I recently searched for the work of Gerhard of Cerebus fame and was just blown away by his range. And then I thought it might be fun to spotlight some of my favorite ink draftsmen.
Gerhard - I have yet to devote the time to reading Cerebus, but having glanced at Gerhard's lovely backdrops hundreds of times I'm convinced I am in love with the atmosphere of this story. It may have actually been the first comic to interest me in black & white comics.
Gustave Dore - I can't say enough about the dedication to perfection inherent in his work. It's superhuman.
Travis Charest - I had no idea what Mr. Charest had been up to since I quit mainstream comics in the mid-90's, but then I discovered his Spacegirl series and realized he's still as good now as he was then. He's like Jim Lee without all the squiggle and fakery with a healthy influence of Moebius.
Leinil Francis Yu - While I was away from comics this guy did what Travis Charest did years before. Solid figure drawing, dynamic layout, with a bit of stylistic flair. They both also make it look very easy.
Martin Wagner - There is something so articulate about his drawings in Hepcats, similarly to Cerebus, I think just draws in the reader naturally. Hepcats, Cerebus, and few others are canon in my indy comics favorites.
Nabiel Kanan - I have not gotten over Nabiel Kanan's Exit since the first time I read it. When you're talking about black and white composition, using texture and line creatively to tell a story, and breaking down forms and values you can not leave out this masterpiece!
Winsor McCay - All I can say is duh! Winsor McCay would make Chuck Norris cry in a staring contest.
Moebius / Paul Chadwick - Anybody who knows comics knows how much of a lasting impression Moebius has left on the medium. And anybody whose even glanced at Paul Chadwick's art knows there is subtle genius behind his composition and draftsmanship. But it takes a certain kind of person to suspect that they are one and the same. I was reading Fragile Creature not too long ago and picked up the reference to He Man and the masters of the universe. So I did a search of the art department attached to the film, but failed to find Chadwick's name in the billing. Instead, one Jean Giraud was listed! And the thing is their art doesn't even look similar on close inspection, but then I thought if I were a genius draftsman like Moebius, why would I draw under a pseudonym with a similar drawing style? I would rather draw upon a different foundation for drawing if I wanted to draw under a different identity! So there you have it! Prove me wrong naysayers!
----------- Little Nemo (because I said so)
Watch Little Nemo in Animation | View More Free Videos Online at Veoh.com
Craftsmanship
http://www.behance.net/Gallery/Paper-cuts-Rolls/241623
http://www.beautifullife.info/art-works/incredibly-realistic-sculptures-by-adam-beane/
http://www.petercallesen.com/index/index2.html
And now time for a Sunday Afternoon Snoozle. See ya soon!
Sunday, September 27, 2009
Sunday, September 20, 2009
Motivational History
So in the shower I fell into a philosophical trance. There's something about warm water on my bare skin that makes my synapses fire and the higher functions of my thought process activate, and in this particular instance the subject was something that I am calling motivational history.
I was thinking about how in elementary school here in the U.S. kids are taught history in the perspective of discovery, advancement, and innovation. Dates and historical figures represent the milestones of getting to the advanced state of "our modern times" from the earlier eras of backwardness and confusion. For instance 1776 marks the declaration of independence, which in itself is a massive mouthful. Wow! The Declaration. Independence. Or we might also think of Alexander Graham Bell and the invention of the telegraph and the rise of long distance and mass communication. Our first experiences of history are full of the wonderment of invention, declaration, even victory. And probably we are not taught about conflicts of interest at this tender age because it would not be easily understood by a young mind. However, I believe the history book writers are specifically attuned to keeping their audience captivated, interested, and motivated to learn history and to appropriate its facts for their personal use. So kids dream up the heroics of colonial battles, or earmark the milestones that interest them, and move right along in their education. And eventually conflict is introduced in their developing understanding of history. It is there where the road diverges. The facile thinker will cling to the wonderment of invention and the joy of victory and overlook the painful facts of history including oppression, corruption, marginalization, and error. Here an open-minded knowledge seeker will begin the arduous journey of reconciling the terrible and the wonderful points in a given history. Further down the line one would hope to learn about perspective, the divergences and convergences of historical accounts. History will become more and more fractured, and more diverse. As it becomes complicated the motivating effect we once experienced is worn down and what remains is analysis.
