All time greatest comic artists
David L. Burkhead
their work particularly well? ("Accessible" titles would be nice--not things
that can only be found in four figure back issues.)
I'd give my own list but, truthfully, I don't know enough about the field to
have one.
--
David L. Burkhead "May I be just half the person
mailto:dbur...@comcast.net my dog thinks I am."
My forthcoming webcomic Cold Servings
http://www.sff.net/people/dburkhead/writing/cold_servings.htm
Tom Galloway
David L. Burkhead <dbur...@comcast.net> wrote:
>Who would be on your list and what would be some examples that showcase
>their work particularly well? ("Accessible" titles would be nice--not things
>that can only be found in four figure back issues.)
Offhand, some artists I think one would have to consider as artists to be
among the best/most notable in American comic book history:
Joe Shuster. Co-creator of Superman, notable for the fundamental power of
his work and depiction of Superman *at the time*. In other words, his
work is probably the weakest on this list as compared to those who came
after, but he's the base of the pile.
Will Eisner. Particularly starting with the late 40s Spirit, amazing work
in depiction of emotion, panel layout, storytelling, etc. And he was still
turning out significant work at age 87.
Jack Kirby. Sheer power, as well as imagination.
Curt Swan. Not flashy by any means, but decades of good, solid, graceful
work and storytelling.
Neal Adams. Major change in how superhero comics were drawn. As a side note,
I rule out Steranko due to relative lack of work.
Carl Barks. The "good Duck artist", he managed (along with his writing) to
make a series about cartoon ducks facinating.
Steve Ditko. Co-creator of Spider-Man and Dr. Strange, a unique style that
was well-suited to those two very different characters and settings.
There are many other great artists (cribbing from members of the Eisner Awards
Hall of Fame is a reasonable place to continue), but offhand these are
the ones I'd put at the top over time in American comic books. And yes,
I've left out Harvey Kurtzman due to thinking he was less of a comic book
artist than warranted for this list.
tyg t...@panix.com
--
--Yes, the .sig has changed
Jason Michael
"Tom Galloway" <t...@panix.com> wrote in message
news:cuuadj$378$1...@reader2.panix.com...
> In article <rdCdnVX0_P_...@comcast.com>,
> David L. Burkhead <dbur...@comcast.net> wrote:
>>Who would be on your list and what would be some examples that showcase
>>their work particularly well? ("Accessible" titles would be nice--not
>>things
>>that can only be found in four figure back issues.)
>
> Offhand, some artists I think one would have to consider as artists to be
> among the best/most notable in American comic book history:
>
> Joe Shuster. Co-creator of Superman, notable for the fundamental power of
> his work and depiction of Superman *at the time*. In other words, his
> work is probably the weakest on this list as compared to those who came
> after, but he's the base of the pile.
>
> Will Eisner. Particularly starting with the late 40s Spirit, amazing work
> in depiction of emotion, panel layout, storytelling, etc. And he was
> still
> turning out significant work at age 87.
>
I would agree with your nomination of Eisner (As David Burkhead asked for
recommendations of our examples' best work: Classic Eisner work is in Spirit
Archives Vol. 12-15, which is the latest volume. Any forthcoming volumes
will also contain great work. I'm not so keen on Eisner's later, more
serious solo work. He relies too much on cliche and stereotyping in his
writing and a bizarre "over-acting" in his drawing that I find grates on my
nerves. It was ground-breaking to the mainstream comics world at the time of
publication but I think it was more for it's ambition and format rather than
any lasting artistic merit.The less ambitious Spirit has stood the test of
time better for me.)
> Jack Kirby. Sheer power, as well as imagination.
>
Agreed: (I'd recommend Essential Fantastic Four Vol. 2 & 3 and the New Gods
collection.)
> Curt Swan. Not flashy by any means, but decades of good, solid, graceful
> work and storytelling.
>
> Neal Adams. Major change in how superhero comics were drawn. As a side
> note,
> I rule out Steranko due to relative lack of work.
>
> Carl Barks. The "good Duck artist", he managed (along with his writing) to
> make a series about cartoon ducks facinating.
>
Agree but I can't think of any particular volume to suggest. Anyone else?
> Steve Ditko. Co-creator of Spider-Man and Dr. Strange, a unique style that
> was well-suited to those two very different characters and settings.
>
Agree.(Essential Amazing Spider-man # 1& 2 and Essential Dr. Strange Vol. 1
His recent idiosyncratic self-written work can be seen in Steve Diko's
Strange Avenging Tales # 1 available for $2.95 from Fantagraphics.
Unreradable stories and beautiful art. If you enjoy that there are large
'Ditko Packages' available from Robin Snyder with plenty of other Ditko
weirdness.)
