Apostle/betrayer Judas Iscariot character design sheet

This is my character sheet, or design specification, for the apostle/betrayer Judas Iscariot. The purpose of this sheet is to keep a record of the attributes or characteristics of my drawing, so that I can draw a similar-looking cartoon in all future scenes including Judas Iscariot.

I first drew my version of Judas Iscariot in March 2009, very early on in the history of Bible Cartoons. Those early pictures were for stories found in John’s gospel.

By formalising my ideas on a character design sheet in this way I would have a simple and accessible design reference point, which would remind me of what I had drawn in previous cartoons. By referring to this sheet every time I drew a scene including Judas Iscariot I hoped I would be able to draw and colour him to match previous cartoons, ensuring great similarity and therefore continuity between Bible Cartoons featuring Judas Iscariot, even if these cartoons were drawn months or even years apart.

Without this character sheet to refer to I might very well accidentally draw a scene where the Judas Iscariot character is quite different from previous drawings, which would be a problem if someone views and/or buys several Bible Cartoons and the same person looks quite different in each scene! There is a very real danger of this happening since my abilities and style gradually change and evolve over time, especially as I learn new art techniques and want to incorporate new ideas into my Bible Cartons. By referring to the character sheet I can be confident that I will draw a similar-looking person, even if my artistic skills have undergone change and development over time.

Personal History
Greek ’Ioudas, from Heb. Judas; ’Iskariotes, “inhabitant of Kerioth”). The son of Simon.

When the 12 disciples became an organized body, travelling, distributing to the poor, receiving offerings, money, etc it was necessary that someone should act as steward. Judas looked after the money bag… and stole from it (John 12:4-6; John 13:29).

Although Judas was chosen by Jesus Himself, we read “Have I not chosen you, the Twelve? Yet one of you is a devil!” (He meant Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot, who, though one of the Twelve, was later to betray him.) (John 6:70-71)