It was in college where history had, for me, digressed into stale and depressing analysis. Perspective was definitely a new focus for me, and I was glad to be enlightened to history that was closer to home for me ethnically, socially, and culturally. But in the shower I began wondering why my experience of history had become merely the records of protest against cultural hegemony. Is the shared history of my culture and subcultures merely an analysis of someone else's overinflated history? Where are the moments of victory, accomplishment, invention, or enlightenment? Are we so offended by the pompousness of some other's history that we deny ourselves the joy of a history that is motivational and wonderful?
So now that everybody has cleared the room . . .
I can't believe it is already September 20, nearly 10 months since I quit smoking and began this blog. It's nice sometimes to look back at life affirming decisions and take note of our progress. My buddy Ace just graduated basic training and is leaving for tech school soon. I hope I get to talk to him before then. Also I will soon begin an ambitious project of scanning every piece of artwork that I have kept since elementary school. I want to have an online archive similar to Alan Tew's original beeba.net website. The one thing that scares me more than the actual work, however, is my indecisiveness about quality and file size. I tried scanning some artwork in this week, and I got hung up scanning them in at different sampling rates and levels of sharpness. And then, of course, there were more permutations of downsizing, level/curve tweaking, and color mode. I've said it before and I'll say it again, I am a strange kind of archivist.
Its terrible. I have a box full of audio casettes! I don't even have a way of playing them right now. But they are in my mind irreplaceable--well, that is until, they are completely replaced. But to what extent is it possible to preserve complete fidelity? And to what end is it even sensible to persue?
I am sad to report the passing of Bernie Fuchs, a tremendous artist whose work will remain timeless.
This is inherently interesting as a record of tv shows that have actually come to a conclusion of some sort, though I find these Fine brothers tipping the scales in the delicate balance between obnoxious and funny.
Yes. I like this already.
Kickstarter is a great website and I think Minda Martin makes great films.
Sketches and proof that the forensics shows haven't left me alone yet.
I also had time for these zany things including a sketch on the back of an alignment test page, and one on the back of a gym membership coupon. There are, of course, more sketches but I only have so much space to be foolish.
Okay, that's all for now. Expect more foolishness less shenanigans next week!
I was thinking about how in elementary school here in the U.S. kids are taught history in the perspective of discovery, advancement, and innovation. Dates and historical figures represent the milestones of getting to the advanced state of "our modern times" from the earlier eras of backwardness and confusion. For instance 1776 marks the declaration of independence, which in itself is a massive mouthful. Wow! The Declaration. Independence. Or we might also think of Alexander Graham Bell and the invention of the telegraph and the rise of long distance and mass communication. Our first experiences of history are full of the wonderment of invention, declaration, even victory. And probably we are not taught about conflicts of interest at this tender age because it would not be easily understood by a young mind. However, I believe the history book writers are specifically attuned to keeping their audience captivated, interested, and motivated to learn history and to appropriate its facts for their personal use. So kids dream up the heroics of colonial battles, or earmark the milestones that interest them, and move right along in their education. And eventually conflict is introduced in their developing understanding of history. It is there where the road diverges. The facile thinker will cling to the wonderment of invention and the joy of victory and overlook the painful facts of history including oppression, corruption, marginalization, and error. Here an open-minded knowledge seeker will begin the arduous journey of reconciling the terrible and the wonderful points in a given history. Further down the line one would hope to learn about perspective, the divergences and convergences of historical accounts. History will become more and more fractured, and more diverse. As it becomes complicated the motivating effect we once experienced is worn down and what remains is analysis.