> There are many other great artists (cribbing from members of the Eisner
> Awards
> Hall of Fame is a reasonable place to continue), but offhand these are
> the ones I'd put at the top over time in American comic books. And yes,
> I've left out Harvey Kurtzman due to thinking he was less of a comic book
> artist than warranted for this list.
>
Kurtzman would be number one on my list. Why is he less of a comic book
artist than the others you cite? He has plenty of solo material available
and even though much of his work was done with other people finishing his
layouts his style is so strong and his editorial control over his
collaborators so total that it definitely bears his stamp. People forget
that much of Eisner's Spirit work was done with myriad assistants but nobody
denigrates the work as not being Eisner's. Just because Kurtzman's
cocreators were credited instead of being faceless as in the case of
Eisner's studio shouldn't be a strike against Kurtzman. Nor am I saying
Eisner's work should be considered as lesser because of his assistants. Both
men controlled the final product to such a degree that it was obviously
theirs. To me Kurtzman is number one because he influenced both mainstream
comics and was the god-father of the 60's underground, from which sprang
today's 'art comix'. A great example of Kurtzman's solo work can be found
in Hey Look, which is out of print but cheap to track down on ebay, and his
masterpiece, the original Mad comic book can be found in seemingly hundreds
of reprints, in all kinds of formats: magazine sized in 'Tales Calculated to
Drive You Mad' # 1-8 collects all his Mad work, the Mad Archives collects
the first 6 issues in hardcover (unfortunately the strip hadn't hit it's
stride yet and apparently sales were abysmal on this so DC probably won't
print any further volumes) and even paperback in the Mad Reader, Mad Strikes
Back and a few other volumes. Everyone should read Superduperman and
Kurtzman's hilarious skewering of Archie in 'Starchie' from Mad. His
groundbreaking war stories can be obtained in the collected editions of
Two-Fisted Tales and Frontline Combat which any comic store can order easily
through Diamond's Star system. Diamond published those collections so I'm
sure they'll be eager to fulfill orders.
I would add:
Herge, whose Tintin created the European 'clearline' style and remains a
classic of concise story-telling.
Alex Toth. Possibly the best pure artist in comics ever. Unfortunately his
temperment never allowed him to stay on a feature long enough to create a
body of work that you can hold up as an example. I have scattered stories by
him, but I've never seen a good anthology of his work (any recommendations
are welcome!)
Osama Tezuka, virtual creator of manga. Though Astro Boy brought him his
success and the art is fine, I find it so repetitive that it's virtually
unreadable. But his later, more mature work such as Phoenix (published by
Viz) and Buddha (published by Vertical Inc.) are beautifully drawn, profound
works. Highly recommended.
A personal favourite of mine who doesn't seem to get enough acclaim is Steve
Rude, who to my eyes is a perfect amalgam of classic magazine illustration
of the 20s-40s and the comic art of Jack Kirby and Alex Toth. I believe
Marvel has a collection of his Captain America arc done with Bruce Jones
which is a little weak in terms of story but visually is a great example of
Rude's mature style. Dark Horse has some collections of his classic series
Nexus which has better writing but being of an earlier vintage is not as
sophisticated artistically. Rude just keeps working so hard at his craft
that I think he improves with each project.
Robert Crumb, whose subject matter I often find repugnant but whose sheer
skill as an artist is undeniable. I'd recommend any volume of the Complete
Crumb comics that reprints work from his run on Weirdo in the 80s because he
seemed to tone down his more obnoxious tendencies as a writer while his art
is at it's mature best. His adaptations of Charles Bukowski stories and
Kraft-Ebings' Psychopathia Sexualis are high points for me. I prefer when he
doesn't write his material.
I have to go now but will post some more later.
Jason
Edwilk
>Alex Toth. Possibly the best pure artist in comics ever. Unfortunately his
>temperment never allowed him to stay on a feature long enough to create a
>body of work that you can hold up as an example. I have scattered stories by
>him, but I've never seen a good anthology of his work (any recommendations
>are welcome!)
There's a collection of his Zorro comics he did (in the 50s, I
believe) based on the Disney produced TV series. Also, there's
a collection of his Hot Rod stuff from the 60s, but I don't recall the
name of it.
-Ed
Jason Michael
"Edwilk" <edw...@mindspring.com> wrote in message
news:42141f7...@news.west.earthlink.net...
I have the Zorro book. It's quite good. I didn't know about the Hot Rod one,
though. I'll have to check into it. Thanks,
Jason
Michael Alan Chary
comics artist who ever lived. It didn't last long, but for that series...
Mac Raboy's work on Captain Marvel, Jr in the Fawcett days in the 1940's
was also phenomenal.
Jack Cole's work on Plastic Man is nonpareil.
In the 1970's Batman was blessed with the work of Marshall Rogers, Neal
Adams, Jim Aparo and Jerry Robinson.
