Rorschach

Rorschach (born Walter Joseph Kovacs) is a fictional character and an antihero of the acclaimed 1986 graphic novel miniseries Watchmen, published by DC Comics. Rorschach was created by writer Alan Moore with artist Dave Gibbons, but as with most of the main characters in the series, he was an analogue for a Charlton Comics character, in this case Steve Ditko's the Question and Mr. A.

While the series has an ensemble cast, some consider Rorschach to be the protagonist as he drives most of the plot forward. In the beginning of the story, he is introduced as the only remaining active masked vigilante not employed by the government. A ruthless crime-fighter, his beliefs in moral absolutism—good and evil with no shades of grey—have driven him to seek to punish evil at all costs. Rorschach's mask displays a constantly morphing inkblot based on the ambiguous designs used in Rorschach inkblot tests, with the mask's black and white coloring consistent with Rorschach's sense and view of morality.

Born and raised in Southern California, Emilio Villalba received his BFA from the Art Institute of California in 2006 and his MFA from the Academy of Art University in 2011. He has shown in San Francisco and lives and works in Santa Clara. He teaches at the Art Institute of California.