It was in college where history had, for me, digressed into stale and depressing analysis. Perspective was definitely a new focus for me, and I was glad to be enlightened to history that was closer to home for me ethnically, socially, and culturally. But in the shower I began wondering why my experience of history had become merely the records of protest against cultural hegemony. Is the shared history of my culture and subcultures merely an analysis of someone else's overinflated history? Where are the moments of victory, accomplishment, invention, or enlightenment? Are we so offended by the pompousness of some other's history that we deny ourselves the joy of a history that is motivational and wonderful?
So now that everybody has cleared the room . . .
I can't believe it is already September 20, nearly 10 months since I quit smoking and began this blog. It's nice sometimes to look back at life affirming decisions and take note of our progress. My buddy Ace just graduated basic training and is leaving for tech school soon. I hope I get to talk to him before then. Also I will soon begin an ambitious project of scanning every piece of artwork that I have kept since elementary school. I want to have an online archive similar to Alan Tew's original beeba.net website. The one thing that scares me more than the actual work, however, is my indecisiveness about quality and file size. I tried scanning some artwork in this week, and I got hung up scanning them in at different sampling rates and levels of sharpness. And then, of course, there were more permutations of downsizing, level/curve tweaking, and color mode. I've said it before and I'll say it again, I am a strange kind of archivist.
Its terrible. I have a box full of audio casettes! I don't even have a way of playing them right now. But they are in my mind irreplaceable--well, that is until, they are completely replaced. But to what extent is it possible to preserve complete fidelity? And to what end is it even sensible to persue?
I am sad to report the passing of Bernie Fuchs, a tremendous artist whose work will remain timeless.
This is inherently interesting as a record of tv shows that have actually come to a conclusion of some sort, though I find these Fine brothers tipping the scales in the delicate balance between obnoxious and funny.
Yes. I like this already.
Kickstarter is a great website and I think Minda Martin makes great films.
Sketches and proof that the forensics shows haven't left me alone yet.
I also had time for these zany things including a sketch on the back of an alignment test page, and one on the back of a gym membership coupon. There are, of course, more sketches but I only have so much space to be foolish.
Okay, that's all for now. Expect more foolishness less shenanigans next week!
Sunday, September 13, 2009
Detective Stories
Detective shows have taken over my life. NCIS, Monk, Psych, Law & Order SVU, CSI: Miami, Cold Case, I even got drawn into an episode of Las Vegas. It's no mystery what draws people to these shows. Or should I say it is precisely that, mystery. We revel in suspense, in puzzles and the unraveling of said puzzles. Brain exercises. Cures for boredom.
Monk and Psych follow in the vein of light hearted detective shows of yesterday like Matlock and Murder She Wrote. That is to say the tension is often cut by comedic relief, what I like to call salty and sweet. Simply satisfying.
NCIS and the CSI shows take on the serial structure of mystery suspense stories (Sherlock Holmes, Hill Street Blues) and increase the depth of character sub-plots. Taking things to the gritty extreme both shows have had members of their main cast murdered.
The Law & Order shows are stark and hard-boiled, especially in the drawn out character sub-plots.
Cold Case is pretty formulaic from what I've seen of it, much like the Dead Zone tv series of a few years ago; it generally consists of soundtrack laden flashback opening sequence, interviews of persons of interest, for which current-day and flashback actors are intercut between q&a sessions, and finally closing sequence montage set to music.
What I enjoy about these shows, and what others might get from them are most likely as different as snowflakes. Still I wanted to write a little about how tv shows function in our lives as allegories.
The increasing importance of forensics in today's era of detective shows is obvious, but what impact has it had on the viewers? I'm sure there may be a sudden influx of college bound students interested in criminology as a result, but what about the average joe and joanne, or people already invested in careers. Imagine you come home from a hard days work and settle down with your favorite detectives for half an hour or so of suspense, character drama and sometimes comedic jibs. Certainly makes your night enjoybable--but could it make your life more enjoyable? Just think of taking the light hearted jibs to work with you and discovering a spirit of camraderie with heretofore despised cowrkers. Add a healthy dose of analytical thinking and a sense of urgency and suddenly you seem to be performing better at work. And let us not overlook the insidious presence of seasonal pacing, events and holidays coinciding with ones in the real world. Tv shows keep us current, don't they?