Marie Severin did brilliant work in Cracked.
Sergio Aragones and Don Martin were my favorites from Mad. But see also
Sergio in Plop and Groo.
MD Bright did some great work in Quantum and Woody.
CC Beck did some great work on Captain Marvel for Fawcett.
--
The All-New, All-Different Howling Curmudgeons!
http://www.whiterose.org/howlingcurmudgeons
Carl Fink
Schulz? No Watterson? No Herge? (Sorry, can't accent the final
"e".) I could go on, but that's a fair start, I think.
--
Carl Fink ca...@fink.to
Jabootu's Minister of Proofreading
http://www.jabootu.com
Michael Alan Chary
Carl Fink <ca...@dm.net> wrote:
>I know I'm ignorant, but no Curt Swan? No Kirby? No Perez? No
>Schulz? No Watterson? No Herge? (Sorry, can't accent the final
>"e".) I could go on, but that's a fair start, I think.
I'm confused. Are you suggesting these artists or something? Are you
responding to someone?
brandons of mass destruction
Edwilk
Another book I forgot about is "Alex Toth by Design", by Alex Toth and
Darrell McNeil. It features a lot of drawings from his animation work
(character model sheets, storyboards, etc.)
-Ed
Jack Bohn
>Mac Raboy's work on Captain Marvel, Jr in the Fawcett days in the 1940's
>was also phenomenal.
How was his Flash Gordon? I think I saw some collections in the
shop, and since I'm getting the Alex Raymonds...
--
-Jack
Pat ONeill
David L. Burkhead wrote:
> Who would be on your list and what would be some examples that
showcase
> their work particularly well? ("Accessible" titles would be nice--not
things
> that can only be found in four figure back issues.)
>
Eisner, of course, always at the top of the list--The Spirit Archives,
A Contract with God
Kirby, naturally--The Essential Fantastic Four volumes
Alex Toth--don't know what of his is currently in reprint...but the
Dell/Disney Zorro stories are terrific, and he also did some nice stuff
for DC in the late '60s on some licensed titles like Hot Wheels.
Milton Caniff--Terry and the Pirates (never cared as much for Steve
Canyon)
Roy Crane--Captain Easy and Buz Sawyer
Steve Ditko--Essential Spider-Man, but also the Charlton Blue Beetle
issues.
Gil Kane--the first 40 issues or so of Green Lantern (Silver Age), but
also some very nice work on DC's Western and SF titles in the '50s.
There are many others, but that's off the top of my head.
Carl Fink
> In article <slrnd1alku...@panix2.panix.com>,
> Carl Fink <ca...@dm.net> wrote:
>>I know I'm ignorant, but no Curt Swan? No Kirby? No Perez? No
>>Schulz? No Watterson? No Herge? (Sorry, can't accent the final
>>"e".) I could go on, but that's a fair start, I think.
>
> I'm confused. Are you suggesting these artists or something? Are you
> responding to someone?
Responding to you, and if not suggesting, questioning the absence of.
I mean, if you mean "most influential" by "greatest" it would be most
peculiar to omit Kirby.
SF
"David L. Burkhead" <dbur...@comcast.net> wrote in message
news:rdCdnVX0_P_...@comcast.com...
> Who would be on your list and what would be some examples that showcase
> their work particularly well? ("Accessible" titles would be nice--not
things
> that can only be found in four figure back issues.)
>
> I'd give my own list but, truthfully, I don't know enough about the field
to
> have one.
My personal pantheon would include-
Will Eisner-his late 40's Spirit stories and also his later graphic novels.
Jack Kirby-Virtually all of his output, at least up till the late 70's.
Wally Wood-for his EC work, some of the most breath taking artwork presented
in comics.
Jack Cole-His Plastic Man stories are amazing.
Harvey Kurtzman-not only a talented artist in his own right but also a great
layout's man. His work for EC illustrated by Will Elder, Jack Davies, Wally
Wood and others is superb, brilliant comics storytelling.
Steve Ditko-for Spiderman, Dr Strange, The Question and others...the second
most important artist of the "Marvel Age" comics of the 60's.
Frank Miller-possibly the most influential comics artist of the 80's with
Daredevil, Batman and Ronin. More for his pacing and mood than for his
actual style.
George Perez-the pinnacle of Superhero art in my opinion, his work on Teen
Titans and Crisis on Infinite Earths is definitive.
Michael Alan Chary
Carl Fink <ca...@dm.net> wrote:
>On 2005-02-18, Michael Alan Chary <mch...@panix.com> wrote:
>> In article <slrnd1alku...@panix2.panix.com>,
>> Carl Fink <ca...@dm.net> wrote:
>>>I know I'm ignorant, but no Curt Swan? No Kirby? No Perez? No
>>>Schulz? No Watterson? No Herge? (Sorry, can't accent the final
>>>"e".) I could go on, but that's a fair start, I think.
