”
For more information, contact Bejma at sbejma@aol.com.