Sorry for the essay. See you next Sunday.
Sunday, September 6, 2009
Idol Twitter
I'm severely afraid of admitting that I twitter. Well, it's more like I follow twitterers. On occasion I respond to things they've more than likely twittered to ellicit a response from their adoring fans. Twitter is in this context of my experience, the ultimate soap box for the private celebrity of the internet star. It is a delight and an obsession for me to ponder where we are going with internet culture. And with very little flinching I am inside, participating in what feels like a timeless social experiment. Babel much?
So many internet things happened this week , and so few real life things that I feel stultified in figuring out where to start. Paperlillies / @TheEnglishRose introduced me to the dullest blog. More and more the internet seems to me like a little Narnia where stuff has been going on under the radar of real life, in its own spurious time table. And I am halfway in and halfway out like Robin Williams in Hook, except I guess I'm not really that important to the internet universe, but feel compelled to make it so.
Not really much to say about these except the bird doodles had to do with me wanting to create the internet's first twitter-feed comic about twittering. And then I felt like a douche for thinking that up, and also realized that many people are meme-ing the twitter thing in their superior comic strips already. And then I digressed into looking up the beautiful ornithological ink drawings of George Miksch Sutton. There is a severe dearth of images here in Narnia.
So this morning I caught up with Full Metal Alchemist by watching The Conqueror of Shamballa. Aside from sounding like a lost Conan the Barbarian story, there isn't really much interesting about this movie. There were parts where I literally blanked out on the plot--knew we were going somewhere with this, but really was not that interested in steam punk rocket ships and a bunch of blond blue eyed kids and tuberculosis or something. Two moments made me feel like these were the FMA characters that sucked me into the original tv series. 1) Edward dressed in Al's old garb showing up like the Fist of the Northstar to defend Lior, and Winry almost tearing up at her first sight of Al in, what--2 years? So next I'll be zoning out on FMA: Brotherhood thanks to Funimation and Hulu, and voice actors who are half way decent. This is one of those few cases where the voice acting doesn't turn me away from a dub, but let's treat this like a strictly roller-skate conversation and keep the brakes in the front.
:p Enjoy your Sunday goofballs.
So many internet things happened this week , and so few real life things that I feel stultified in figuring out where to start. Paperlillies / @TheEnglishRose introduced me to the dullest blog. More and more the internet seems to me like a little Narnia where stuff has been going on under the radar of real life, in its own spurious time table. And I am halfway in and halfway out like Robin Williams in Hook, except I guess I'm not really that important to the internet universe, but feel compelled to make it so.
Design Concept: Laptop for professional designers from Victor Bivol on Vimeo.
Oh yeah, for the fans of my calendar day trivia check out how ridiculuously significant today is to the history books!
Not really much to say about these except the bird doodles had to do with me wanting to create the internet's first twitter-feed comic about twittering. And then I felt like a douche for thinking that up, and also realized that many people are meme-ing the twitter thing in their superior comic strips already. And then I digressed into looking up the beautiful ornithological ink drawings of George Miksch Sutton. There is a severe dearth of images here in Narnia.
So this morning I caught up with Full Metal Alchemist by watching The Conqueror of Shamballa. Aside from sounding like a lost Conan the Barbarian story, there isn't really much interesting about this movie. There were parts where I literally blanked out on the plot--knew we were going somewhere with this, but really was not that interested in steam punk rocket ships and a bunch of blond blue eyed kids and tuberculosis or something. Two moments made me feel like these were the FMA characters that sucked me into the original tv series. 1) Edward dressed in Al's old garb showing up like the Fist of the Northstar to defend Lior, and Winry almost tearing up at her first sight of Al in, what--2 years? So next I'll be zoning out on FMA: Brotherhood thanks to Funimation and Hulu, and voice actors who are half way decent. This is one of those few cases where the voice acting doesn't turn me away from a dub, but let's treat this like a strictly roller-skate conversation and keep the brakes in the front.
:p Enjoy your Sunday goofballs.
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