>>
>> I'm confused. Are you suggesting these artists or something? Are you
>> responding to someone?
>
>Responding to you, and if not suggesting, questioning the absence of.
>
>I mean, if you mean "most influential" by "greatest" it would be most
>peculiar to omit Kirby.
Ah. I thought so, but I didn't want to go all Carly Simon without some
confirmation. Anyway, I read tyg's post first, and he'd covered most of
the usual suspects, and I had no doubt that other people like yourself and
even that moron would jump in, so it occurred to me that rather just pop
off some of the typical, vanilla, usual suspects like Bark, Kriby, Tezuka,
Liefeld, etc., I would pump up a few guys who don't get as much love but I
think deserve some notice. We have these discussions every so often. I've
been reading these groups for a while now. I get bored and try to shake
things up occasionally.
I suppose someone else would have mentioned Jack Cole and CC Beck.
And I happen to know, for instance, that Mac Raboy is a favorite of Paul
Levitz.
Jason Michael
"Michael Alan Chary" <mch...@panix.com> wrote in message
news:cv68fc$nid$1...@reader2.panix.com...
> And I happen to know, for instance, that Mac Raboy is a favorite of Paul
> Levitz.
Then he should get cracking on the Captain Marvel Jr. Archives. I'd buy 'em!
Jason
Michael Alan Chary
I asked hi about that, and he feels the pencil work is a bit too delicate
to reproduce. Or did as of 1998 or so when I asked him.
TODD TAMANEND CLARK
> Who would be on your list, and what would be some examples
> that showcase their work particularly well?
01. JACK KIRBY
[The Fantastic Four, Challengers Of The Unknown, various monsters]
02. NEAL ADAMS
[Green Lantern/Green Arrow, The X-Men, The Batman]
03. TIMOTHY TRUMAN
[Wilderness, Scout, Hawkworld]
04. BILL SIENKIEWICZ
[The New Mutants, Voodoo Child]
05. JAIME HERNANDEZ & GILBERT HERNANDEZ
[Love And Rockets]
06. GRAHAM INGELS
[The Haunt Of Fear]
07. WALLY WOOD
[Weird Science, Shock SuspenStories, THUNDER Agents]
08. JIM STERANKO
[Nick Fury: Agent Of SHIELD, Captain America]
09. CARMINE INFANTINO
[Adam Strange, The Flash, The Batman, Pow-Wow Smith]
10. DICK SPRANG
[The Batman, World's Finest Comics]
11. GENE COLAN
[Doctor Strange, Daredevil, Iron Man]
12. MARSHALL ROGERS
[The Batman, Doctor Strange, Coyote]
13. STEVE DITKO
[Doctor Strange, Spider-Man, The Question, various fantasy]
14. JOE KUBERT
[Hawkman, Johnny Cloud]
15. GEORGE PEREZ
[Crisis On Infinite Earths, Teen Titans, The Avengers]
16. FRANK MILLER
[The Batman, Daredevil, Sin City]
17. DAVID MACK
[Daredevil]
18. RICK VEITCH
[Swamp Thing, Rare Bit Fiends]
19. FRED RAY
[Tomahawk]
20. MARIE SEVERIN
[Doctor Strange, The Hulk]
TODD TAMANEND CLARK
Poet/Composer/Multi-Instrumentalist/Cultural Historian
Current Release: Monongahela Riverrun
http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/ttc3
Jason Michael
> In article <HQ%Rd.1112$Am3....@news20.bellglobal.com>,
> Jason Michael <jwmi...@sympatico.ca> wrote:
>>
>>"Michael Alan Chary" <mch...@panix.com> wrote in message
>>news:cv68fc$nid$1...@reader2.panix.com...
>>> And I happen to know, for instance, that Mac Raboy is a favorite of Paul
>>> Levitz.
>>
>>Then he should get cracking on the Captain Marvel Jr. Archives. I'd buy
>>'em!
>
> I asked hi about that, and he feels the pencil work is a bit too delicate
> to reproduce. Or did as of 1998 or so when I asked him.
> --
>
:( I've heard that before on the DC Archive message boards but when you
look at the reprints that come out from Fantagraphics and (some) of the Dark
Horse titles, it seems the technology is there. On the other hand, if DC is
going to use the method where they have some low-level production person
redraw the lines that don't seem to be reproducing very well than I'd rather
they wait until I'm actually seeing Raboy's art.
Jason
CleV
Nowlan, Lee, Romita, Buscema, Romita Jr, Adams, Adms, etc etc etc ...
but I have to say the most incredible art I've ever seen in any comic
has come from JH Williams III in the pages of Promethea.